Day Two In Greece

As I arose from my deep slumber on a Sunday morning, I had to remind myself that I was in Greece. 15 years earlier, I had visited Europe and stopped by Athens, Mykonos, and Kifisia to visit a friend and travel with friends. At the time, the city seemed polluted, dirty, and pretty disorganized. What a difference 15 years makes. The new Athens is expensive, virtually spotless, and extremely modern. The Metro system built right before the 2004 Olympics have given this country a huge boost. Greece is actually a prosperous country. EU incluision sure did help.

The first site on our photo shoot with guitar Iakovos Kolanian was to the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounyoum. Dating back about 3000 years, it stands atop a huge hill overlooking the water. Photographer Kevork Imirzian was checking out the light and getting himself ready for the week of shooting. There were no expectations today about getting the cover shot or any important photo inclusion in our CD booklet. It was a relaxed and friendly outing in which we started to talk about what direction we wanted to take the new Barrios CD. After the breathtaking views at Sounyoum, we decided to head back and pick up Iakovos's wife and head to a small town near Athens to take a look at a chuch and eat some food.

As an Armenian, it is common knowledge that we attend Greek function in droves, and they do not come to ours. At least in North America. Maybe we need them more than they need us, I don't know. However, the eery feeling I got in Greece upon my first full day there was they seem so much like us in some ways. The warmth in personality, the shared Ottoman history, and even the churches and religion. I felt comfortable in this environment, and even felt at times I was in Armenia, however, only for brief moments. As soon as you see the waters of Greece and the prosperity, the comparison ends. However, there were two spots were I got that fuzzy feeling. The first was in their old churches with the ornate detailing. The other was at their restaurants where dolma, kebab, and other similar Mediterrainian foods were served with unwielding fervor. Cigarettes and everything.

After our early dinner, seeing a concert was in consideration, but, again we were tired and jet lagged. So, I hit the sack early waiting for our first big trip. The location would be the Peleponesis section of Greece about two hours away where an old fortress on a hill overlooking the water was next on the agenda. Iakovos mentioned that the narrow streets and awesome colors would make for a good backdrop. Kevork was also ready to roll. It was why were there.

So, I watched "Battlestar Galactica" on iTunes I downloaded before I went to bed. I watched about 5 minutes and crashed. In the middle of being awake and being asleep is when they say you have your most creative moments. At that moment, my thoughts were not on the TV show on my laptop, it was concert that in addition to us taking great photos of Iakovos for our CD, I had to create some networking opportunities in Greece for music. Like I said before, in the music biz, all it takes is one break. Until then, you keep moving forward, back and forth at the starting line. The fear was that if this project bombs, I will be out of business for good.

Next- Peleponesis and the Fortress. Greeks had it, Turks took it, Greeks took it back.