Athens, Greece.

Vignettes

10am

Of all the things to see in Athens

a quarter mile of sloped steps to the Temple of Athena

the sixteen remaining Corinthian columns of Zeus

the olympic stadium standing after two World Wars

and the many dogs that call home

these annals of lost human history.

Noon

To feel the sun in true mid summer

is to enjoy skin burnt from your arms

to sweat from your calves into your shoes

to scrape the salty grit from your scalp

and to dry out, finally, only to smell like wet dog.

2:30pm

To take cover under an olive tree

to lean on a stoop, half uncomfortable, looking into port

as international freight comes and goes

the ships claim Turkey, Italy, Morocco

the freight mundane, the same:

Only here is "Foreignness" tolerable.

3:00pm

Peter, a Greek limo driver sits beside me

and from a silver embellished case, he meticulously fingers

a cigarette between his lips and lights.

From the corner of his mouth

he begins and ends his story:

"Thirty days of mandatory holiday in Greece,

It's a shame, you Americans work too much."

M.C.--Photo and words. Athens, Greece. 2007.