Tag Archives | Cyclades

Man, oh man, oh man…

By John on December 22, 2016 in beauty, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, Uncategorized

Ha! Well, I had grand ideas about updating the blog after the Presidential Election in America…and then I did not. Then again when I went to Santorini for a quick visit…and I didn’t. Time has gone by, the Winter Solstice was yesterday and in acknowledging this planetary shift I am locked in to updating this thing today. This afternoon, I think. I’ll write, edit, load the new header image and post from the very same cafe where I currently sit, snug and warm and out of the cold and rain. And, yes…I have a head cold. Shit. ‘Tis the season. It is a wet and windy 6C (42F) outside and with the 43km north wind it feels more like 3C (38F). Suffice to say that those of us who live in houses without central heating all wear clothes, all the time. I sleep in fleece and base layers. And a hat.

So there are the bullet points.

–Santorini was good. I went solely to visit the archeological site of Akrotiri, which was closed the last time I visited 10 years ago. I took the ferry on Friday afternoon, saw the site and both museums the next morning and then took the boat back. I was off-island for just over 24 hours. I was glad to be back on Paros. Aside from the caldera and the archeological sites, Santorini is pretty dull. Too built up, too barren and, at this time of year, mostly closed. Some that is no one’s fault. 3400 years ago the place blew up and has never really recovered. I guess that is part of its charm. It is, after all, still an active volcano. This link is really good…Hey man…that’s my neighbourhood!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoan_eruption

–I have been re-watching ‘The Sopranos’ since I never actually finished the series a few years years ago. It is very good. I have fallen in love with this clan of sociopathic narcissistic trash. Really amazing. Like watching a train wreck. And then, somewhere in the middle of Season 2, or maybe 3, it dawned on me…The White House has been handed over to The Sopranos! Think about it. Complete with a goon squad!

–“For the love of money is the root of many evils…” (1 Timothy 6:10) If this guy (I daren’t say his name) didn’t have any money, he’d just be another vulgar, racist, sexist, loud-mouthed, annoying asshole xenophobe sitting at the end of the bar. Really. No joke. He is proof that money cannot buy you class or taste. In fact, he symbolizes all that is wrong and bad in our world–avarice, hubris, graft, ignorance–a deep soul-sickness lying beneath his veneer-like need for attention. He is the winner of that contest, hands down. I think he’d even win the popular vote. This makes him very dangerous. Anyone who studies history knows this.

–I’ll blog again before the new year. There is more to report from this lovely rock in the middle of the Aegean Sea. Have a Merry Christmas everyone, or whatever you wish to celebrate!

–JDCM

Thoughts meander…

By John on September 28, 2016 in Athens Greece, autumn, beauty, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, Uncategorized, working

The sun rose golden peaches as I departed the Port of Pireaus 3/4 of the way through September. I have been back in Greece and on Paros since the middle of August. Through a window of the Blue Star Delos and across the gulf the mountains surround Attica. How I love this place. Ancient rocks cradle my heart and timeless seas ferry me home…

I haven’t blogged in a long time and I apologize. Sometimes I have had too much on my mind and to sort out any coherent thoughts and to put them down seems daunting. What I need is time to let the events of the past year-and-half filter out into something resembling…something, something solid.

I return to the island after a long weekend wth friends on another island, another archipelago. This marks the last of my long-term commitments for 2016 and I finally feel like I can relax. The deeply emotional yet business-like events of laying my mother to rest and selling the family home are behind me. My inherited furnitures, works of art, books and homewares are tucked away in storage units. I packed my bags with those things that I could smuggle and left America. Oddly enough, I feel no sadness in leaving the house I called home for so long. With my mother’s absence, the place felt empty and hollow. She had been its heart and soul and without her it was just a shell.

I have finally found an ear doctor who has offered anything like a solution to my labyrinthitis/Meuniere’s/tinnitus…Dr. Peraki’s prescription has improved my hearing almost 10% over the past month so I have been told to keep at the regimen and we shall see what is what in about 2 months, just before Christmas.

Speaking of that…one novel feeling…I am not thinking about plane tickets back to America. This time, during the past several years, I would begin looking at dates, routes, etc…not today, thank the gods. I am looking forward to being here through all of December and January, February, without the interruption of having to leave.

And so on I ramble…

—JDCM

Kythnos and a change of plan…

By John on May 25, 2016 in 35 mm photography, beauty, Cyclades stone walls, Cycladic stone walls, Greece, hiking in the Cyclades, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, skill and craft, spiritual journey, spring in the Aegean, stone walls, Uncategorized, working

–There is a lot to see and do on Kythnos and by the time I leave on Friday I will have seen and done most of it. Superb hiking, archaeological sites (mesolithic, Byzantium, 19th century mining…), good eats, friendly folks…The weather was so-so for the first two days but then the sun came out, the winds shifted and there was fine weather for getting lost on the donkey trails and photographing more stone walls than I knew what to do with. I am pretty much saturated with walls at the moment. I have a feeling I will finish up the roll I have in my camera today and be done with this island for the time being. I have one more long hike to do tomorrow (12 km) so perhaps I will try to use one more roll. Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.

–I found an excellent little taverna on the port of Merichas. Typical family-run, spitiko, without all the frippish tom-foolery of frankish cuisine. I ate roasted goat in lemon sauce last night; grilled fresh sardines the night before…local, mild feta on my salads. I’ll go there again tonight. Funny thing…when Kostas, the owner’s son, heard I was from Paros, he told me that his cousin Giorgos worked in a fish taverna in Paroikia…Hmmm…I know Giorgos well! We had a good time and then Kostas called Giorgos and he and I had a quick chat. I love these alliances. So Yalos Byzantio is my spot. I dine there again tonight.

–My lodging has been excellent. My small studio overlooks the harbour of Merichas. The ferries dock just a few hundred meters away and the ins-and-outs of tourist sailors in their small rented sailboats make for interesting comedy-drama. Only some seem to be good sailors. The rest look like they are trying too park their cars. Oh well…I wish them all the fun in the world. The Aegean is a lovely place to sail.

–I am tired. I am tired of living out of my luggage. I will have a lot more of that this summer so I suppose I should get used to it, but for the moment…

I left Paros on May 10th, after a four-day general strike which threw all my plans into the air. As a result of this strike, I was forced to use one of the High-Speed ferries that runs around the Aegean. I hate these things for many reasons. The only other time I was on one was in 2006 and I picked up a terrible respiratory bug just by being shut inside the interior for several hours with no fresh air. True to form, by the time I reached Evia on Thursday the 12th, my throat was scratchy. By Saturday I was on antibiotics, decongestants…sick. 11 days later I am finally off the meds. I need to go home. I feel great, but it is time to sit on my own terrace, sleep in my own bed…

As luck would have it, the same ferry that would have brought me to Syros, continues on home to Paros. So I will leave Kythnos Friday morning and be home in time for tea…

Pezoules, walls and and Agios Anathasios, Kythnos, 2016

–JDCM

Darkness and light…

By John on April 30, 2016 in beauty, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paroikia, Paros, spiritual journey, spring in the Aegean, Uncategorized

It is Easter here. The symbolic nature of the the life/death/life cycle are not lost on me. My grief over the death of both my parents last year will continue to shake my psyche for some time. This week I have been particularly sad. My father and I had a troubled and difficult relationship. Still, I miss his little emails about what he would be making for dinner, what he was reading…My mother? Ah, yes…mama…

She was my center. She was stability and gentleness, support and unconditional love. Regardless of my age or maturity, she was there. I would come home and she would greet me at the door with a hug. If I had telephoned beforehand, she would have always asked, “What do you want for dinner?” There was always food, hugs, warmth, encouragement. Roast chicken. Pot roast.

Amidst this crushing grief, my family and I are all but forced to sell her house, the house where I grew up and, for 47 years of my life, the only home I have ever known. It is a matter of practicality since none of us can afford to live there and pay the taxes–and for this I am ashamed. I can only speak for myself. I have had to reduce a source of protection, nurturing and golden memory into a commodity, something to be passed on to strangers. May they find the same hub of stability there that I have known forever.

I decided 3 years ago to move to Paros full time, to make my home here, to try to sink roots in this rocky land. The deaths of my parents has rendered my old compass obsolete and my maps out of date. Previous points of reference have faded and mean too much or nothing at all. My new compass is a thing of beauty–bronze, marble, sunlight and the wine-dark sea. My new maps are crisp and unmarked.

So darkness and light, death and life…we grasp for handholds on our respective islands. We find ourselves in treacherous waters, between rocks and the hardest of places. Tonight at midnight the lights will go out and from behind the curtain the magic appears…a single trembling flame–hope for the hopeless, a light in the darkness.

Kalo Pascha!

–JDCM

January on Paros…

By John on February 1, 2016 in beauty, biking, craft, darkroom work, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, mountain bike race, mountain biking in Greece, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, skill and craft

The header image is from New York, a view of the family property in Ancramdale. It is a winter scene. Looks pretty cold and all but monochromatic. That where I had been since December 1st, 2015. Much has happened since then. You all know that. Life and death. Pretty important.

I have been back in Greece since January 22 and today is February 1, 2016! Kalo Mina everyone! I am back on Paros and the weather has been lovely–mid-teens Celsius with light breezy winds. It was pretty cold when I arrived. It will get cold again, I think. I am a fortunate man.

A view in Marathi, Paros, February 1, 2016

It is so quiet here, so perfect. In a couple of weeks I will begin a new photo project and I am looking forward to that. There is also a mountain bike race on March 6th for which I am training. After two months out of the saddle I need some time to get fit, but hey, it’s like riding a bike, right? Ha!

One would think that I have some great wisdom to impart, but really I don’t. I guess I’ll have to paraphrase my friend Jac who reminds us all to follow your heart, do your exercises, and eat your peas…or whatever. The food is relative.

–JDCM

Need for beauty…

By John on November 19, 2015 in autumn, beauty, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, spiritual journey, Thanksgiving

With all the horror, pain and uncertainty in the world, I need to remind myself there is real beauty in the world. It is just down the street, around the corner or on the table in a bowl, sun shining…More can be found here…

Cypress cones, Paros, Greece…November 2015

Local clementines, just picked, sunshine, glass, marble…

Pomegranates, lemons, bay leaves from a nearby tree and a pear…

–JDCM

New spaces…

By John on November 8, 2015 in autumn, beauty, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paros, spiritual journey

After waiting over 6 months and living surrounded by boxes of books, photo stuff, odds and ends, and clothes I have finally moved to my new flat. What relief! I had lived (gratefully, mind you) in the previous apartment for so long and grown so accustomed to being crammed into an old building in need of serious repair that this new space really twists my head around. My light fixtures do not need re-wiring, the plumbing doesn’t smell of bacterial rot and shutters are not decaying and falling off of their hinges. These were everyday living conditions before last week. I also have almost twice the amount of room as well as an apothiki (‘warehouse’), so that much of what I had lived with before can now be tucked away–boxes of negatives, portfolios, seasonal clothes, extra stuff…all of this is now out of sight and out of my living area. And I feel no need to fill up the new and open spaces with stuff. I am enjoying the freedom of movement. I have an IKEA order coming, but it is not so much and only replaces some of what my current landlord has supplied. I want to put my own touch on things so I have purchased a new dining room table, some rugs, an easy chair and footstool, some lamps, a clock. I also bought some traditional taverna chairs down the street and stained them a yellow tone. As they dried I realized they turned a bright yellow ochre. It made me think that maybe I should have used the tetrachromy for my design. Just an idea. Next time maybe.

The move has also affected my dreams. Maybe it is because my bed now faces due north (it faced south for almost 3 years), but my dreams all week have been vivid, complex and memorable. Sometimes even a bit disturbing. I am not complaining, just keeping notes.

I think my overwhelming feelings are ‘Finally!’ and also ‘What now?’ This applies to my physical as well as emotional states. So many endings, so many beginnings, so many new spaces and ideas. There is plenty of room for all of this thinking and action. I’ll post some photos once the IKEA goods have arrived and are assembled. My current landlord walked into the flat the other day and exclaimed “So much light!” I’ll try to keep it that way.

4 new chairs

–JDCM

Just an update…

By John on October 29, 2015 in 35 mm photography, autumn, beauty, biking, craft, darkroom work, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, mountain biking in Greece, Paroikia, Paros, quiet islands, silver darkroom, skill and craft, Uncategorized, working

I have always loved the change of seasons. Whether in the Hudson Valley where I grew up or the small island in the Aegean Sea where I now live. I welcome each new season with joy and relief, only to say good riddance three months later after weariness sets in. This autumn is no different and there are many changes to go along with the weather. Clocks have been set back. Tea time seems more meaningful as darkness falls.

I have been living in an apartment full of boxes for the past two months. All of my books, shelving, camera gear, odds and ends…have been packed up and ready to be moved. At first it was an exciting feeling, to come home to this pyramid of brown cardboard. It has grown stale as the day approaches when I can finally begin to move from one side of town to the other. As one friend remarked last night, moving house is inspiring and makes one reevaluate routines. Like the change of seasons, this move will give me a new perspective. I need it.

My small photo show was, on many levels, a superb success. Many people came to the opening and I was struck by the wide variety of people I know here on Paros: people involved in the arts, those I know through the local biking community, others I have come to know over the years, students from a local art school…people who would ordinarily not mix. They crammed into the space provided by a small Italian restaurant and had a good time. I guess that was the point, really, to have a small gathering on a night in mid-October when there was ordinarily little to do. Many compliments, many questions…alas, not a single sale so I am stuck with 22 framed and matted photos. So I will choose one to put up in my new apartment. There is a part of me that wants to just burn the rest. But what to do with the frames and glass? Eventually I will get around to scanning the photos so people can see them online, which suddenly feels like cheating. Now I don’t want to do that. If you missed the show, you missed it. Is that so selfish?

I wasn’t asking a huge amount for these photos. They were priced inexpensively. If I had sold five I would have broken even on the costs. I think many people have no idea of the work that goes into a single image. Even had these been digital images, the work would have been substantial. They are not, of course, so we are talking days of labor to get the picture right and that is before matting, framing, the overall cost for the exhibit opening…I guess I am taking page from Robert Fripp’s advice to artists–work for free–an expensive venture.

My list for today is as long as my arm and I must get it all done.

–JDCM

Temperate climate change…

By John on September 17, 2015 in 120 film, 35 mm photography, autumn, beauty, biking, craft, Cyclades stone walls, Cycladic stone walls, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, mountain biking in Greece, Paros, quiet islands, skill and craft, spiritual journey, stone walls, working

There are only a few days left until the Autumnal Equinox and it feels like it here on Paros. The crushing summer heat has fled, and in its wake the days have become clear and sunny, with cooler breezes. The tourist crowds have thinned considerably and our island is slowly being returned to us. There is nothing quite so lovely as the change of seasons.

So much has happened in the past 4 months. After my father died things changed. A re-assessment of my life, goals, raison d’etre…Once again I am looking into what makes me ‘happy’. Life, for me at least, is no longer about hitting myself with a hammer while thinking that the next blow wouldn’t hurt. Time to stop doing what I do not like, when at all possible.

I am also moving house. I have everything boxed up and ready to go save for my clothes, some small amount of kitchen stuff and what art is hanging on my walls. I move at the end of October and assume all of my own bills and rent. That will be a relief and a freedom I have missed.

boxed up and almost ready to go…

Here are some still lives from a friend’s back terrace…

Blue Vase, 2015

Ladder and Anchor, 2015

My header image is from a short bike trip I took to Antiparos recently. It is a reminder of two of the things I love to do and have been neglecting the past few months. It is also a reminder that William Henry Jackson may have had his mules but I have my mountain bike.

Yashica and Bike, Andiparos, September 2015

That’s it.

–JDCM

Asleep, then waking…

By John on August 30, 2015 in Athens Greece, beauty, Greece, John D.C. Masters, John Masters, Paroikia, Paros, spiritual journey, Uncategorized

The streets of Athens feel empty at 04:00. This ancient city is sleeping.

I have returned home from my father’s memorial service in Provincetown. It was a lovely and moving weekend laughter and tears. On Sunday we scattered his ashes in the bay. We boarded the rented schooner and set sail on a foggy and grey afternoon, light winds from the south. As the skipper cut the motor and the crew raised sail, I was struck by how calm and peaceful the air had become, silent but for the waves lapping at the hull. Light mist settled upon us with caring hands. As we came about my sisters and I stood against the gunwale and poured him into the briny blue-green, the water turning momentarily milky as the ash melted into the deep. And he was gone. Afterwards we gathered with friends and told tales of the man. We watched a moving short film prepared by his widow, and ate some food. We all agreed he would have enjoyed it. He would have also exclaimed, at one point, “Enough already!”, his modesty finally outweighing his pride. So long, weary traveler! Kalo taxidhi!

I have been musing on happiness–again. I have heard that it is an ‘inside job.’ If so then what are the external expressions? I know that I am happy yet my world, to some, may look messy, chaotic, perhaps unsystematic. There is nothing neat and orderly about it. It is not sanitary or perfectly aligned. Maybe a need for external neatness, a desk of neatly sharpened pencils and carefully arranged in/out boxes is actually a cry for help? I know my father’s office, even when he was young and dementia had not taken its toll, was what would have been thought of as messy and disorganized. In fact, everything was exactly where it needed to be. His internal life, his ethos, was ship-shape and trim. His morality and sense of self were in alignment and he was happy. And he left a desk of unfinished work–a sign of a life well-lived.

I celebrate the dust and disorder of the external and understand how it feeds my imagination. It is a zen geometry, creating an oblique stack of books, random pieces of folded paper, a crumbling temple on a rock overlooking the noise and chaos–all precarious. It allows me to get lost, discovering the jewel in the mud that others will never discover. I have permission to get muddy. To find joy and laughter in the lack of right-angles, the subtle aspects of color and shades of grey…That is fun. That is happiness. Creation is messy work, full of uncertainty and risk.

–JDCM

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