Long Overdue…and Absolutely Perfect

In 2019, I scheduled a big trip for my mom and myself to take together. The tour was planned for July of 2020 while my boys were at summer camp. I bet you can guess that we did not take that trip due to worldwide closures. My kids didn’t go to camp that year, only the second time in over 90 years their camp was closed for a season.

So, we talked about rescheduling our big trip. For over two years!

Finally we went -three years late- and I wouldn’t change a thing.

Last month, we set off for a 12 day tour around Greece. Well, the tour was about 9 days and we spent a couple on our own exploring Athens. One thing to know about me is that I love to travel. Seriously, I would choose travel over material luxuries any day of the week. We chose Greece because going to Santorini was bucket list item for my mom and the island was a stop on the itinerary. I had no idea how much I would fall in love with Greece.

You’ve heard of flat Stanley? lol.

Well, I thought it would be a fun way to chronicle the trip to take mini quilts to photograph along the way. Not quite every day, I carried one of my little curved piecing quilts and my mom and I staged a photo op. It was a little bit goofy (I excel at being weird) and a lot of fun.

So, my little Eclipse quilt got to visit Santorini. The island is as beautiful and unique as the photos suggest – but a bit crowded for my taste.

Have you heard of Mylos? it’s a tiny Greek island that you might not know about, but have definitely seen in photos. The landscape is incredibly unique with gorgeous coastlines and other-worldly volcanic rock forms that reminded me of the red slick rock of my home state of Utah (think Arches and Canyonlands) except on Mylos, the ‘slick rock’ is WHITE. Apparently it’s a popular place for commercial photo shoots, so next time you see a model or a suitcase by the sea surrounded by smooth white stone, you’re looking at Mylos.

My little original Indigo quilt went to Mylos. Can you believe that bougainvilleas?

My little Pisces quilt went to Ephesus and soaked up the history.

Not sure what was going on with my socks when we went to Ephesus (it’s actually in Turkey, not Greece), but like I’ve said, I excel at being weird. Ephesus was amazing. It’s probably not surprising that our trip was filled with historical sites of mind-blowing age and beauty, but Ephesus was next level. I could wax all philosophical about how small one feels when walking a place that people have been walking for several thousand years. Or the immense appreciation for the ingenuity and work ethic required to build such impressive monuments -or entire cities, as Ephesus was- with stone, in a time before cranes, trucks, and worldwide supply chains. I’ll leave you to your own reflection. It really does make you stop and think…

Another island where we stopped, Crete, was a little change of pace. We took in the ruins and learned about a historical palace – the location that inspired the myth of the minotaur and labyrinth – but spent more time in the city. My favorite thing when traveling anywhere is casual time walking a city and exploring, trying foods, looking at shops and all the character of a place. Crete is one of the larger islands and home to a large agricultural industry. We heard a lot about how delicious their olive oil is (-: and I can attest to the notion that everything is delicious there.

I didn’t take any photos of quilts, but I think my favorite stop on the trip (outside of Athens, I loved Athens!) was Mykonos. Mykonos is as beautiful and picturesque as Santorini but I felt like there was more to it than the tourist shops. I really enjoyed walking around the port town and also a smaller town we took a bus to see, and a beautiful quiet beach. A highlight of my day on Mykonos was becoming an accidental dinner guest with an American couple also on holiday. We laughed so hard, shared dessert and talked like old friends. Isn’t it amazing how great it feels to make human connections? …that random people you’ve never met can feel like great friends over dinner on a beach in Greece! I was pretty charged up that evening.

Something that really stands out to me (so many things stood out from this trip!) was a statement made by our local guide when we stopped in Turkey to see Ephesus. I don’t remember the exact context, but we were talking about loving travel, etc, and he said something to the effect of, “travel is so important, to see other cultures, meet different people, see the humanity of the world up close. It’s essential to peace.”

Not to get too sappy, but I loved this at this particular moment. It goes right along with one of my favorite mantras when I feel frustrated with the world, politics, society, people with different opinions, when seen from my computer screen or social media feed, “it’s hard to hate up close”.

Now, where to go next? I guess I need to make a new batch of tiny quilts to take on my next tour.

Happy summer, Everyone. Hope you are doing or seeing something beautiful,

DON’T FORGET: big giveaway going on now, and entries are due July 1. Read Here to find out how to enter

ALSO: our first virtual class is coming up July 10-12. It’s free and you’ll learn all about curved piecing, so SIGN UP