In the summer of 1977 two Greek-American friends backpacked through Italy, Greece and Egypt for my first independent trip to Europe where we met adventures at every turn. After traveling through Northern Greece it was time to visit the family villages and birthplace of my father Angelo D. Alexander. Dad’s younger sister, Chrysoula who lived in Piraeus met me at the Athens bus station where we traveled to visit the patriarchal villages of Poulithra, Kounoupia and Peleta which are municipalities of South Kynouria in Peloponnese. The photos capture the descent from Peleta overlooking Poulithra with the Myrtoan Sea coastline framed by the Parnon Mountains. The newly constructed church is called The Birth of the Lord (Η Γέννηση του Χριστού). In the following frames are local children
who posed for a series of photos that are includes #14A and my cousin Efi Alexandraki has identified them as, “The first boy on the right is George Kompogiorgas, the girl behind him is his first cousin Tasia Platzopoulou (she was a lawyer and she died of cancer at the age of 27), the boy next to George is the son of a policeman, who served in Poulithra, the tall girl on the left is the daughter of this policeman.” As I turned the corner to the kato gitonia (bottom neighborhood meaning closer to the seashore) I photographed a group of villagers and pack mules in #18A that includes Dimittios Xerakias (a purveyor of tomatoes, potatoes and other seasonal offerings) the younger lady is Metaxia Platzopoulou and the older lady is Diamando Mavromati. In #33A is a photo of relatives left to right, Vasiliki Mitsinikou, Aggeliki Kalogiannis, George Kalogiannis, Theodoros Kalogiannis and my Thea Chrysoula Alexander Kalivas. We all piled in their station wagon for a ride back to Athens where I regrouped with Margo for more adventures in Crete and Egypt. Onward, εμπρός!