a garden gate on lesvos... 

finials in a workshop in athens, waiting for their bedposts... 

a whimsical bronze serpent water spout in the church courtyard at skala eressos, lesvos. 

one of the most blissful and inspiring hours i spent during my seventeen days in greece was here, in this mineral bath at lisvori, on the island of lesvos. inland from the gulf of kalloni a couple of miles, it is set in a lush landscape of olive groves and fruit orchards. to get there, i drove past many fields of red poppies -the picture i posted a while ago was taken on that journey. although, now having been to lisvori, i would now call it a pilgrimage more than a journey. this spot radiated wonderful healing energy. the original bath on site is many hundreds of years old, built in the turkish style, a legacy left by years of occupation. it is under restoration; so the bath you see here, the one i soaked in, is about 80 years old, but build in the traditional ancient style. perhaps next time i return to that enchanted island, i will get to soak in the original one. on this visit, i was more than satisfied with the bath i took. the water is golden with minerals, those minerals have stained the marble tub over time and created the most beautiful patina. i was allowed to have the bath to myself for as long as i wanted, as it was the middle of the week, off season. the water is very hot. the minerals pull toxins and stress out of your body. you feel almost melted into mush, but then look around and cannot resist the serene, rustic beauty of the place.

so i soaked; naked, blissfully alone and took many photographs. 

the traditional ceiling is domed, with small square windows cut into the curve to let in streams of light and release steam. the ceiling is easily 10 inches thick and no window glass is needed. i was simply mesmerized with the play of the light on the water and walls. the white shapes you see reflected in the water are those window openings. 

of course, everywhere i pointed my viewfinder, i saw paintings. glorious color, abstract form.

it was an exceptionally magical day. after leaving the bath, i drove through the olive groves to the the sea and happened upon the beach of a million shells. i had heard tell of this beach, but had no idea where it was. i collected enough shells for my many nieces and nephews (and a few for myself). i ate lunch at a tiny taverna, the only building in a tiny cluster of a village with any evidence of life. a greek salad and some delicious grape leaves stuffed with lamb and rice, rich and delicate at the same time. a few bright colored fishing boats bobbed on the shore. i spread out my map of the island on the table and looked at it for a long while with the grandfather there, me speaking no greek, and him no english. but the map has a language of it's own. the language of places, the names of villages and towns. he traced the map with his finger and spoke the names aloud, i repeated them, learning to pronounce.

this was the magic that happens when you wander, alone and open to experiences, into unknown places.

anyone who reads found object regularly knows of my deep love for red and green together. i particularly adore the 1950's shades of red and green combined in home decor and fashion. but nature is the original, she does it best. i've selected four of my most luminous flora photos, taken in greece this april. all the other gardeners and flower enthusiasts will understand how these all seem unabashedly sexy to me... 

we all travel through this life with expectations. often we are disappointed, but sometimes what we find exceeds our wildest imagination. i didn't expect to find this extraordinary metal work in athens. when we think of athens and greece in general, we think of the marble monuments and ruins and we think of white buildings layered with blue sky and even bluer sea. as i hobbled through athens with my hurting heel, i found so many surprising treasures for the eye. i fantasized about taking up blacksmithing again, about setting up a forge and buying back that anvil i sold because moving it one more time was too much to handle. when i returned home, i came down to earth and started looking at these photos.

oh, the patterns! the incredible details. the shadows created by the bright sun and these amazing iron door grills. the range of architectural styles and periods. it's endless inspiration.

what i found in athens blew me away.

above and below, two sections from the same over-the-top entryway. look at that hand hammer work!