Chapter 1

His eager gaze took in the panorama of the sea from on high. The series of events that had ultimately led to his presence in a plane flying above the Aegean Sea flashed through his mind. He had done his research among members of the Alumni Club of his American college, and their advice had been unanimous: get in touch with Athena. She was the indispensable contact if he was to obtain a thorough overview of contemporary Greek women. Greg’s project involved a documentary and Athena had not only collected valuable information but had also written a thesis on the subject. Her input as an expert would significantly enhance the final video production he had in mind.

They had already been in frequent contact through social media, in English of course, and now the hour was fast approaching when their co-operative adventure would begin. It involved shooting a video with Greek women as its theme.

Landing gear on the ready, the plane was preparing for touchdown at Athens’ airport. Though it was still the end of February, the day was bathed in a glorious light, and the playful rays of a majestic sun shone down on his beloved land. A brilliant light, the precursor of spring, was making its way in through the cabin windows and was so intense that one had to squint to see. During the descent, Greg stared down at the sea stretching around him for miles, dotted here and there with low-lying islands standing at attention like little sailors scattered in this unique landscape. His sunglasses were somewhere around; his traveling companion Artemis had wisely advised him to have them on hand as he was sure to need them.

Greg made sure he had saved Artemis’ card with her contact numbers both at Athens and at the city of Grevena, bade her a warm farewell and thanked her for her company on the Zurich – Athens leg of the trip; they promised one another they would meet again and get together for a coffee. It seemed that every Greek woman with whom he shared the concept of his proposed project was enthusiastic about it and was eager to contribute her share of information.

His arrival was relaxed. The formalities of travel over, he looked for a woman holding up a placard with his name. He scanned the waiting crowd. There it was! It was being held up by a tall, good-looking woman with a mane of long, shiny, waving chestnut hair. He was taken aback by her arresting