Evzones

[rpcrowe]

The Evzones are an elite ceremonial unit that guards the Greek Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Presidential Mansion and the gate of Evzones camp in Athens.




The Evazone uniform is famous for its kilt-like garment, pom-pom decked shoes and distinctive tasseled hat which was based on the traditional style clothing worn by many of the famous fighters of the Greek War of Independence against the Ottomon Turks who had occupied Turkey for 400-years until the 1820's.





When I visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Athens, it was on a weekday tour. My wife had been worn out by trekking around various Greek Islands and demanded that we take a tour in Athens which included bus transportation. I agreed because she is extremely patient with following me around as I shoot.

The week-day Evzone summer uniform is khacki colored and not as fancy or glamourous as the richly embroidered dress uniforms worn on weekends or holidays.

I was surprised that the sergeant of the guard was wearing cammies and blue beret rather than a dress uniform...





The two man guard changes on the hour and there will be two sets of two Evzones and two sergeants of the guard. Unfortunately, my bus arrived on the half hour.

The Evzones were just beginning their unique march (on the 15 minutes) which is a combination goose step and ballet movement when I heard my wife screaming from the back of the crowd... "Richard, come back quick, the bus is leaving!" I couldn't shoot the best part of the ceremony which is the famous march. I had a total of about five minutes to photograph the Evzones which disappointed me and lead to this documentary style imagery rather than anything creative...

So much for the photographic value of any tour. But it kept my wife happy. She said, "This is the way I like to visit a city!"

[terrib]

Well they don't look like rushed photos to me, Richard. Nicely done and thanks for the information about the guard.

[Manfred M]

Nice shots Richard. The lighting conditions you have to work with does not look ideal; the downside of travel photography...

[rpcrowe]

Manfred, light is definitely the downside of any tour-type photography. Tour ships put you ashore during the absolute worst time for photography and collect you onboard before the golden hours. Talking about a bad time to shoot! Try climbing the City Walls of Dubrovnik, Croatia during the mid-day heat at about 95 degrees F. (34 C.).

What is that old saying, only mad dogs and photographers on a cruise go out in the heat of the mid-day sun? Or something like that!



Actually, when I finally reached the top of the walls, I thought "What the heck is this damn fool 73-year old doing this for? And now I have to navigate those steep steps down to street level. It really scared me a bit! This is only a portion of the climb. The height is just 82 feet (~25 meters) but it sure seems higher than that on a hot day. This is the view looking down from the walls into the old city. The town is now besieged by tourists rather than Turks and Venetians...



My wife however absolutely loved the cruise. She works very hard 24/7 on our Maltese Rescue affairs. She actually works longer and harder than she did as a full-time professor of nursing. She needs a vacation during which she doesn't have access to phone or Internet and during which there is no cooking or house care to worry about. We did a pretty good trade off, the cruise was hers and Venice and Istanbul at either end of the vacation were mine to shoot during. I only wish that I had a week or two in Turkey. I absolutely loved it....

[John 2]

Manfred, light is definitely the downside of any tour-type photography. Tour ships put you ashore during the absolute worst time for photography and collect you onboard before the golden hours. Talking about a bad time to shoot! Try climbing the City Walls of Dubrovnik, Croatia during the mid-day heat at about 95 degrees F. (34 C.).

I absolutely loved it....

Richard, I have shared your pain and your joy on this very spot for all the same reasons. The only difference is that I didn't come away with a series as good as these. Excellent captures in very challenging light.

[Digital]

Richard, despite the obstacles these are very nice photographs.

Bruce