Unfortunately, I never met either one of my Grandfathers (Papous in Greek), being both passed away long before I was a thought in my parent's minds.
What I do know, is that I would have loved them both so dearly and the feeling would have been mutual. The photo below is of my maternal Papou; Elias Panagiotis Soupos.
He was a Colonel in the Greek Army. I am lucky enough to now have these handed down, and loved photos/memories in my home.
This is the backside to the postcard photo above. Look at the date: September 5th, 1930!!! I have this photo framed proudly in my house. It's written in Greek (which I can't read) so if anyone can translate...please do!
I know it's fuzzy..so is the actual photo. But how grand does my Papou look on his trusty steed? Looks like his horse was Thoroughbred-ish to me. I just love that this photo was taken somewhere in Greece and I'm sure intended for my sweet Yiayia's (Grandmother) handbag, for her to have and cherish while he was away.
This picture below, I have to assume, is part of his troop...the men in the Calvary underneath him.
Below is a picture from, I think, March 2004 when my fantastic sister took me on a 'sister's weekend getaway trip' to NYC. We covered that city from end to end on foot and on a major budget. It was one of the most important trips in my life, and we had a riot...so many laughs! After ambling through Central Park we stumbled on this Riding Academy in the city. It was insanely cool, indoor riding arena with private horses boarded there at this facility, on the top floors, with Central Park right across the street. No pasture for the horses unfortunately but if you live in NYC, this is probably the best you can do. I thought the building's architecture was beautiful so I just had to pose underneath!
Rock the 80's! I mean, how my parents could tolerate an 8 yr old still riding her plastic bouncy horse, with homemade bridle/reins out of a belt, and my Mom's cool suede boots on my legs, is beyond me. I think getting me a pony would have been easier! LOL! I can practically hear the springs snapping in this photo! Gidddddiiiup!
As a side note, my Paternal Papou was known for 'playing the ponies.' So maybe the love, awe and respect of Thoroughbreds has been a long time coming? If my Papou's can see me down here, which I think they can, I'm sure they admire Lazarus too.
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