Plaka: contact me

Thanks for visiting.

People with shared interests finding each other is one of the best things about the Internet.

I'm John Nordin, thanks for coming to visit The Plaka, my site about Greece.

I've been inspired by Greece since my first visit in 1986. I've been there eight times (so far) and I've also studied the ancient language and modern Orthodox Christianity and been involved with Hellenic organizations in the United States.

Recently I've been able to lead some study abroad trips and had the great experience of introducing students to this country.

This web site started in 1997 and has grown slowly over the years.

I do hope you will contact me and talk about Greece.

My Author page at Amazon

So, you want to send me e-mail
A cautionary tale....

So... who is behind The Plaka?

I am always happy to receive your notes with questions or comments about Greece. I'm happy to answer your questions. I'm even happy to do a little research or ask some friends to answer your questions.

However...

Help me out! OK? Once a week I get a note that says something like "I need some information about Greece. Can you send me any, I need it fast." This isn't very helpful. All I can do is send you back to my site. What sort of information? Exchange rates? The name of the prime minister? The population? What?

I also get mail like this "I'm going to Greece. Where should I go?" Likewise, this isn't very helpful. All I'd do is send you back to the travel section of my site.

A third request seems reasonable but also isn't helpful. This is the "where on the web can I find info on Greece?" question. Seems reasonable, but I have a link page that has my best advice. All over the site I have link lists for the specific topics. If you want my suggestions on links for Patmos, they are in the Patmos page.. That is where I'd send you.

Lately, I am getting questions assuming that I live in Greece. I do not live in Greece. I wish I did, but alas, I do not.

Enough complaining... What would be helpful is to make your questions more specific. You can ask me for information, you can ask me about sites, you can ask me for referrals to the web, but please make it specific. Thanks! I do want to hear from you - your questions have, more than once, led to updates, expansions and ideas for this site.

I really enjoy hearing from "Friends of the Plaka."

One more whine. Spam is the evil plague that threatens to take the Internet down. So I can't just put my email address here any more. The graphic contains my email address. Please do write me!

Send your e-mail to

Based in Minneapolis, I've had a long love affair with travel and transport of various kinds, all the way back to having studied Transportation Systems for my doctorate at MIT.

When it comes to Greece, I offer some specific services:

Photos. Want an 8x11 or larger print of a picture you've seen here? Let me know. My photos of Greece have sold at art shows.

Seminars on Greece illustrated. I've given lectures on various sites, an introduction to Greek history, travel to Greece, Patmos, etc.

Commentary on Greece: The economic crisis, Greece and Iran, current politics, etc.

Travel planning, leading trips for pleasure or business.

You can learn more about my background by visiting my personal site www.jpnordin.com where you can read my resume.

Just recently I finished a historical novel about ancient Greece, the Bright Foundation of Liberty which you can get from Amazon.

I was webmaster for the Hellenic American Cultural Association of Colorado until I moved out of Colorado.

In the late 90's I wrote a newsletter about Greece titled Philhellenic Perspective.