If I’ve done a good job selecting which pictures to share, here’s what they will convey. That traveling to Halkidiki in late June was a splendid idea. That the sea was crystal clear and never too cold, though the beaches were rocky and pebbly. That Skites—our boutique hideaway at the foot of Mount Athos—was an oasis of style and harmony in a landscape surprisingly lacking in both, but still charming to the hilt.

What the pictures won’t tell you, however is how good the food was. Or what an adept swimmer Anker is becoming. Or how the power and water gave out more than once in the entire region, for hours at a time, adding to our sense of remoteness and adventure, but instilling fury and/or panic in the local tourism industry. Or that this Greek filoxenia is no joke: people here are warm, curious, generous, helpful, and chatty—and clearly fond of us Poles.

Because some things just can’t be captured in a photo. (Not if the camera is back in your room, anyway, and you’re off breathing the sea air, reading Kolbert on climate change, or collecting rocks and driftwood with your nine-year-old.)