21 June 2014, Lamia, Greece
The Trojan War, fought 3200 years ago, continues to capture the imagination of students, scholars, and others around the world. In 1999, I achieved one of my boyhood dreams when I visited Troy (Ilium) on the shores of the Aegean Sea in Asia Minor at the mouth of the Dardenells. The ancient ruins came alive when Heinrich Schliemann, following Homer's writings, discovered the city 145 years ago, guided by Henry Calvert, an American embassador based in the region. Since then I have been on the "Road to Discovery," attempting to solve the mystery of Homer's Phthia, location of the palace site of Achilles, hero of the Trojan War.