The walls of Flo Stahl’s living room in Greenfield are decorated with large, framed photographs she took throughout a half-century of world travel. The images are displayed alongside a sizable world map dotted with red and blue push pins.
“The blue pins represent places I’ve visited that are within, or claimed by, the United States,” she said.
The red pins indicate 30-plus other countries Stahl visited.
Several framed newspaper clippings also indicate a rich history of political life and career adventures. In the early 1970s Stahl attained a number of “firsts” in the municipal government of Avon, Connecticut, including being the first woman elected to what was then known as the Board of Selectmen, now called the Town Council.
On another wall is a large metal sign — AVON RESUME — which graced the successful resumé business Stahl founded and ran in Avon for over thirty years.
She began her world travels with a trip to Russia (then known as the USSR) when she was in her late 40s. Her most recent trip was in 2018 at the age of 87, when she traveled to Iceland with a group led by Dr. Richard Little, a Greenfield Community College professor emeritus.
Stahl traveled both solo and in groups, often with an organization called Friendship Force, founded in 1977 by Jimmy Carter around the time he became the 39th U.S. president.
Still going today, Friendship Force International is a nonprofit organization with the mission of “improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, friendship, and intercultural competence via homestays.”
Stahl stayed in the homes of Friendship Force members in many different countries, and returned the favor by hosting people in her Avon home.
“I was also involved with a group called Road Scholar, which used to be known as Elderhostel,” she said. Road Scholar is a U.S.-based organization providing educational travel programs primarily geared to older adults.
Stahl’s photographs evoke journeys that showed her “not to be afraid of people from other cultures, and to welcome differences.”
She added, “Each country has its own beauty, yet I also came to understand that people the world over are more alike than different when it comes to emotions, reactions, and instincts.”
Stahl became animated while supplying details about her travels and the resulting images that decorate her home. Her clear eyes moved lovingly amongst the photographs.
At 90, Stahl is in terrific shape, thanks to a lifetime of activity. Her silvery, silky hair reaches the tops of her shoulders. Often possessed of a serious, thoughtful countenance, she’s also quick to smile and laugh.
Many of the large photos are of startlingly beautiful quality, despite the fact that Stahl insists, “I used regular cameras, nothing special. I have no formal training as a photographer.”
When asked what types of cameras she used, Stahl moved deftly into another room, reemerging with a small bundle. “Let’s see,” she said, “mostly I used this one,” bringing forth a Fujifilm Panorama 312 Zoom.
“And later, this one,” Stahl noted, revealing a smaller General Electric (5X optical zoom) 8.0 megapixel E850.
“Standard cameras, with the bigger one using real film,” she said. “Oh, look what I found in the bottom of the bag.” She held up a film canister with a smile, adding, “Remember these?”
Stahl appears in only one of the travel photos that grace her walls: an image of her holding a young orangutan while standing alongside another woman.
“I went to Borneo in 1990,” she said, explaining that the woman was her Filipino guide. “The orangutan was about 2 years old. Each time I look at that photo, I can recall exactly what it felt like to hold that wonderful being in my arms. She was very relaxed, as she was used to being held by visitors.”
A triptych of images from the Czech Republic stands out. The depiction in the center is a lithograph showing a section of 15th- or 16th-century Prague, and is flanked by two photos Stahl took while in that city.
“See this church?” Stahl said, outlining the lithograph’s lone steeple with her finger. “I took a photo of that same structure in 1997, almost 500 years after the addition of the second steeple.”
The magnificent building is the “Church of Our Lady before Týn,” built in the Gothic style in 1256. “Týn” is the name of a courtyard that was visited by merchants, the usage deriving from an ancient word for “fence.”
The second steeple depicted in Stahl’s photograph was added in 1511; the twin spires rise over 250 feet.
The other photograph Stahl took while in Prague’s Old City looks like it could have been taken from a low-flying plane or drone. But Stahl explained, “I took it while standing on a top floor of one of the other ancient buildings featured in the lithograph. What a spectacular view.”
With a shiver, she added, “These pictures represent so much history.”
In 1998, Stahl captured an image of the famous Victoria Falls — which straddles Zimbabwe to the west and Zambia to the east — from the Zimbabwe side. She spent a month camping with a group in a Zimbabwean national park that year.
Pointing to a gorgeous photo of an elephant taken at sunset, she said, “I was so glad to get that shot, since it was dangerous to be out at night and — soon after I took the picture — we had to return to our tents.”
She added, “One day, toward the end of the dry season, I spent hours on an elevated wooden platform near a watering hole, looking out over the savannah. Many different kinds of animals came to the water, and when the elephants arrived, I was ready with my camera.” The photo also shows a number of gazelles, which appear dwarfed by the massive elephants.
“See the dark spots in the water?” Stahl said, moving closer to the image. “They’re mudfish. They burrow into the mud as the water level decreases. As we observed the scene, one baby elephant became startled by the mudfish flapping. The baby shrieked, emitting an unbelievable sound.”
Stahl shot a photo of the Eiffel Tower on New Year’s Day 2001, pointing her camera through the closed window of a moving bus.
When the photos came back from the developer, Stahl was astonished to see that she’d managed to get a perfect shot of the sun setting behind the Parisian landmark. “I had no idea I’d get this wonderful image. I just aimed my camera, and click!”
A 2004 photo, taken by Stahl in western China, shows a garden in Dunhuang. “I was standing in our hotel lobby and noticed the garden looked beautiful as seen through a set of fancy doors.” Stahl’s discerning eye allowed her to see something that others might miss as they hurried by.
“On our way to the Gobi desert in northern China and Mongolia,” said Stahl, “we got to see the famous terracotta soldiers,” referring to numerous sculptures discovered in 1974 by farmers in the Chinese region of Shaanxi. The life-size figures depict the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China, who was buried with the sculptures in approximately 210 BCE on the premise he would be protected in the afterlife by the impressive figures.
Stahl embarked on wide-ranging travels “because I love natural history and am always curious about how people in other cultures live. It’s a deep yearning for me, and I’ve been so fortunate to live my dream.”
As a visitor pointed to various push pins on the map, Stahl responded with short vignettes or impressions about various places.
In Greece, Stahl was astounded by “the mythology, the history, and places like the Parthenon.” The steamy rainforests of Borneo captured her imagination as readily as did world-famous landmarks like the pyramids of Egypt and the Panama Canal. The great Inca ruins of Machu Pichu in Peru moved Stahl deeply, as did Iceland’s geothermal pools.
Closer to home, Stahl found much to inspire and interest her; she worked on an archaelogical dig in South Dakota, where mastodons used to roam.
She misses traveling, and wishes she could have traveled to more African countries.
“What an amazing planet we live on,” said Stahl, “and the thing is, we could all share it peaceably. I think we could, if we made that choice.”
After a pause, she continued, “I really can’t remember a place where I didn’t feel welcome. The bureaucratic obstacles in mid-1970s USSR were challenging. But overall, what I took away from my experiences is that it’s a tragedy to view our planet as a place where differences are to be feared. Suspicion is so common now, but I’ve seen that it’s not necessary. I’ve lived it. People everywhere are delightful.”
Stahl’s words take on special meaning in the dark of the year, as humans await the return of the light.
Eveline MacDougall is the author of “Fiery Hope.” She would love to receive home-and-garden story tips from readers: eveline@amandlachorus.org.