People in the USA will be getting ready for 'eclipse fever'but how many have been taken by surprise by an eclipse, generally solar as they happen much quicker than lunar,?I remember about 12 years ago I was travelling from Belgrade to Skopje Macedonia by the Hellas express train(it goes Belgrade to Thessaloniki Greece and is very slow not sure if express should be in the name?!)I got off to spend a few days in Skopje, walking down Marshall Tito,well it had been semi renamed by then but can't remember the new name,street all of a sudden it went dark and cold,very strange, of course I realised what it was in a few seconds. It's strange that I didn't know about it as I've always had an interest in such matters however it does give you an small sense of how the ancients must have felt being taken unawares.