Sep 30, 2012 - WWOOFing No. 4

Our R and R for 3 days between WWOOFing farms was at Safranbolu, which during the 17th century  was on a main trade to the Black Sea and was a wealthy area.  Large houses made of sun-dried mud bricks, wood and stucco were  built.  They are generally two or three stories,the upper stories jutting out over the lower ones.  Mostly animals/tools were at the bottom of the house, and the houses were divided into men's and women's quarters.  There are lots of built in cupboards and little niches for storing things.  The guesthouse where we stayed...

May 24, 2012 - Ankara - Istanbul

Merhaba! Ankara, la capital et j’y arrive jour de la fête nationale. Alors des drapeaux et des photos de ceux qui on dirigés les destinés de ce pays il y en avait. Ankara, c’est comme un GROS GROS GROS Ottawa avec plus de 6 M d’habitants. Et un gouvernement beaucoup, beaucoup plus conservateur que celui de mon ami Harper. Une ville de fonctionnaires, des buildings gouvernementaux, ville bien organisée, autoroutes, boulevards, métro. Une ville sécuritaire. Merveilleux pour y vivre en famille. Mais rien de bien excitant pour le touriste. Il...

May 16, 2012 - Roadtrip to Ankara

Early departure to visit Topkapi Palace...Ottoman Sultan Mehmet the Conquerer's administrative center. We learned about the Sultan, his kidnapped boys (who were trained to be soldiers and other palace officials), and the kidnapped girls who became the harem. We visited the Imperial Treasury which houses many examples of the extreme wealth of the sultans...huge emeralds, rubies, jade, gold, turquoise and diamonds. Each room in the palace ornately decorated with hand made tiles...floor to ceiling! Rode our bus to the new district for lunch....

Apr 16, 2012 - Ankara to Cappadocia

We started with a visit to the Musuem of Anatolian Civilisations in Ankara. The artifacts in this museum really highlight the history - so much to take in. From there we went to Anit Kabir, the Mausoleum of Ataturk, the father of modern Turkey. This was quite a complex and as pointed out the pride of Turkey. The museum is totatlly dedicated to him with many personal belongings. After we came out of the museum we waited for the dignities to leave. Apparently it is quite common for diginities of countries to visit here on state visits. Today...

Apr 16, 2012 - Wireless in Turkey - unlikely at best

Well, wireless in Turkey means wireless -less- less etc. haven't written sooner because it as impossible to connect. Several attempts and several wasted hours made me just say "Later!". For all of you that let me know the I forgot to send the picture of my new Bedouin Boyfriend, that I sadly had to leave behind at the caves of Petra, I did try attaching the photo twice. I cannot blame the wireless in Turkey, it has something to do with transferring the photo from my phone to my gmail and then trying to forward the photo. A bit anti climatic...

Apr 15, 2012 - Bursa to Ankara

Our first stop was a wonderful little village about 20 minutes out of Bursa. Cumalilizik Village has a unique culture with interesting wooden homes with the first floors often being shops. The village is on some very fertile land at the base of the mountain. The villages have homemade jams, pastas etc for sale. It really was a step back in time as we walked the cobblestone roads and saw the old buildings. Typical villages have a square cafe, and mosque. The village has become quite famous as it was the location of a Turkish movie. From...

Oct 14, 2011 - Ankara

It was one long-ass day. Not much to tell here as we really didn't stick around long. Ankara is a big modern city, quite a contrast to Istanbul. Driving in, we passed miles of high-rise apartment buildings under construction and blocks of modern government buildings and ministries, all draped with huge Turkish flags and portraits of Ataturk, known as the father of modern Turkey. The Turkish people love him and with good reason as he did some pretty amazing things. We arrived late, ate a quick dinner and went to bed. This morning we toured...

Oct 3, 2011 - Walking tour of Istanbul

Monday night and we are on the train to Ankara. We've had another big day today. Packed our bags, had breakfast and were ready to rock and roll by 9.00am. Called the Giles family before we left...the kids were full of the fun they had at the show. Sent Mel a text to see if they were at home however it wouldn't send...I decided I would try again later. We sat down with the group before we set off on our walking tour and introduced ourselves and told the group a little about ourselves. It was then off to see so e of the sites along the way to...

Sep 25, 2011 - Overnight train to Ankara – Visit with Earth Mother

This entry was written after we returned from the trip. The event occurred on September 14-15: I really wish I could write something romantic – exotic about an overnight train ride from Istanbul to Ankara. Perhaps I will fictionalize some short story at another time, but in reality I experienced a fitful sleep followed by a bout of travelers’ sickness. (Don’t worry, I won’t go into details but leave this part of the story to your imagination.) After a mal-adventure with Asian-style toilet plumbing, I found myself back with the tour group...

Sep 25, 2011 - Mustafa Kemel Ataturk – Part One

A prior entry describes Ataturk as the George Washington of modern Turkey. This is an understatement. Ataturk’s image, whether pictures, framed portraits, posters, or statues is pervasive throughout Turkey. Mert, our guide, explained this by starting out with the following story: As you know, Turkey has been a close and faithful military ally of the United States for well over 50 years. This mutual assistance has recently been expressed by Turkey’s participation in both in Afghanistan and Iraq. As a result, Turkey has been attacked by Al...

Sep 25, 2011 - Mustafa Kemel Ataturk – Part Two

Ataturk began his career as a young military officer who obtained military/diplomatic experience liaison experience in France and Germany prior to WWI. It is believed that it was this exposure to modern western culture that formed the basis of Ataturk’s reform programs of the 1920s and 1930s. Prior to and during WWI, Turkey did not exist as a nation-state. It was still part of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman dynasty had been failing for over a century at that time (Turkey was called the “sick man of Europe”). Nevertheless, during WWI (the...

Sep 25, 2011 - Mustafa Kemel Ataturk – His death

Mustafa Kemel died in 1938 from the effects of alcohol abuse. His body was preserved for 10 years until his monument/mausoleum could be built. The preservations fluids were then drained which allowed him to be buried according to Moslem tradition. His body was then wrapped in a cloth shroud and interred without a coffin into the ground, underneath his monument within the newly built mausoleum. The building complex and adjoining museums (some of which display his personal effects: his desk, hair brush, and his favorite suits) are physically...