Ataturk's Mausoleum Guards
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Iman in Guzelyurt
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Young boy in Konya in his pre-circumcism costume
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People
June 28, 2009 by beaglehawk[/caption][/caption][/caption]
Pictures on the Sea
June 28, 2009 by beaglehawk
On the Bosporus--Istanbul
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Antalyla and the Taurus Mts
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Not me
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Samos, Greece Beach
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Ballooning Pictures in Cappadocia
June 28, 2009 by beaglehawk
Calling Dr. Freud While Riding a Balloon over Capadocia
Pictures as Promised–Animals
June 28, 2009 by beaglehawk
Greek Beagle Puppy in Samos pet store
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Doneky seen on walk through Mustapasa, Cappadocia, Turkey
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2 of 100 gazilliion cats in Turkey
Fri, Jun 26–On the road again and home safe
June 27, 2009 by beaglehawkI left Istanbul before dawn. There are traffic jams here at midnight, but not too bad at 5 a.m. I write this after my successful plane trips as to not jinx myself. (Yes, I new about Farrah and Michael before I left. Scott supplied the news in an e-mail that I read before I left.)
Istanbul to Vienna via Turkish Air (which was a nice experience). Get baggage, go through customs. Wait in line until I was told it was TOO EARLY to check my bags and I couldn’t get into an earlier flight. So, 5 1/2 hr layover in the Vienna airport with at least 3 of them with a giant bag in tow sitting on the terminal floor. The British Air flight was 1 hr late and I almost missed my connection at Heathrow. 1 customs check, 2 passport checks, 2 security checks, 1 bus ride and 1 tram ride AT THIS AIRPORT. (Note to self: avoid Heathrow whenever possible.) The flight from London to Chicago was packed and the seats were very uncomfortable and I was in the middle. British food vs. Turkish food. No contest. Whine, whine. I calculated about a 24 hour transit on this day. Uncomfortable but a safe trip. I fell asleep around 10 a.m. and woke up at 2:30 Saturday and couldn’t get back to sleep. Let the laundry, unpacking and photo organizing commence!
Later this weekend, I will post a few overall reflections on Greece and Turkey. I see my readers are mostly Saturday visitors, so check back one more time!
Thur, Jun 25–Istanbul Coffee and Sea Trip
June 27, 2009 by beaglehawkI met with a friend of a friend. The connection mentioned is former foreign exchange (mid 1960s) student from Turkey. Meeting Oya was wonderful–we met for coffee at the Four Seasons and discussed her experience in the US, current politics in Turkey, life and family, and my almost completed visit to Turkey. I had lots of questions and she made some good book suggestions (which I must start before the school reading begins.) She gave me a beautiful ceramic necklace in Turquoise with a daisy motif. I had admired tiles this entire trip, but couldn’t figure out how to get them home. The gift was a wonderful surprise. She offered to drive me to the ferry (across the Bosporus Bridge) and suggested that I visit one of the “Princes’ Islands.”
The Princes’ Islands are composed of nine islands off the Asian coast of Istanbul, in the Sea of Marmara. There are no cars except the ones belonging to local municipality for public works, so people walk or rent a bicycle or horse-drawn carriage. I saw donkeys, too. There are nice summer homes, small beaches, sea birds and old wooden houses set in pretty gardens.
The ferry dropped me off in yet a new neighborhood and I managed to take the tram back to my hotel. It took awhile, but I think I can navigate Istanbul by taxi, ferry, tram, bus and walking. The driving looks nutty–I’ll pass on that!
I saw 2 things that reminded me that I was headed home. From the tram, I saw that expensive Irish/British bar with a sign saying “MLB: Chicago WS vs. Cubs 11 pm.” Another sign–while gazing at the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia on the way to the hotel–I noticed a guy in a SIU shirt with Salukis on the front. At the back it said “Be Afraid of the Pound”. I’m taking this as a sign that I’m going home to Illinois. No, I didn’t talk to him.
My shuttle leaves at 5 a.m., so and early night for me after somehow packing all this stuff.
Wed, Jun 24–Istanbul
June 25, 2009 by beaglehawkI took a taxi to north in the city to meet a former student for coffee. He is an asst. product manager at Unilever and had always encouraged me to visit Turkey. His email note said “coffee at 9″. I assumed am, he meant pm and, after review, the email didn’t mention either. I waited for about an hour and went into the building to find out where I was. I figured out the bus and took it to (centrally-located) Taksim Square and walked back to my hotel from that. It took several hours (including a nice lunch on a terrace overlooking the Spice Market and the Golden Horn.) Before I left the place, I pretended to be a computer buyer and sent him a message “where were you” on some machine connected on the shelf in the store. (As is typical, fewer people will speak English outside the tourist areas to obvious tourists. At the same time, in that neighborhood, I had people ask me questions in Turkish and I saw some people who looked like me.) Anyway, I saw parts of the city in the cab and during my walk that I had planned to see but hadn’t yet including the Galata Tower. I took some different routes and saw entire streets with musical instrument stores, fabric stores, etc. I went to my very nice room for a nap and saw his response about “coffee time”. We agreed to try again at 9 p.m. I took the taxi to the same location and we had dinner at a restaurant on the Bosporus. The view was beautiful and the food good. He is clearly working very long hours (I remember my 20s) and went back home to work at 11:30. He described his job and the interview process and I am fairly confident I didn’t overtax him when he was my student. He has had a few visitors here from Bradley since he returned 2 years ago. Tomorrow, he will see another one of my students from Bosnia who just happened to be on his floor when he was an RA. Bradley is a small world.
I’m winding down and getting ready to go home.
Tues, Jun 23–Samos, Greece to Istanbul Turkey Through the Kindness of an Iowan
June 24, 2009 by beaglehawkI was told I could take the 8:30 a.m. boat. When I got there, there was no boat. When I arrived at the agency at 9 am, she said “sorry…. I couldn’t call you because I didn’t know your hotel.” Of course, she NEVER ASKED. She felt guilty apparently and looked up bus schedules for me and kept my luggage in the office as I had checked out of my hotel. Anyway, I decided not to fret and let it go (realizing this trip had just gotten pricier as I was stuck taking a taxi as the 4:30 boat wouldn’t make it in time for the free shuttle). Allegedly, now my boat left at 4:30 p.m.
I spent lots of time at the Samos Archeological Museum and looked at every single piece. I hung out in the Greek Orthodox church checking out the icons and interesting symbolism everywhere. I took pictures of flowers. I grabbed a late lunch in town and read a book. Before I got bounced out for the 3 pm “Greek siesta”, some guy bought me a Vin Doux wine from Samos and sent it over through the waiter. Luckily, he didn’t follow me out of the place. My goal today–do not become a felony victim!
I opened a bottle of wine from the day before in my stash (forgetting that I’d never get that on the plane) and emptied it into an empty water bottle covered by a plastic sack. I proceeded to sip it over the next 6 hrs. Wow, that sounds like derelict behavior.
The 4:30 boat was late and left at 5:00. I met a couple–one Dutch and one an Iowan. The Des Moines native noticed my accent and struck up a conversation. They were shopping for cheese and pork in Greece and were hauling back a big suitcase. His name is Larry and he hasn’t been back to the US since 1995. Ooooh, mystery! The woman told a story about their Turkish flag at the back of their sailboat. The police ordered it removed as it was slightly frayed and this is against the law. The woman said the Turks are crazier about their flag than the Americans. I agreed. It is such a contrast from Austria and Germany where it is illegal to fly the national flag–with soccer game exemptions. Anyway, Larry called some Swiss woman to send a car for me to get to the Izmir airport. There was no way I was going to make the free shuttle bus provided by the airline and I was getting nervous about flaky cab drivers. It was pricey, but I made it. The guy drove me up the beautiful Aegean coast and somehow I didn’t get carsick. To calm my nerves, I went to Burger King at the airport. The soothing power of french fries….
I had time for tea and was placed at a table with a Turkish woman who taught English and American literature in an American school in Izmir. She loves F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ray Bradbury. The flight was 45 minutes late, but my shuttle guy waited for me. The speed limit was 50 km/hr, but he went between 90 and 110. Very exciting. I made it to my (upgraded) room just before midnight. And that was my 31st wedding anniversary!
Mon, Jun 22–Goofing off in Samos
June 23, 2009 by beaglehawkToday is pretty windy and I am glad we went to the beach yesterday! I went for a walk through town to get oriented and check out what’s happening at the tourist info office. This was harder than it sounds. It’s 20 minutes from the harbor, poor signage and has very little info inside it! On the way back, I did see a major Greek Orthodox event at a church–the police said it was a special Mass for the Chief of Police. There were scads of guys in black robes (priests, I assume) and they gave out bread at the end of Mass. I know I’ve been to an orthodox wedding, but I don’t remember that. I checked out the buses and immediately had a NO MORE BUSES reaction, so the rest of Samos will be a mystery to me! I decided to go to one of the only things open–the wine museum.
On the way, I just happened upon a pet store with a (Greek) Beagle puppy in the window. 2 1/2 months old and as cute as they get (with the exception of Hawkeye, of course). I sprung him for 20 minutes so he could play and I could try to get a picture. He’s a squirmy one and very adorable. (I’ve been trying to post pictures but it takes around 5 minutes for each and I’ve accidently deleted a few so I am giving up for now.)
The wine place was around $2.50 and there were 5 wines with self-service pours! I hung out for awhile reading a book between tastes. It was about a 30 minute walk on-way.
I caught sunset again and had calamari and a feta cheeze meze on the waterfront. Tomorrow is my big transit day….boat to taxi to shuttle to plane to shuttle. Good-bye Greece! Happy Anniversary Scott!
Sun, Jun 21–Samos, Current Events and the Beach
June 22, 2009 by beaglehawkAfter the Rip Van Winkle sleep, I went downstairs for breakfast. I wondered where everyone was as it turns out that (given the key count behind the desk) there certainly were hotel guests somewhere. The hotel owners (divorced couple) motioned for me to share my tea on the inside patio shaded by trees. His English is okay, hers is okay. She speaks Italian and French. I didn’t understand everything he said, but I did pick up that he worked at Unisys in Athens and has training in computers. She studied in Rome for 5 years. He’s Greek Orthodox, she’s Catholic. I didn’t ask about the divorce arrangement—they seemed to get along. Anyway he and I talked politics, economy and reminisced about the old days of computer punch cards. (Actually he did…he’s quite a talker.) Later a Dutch soldier joined us and it turns out that he is stationed here for a month to deal with the refugee situation on Samos. He was out until 4 am (he met girls, he said) and had to be to the port at 10 am. Then a German documentary film maker (from a 60 minutes type show) appeared with his camera man. He was supposed to go out with a fisherman at 5:15, but the guy didn’t show up. (I attempted my feeble German –polite talk—and asked him questions in
English about his project.) All three guys were here dealing with the same subject.
Apparently the Turkish border in the east is porous. So, people from Iraq, Afghanistan, etc. cross over at will. Also, some Africans wind their way to Turkey through other countries. Samos (Greece and a member of the European Union) is just a 90 minute boat ride away. Some of the refugees get caught and are put in a detainee camp for a month or two. They are released and told to go back, but they don’t, of course. Various European Union countries give great asylum benefits. According to this Dusseldorf German, the US has STRICT immigration laws and procedures. The same German guy said they were trying to get into Iran but it was impossible. (Yes, I have been following the news!) He also opined that eastern Turkey was in the Middle Ages. As you know, these conversations were right up my alley.
I hung out in the hotel room until I heard a call from the patio… “Valerie”. The guy asked if I would like to ride with him and Emily to a beach out of town. He would just stay for 30 minutes and we could stay the afternoon and he’d pick us up. (I had asked about buses and they don’t run on Sunday. After watching the drivers, I am too chicken to get a motorbike or a car for a day.) What the heck.
They drove me up and over the hill through old town Samos to the southern beach with a view of Turkey. There were chaises and beach umbrellas for 2.5 Euro and it was great. A cooling breeze, sunshine, turquoise water….I could get used to this! When we returned I cleaned up and went out for dinner but wasn’t really hungry. We ate like maniacs in Turkey and somehow my appetite is gone. So I just had white wine, free crackers and yogurt, fruit and honey. I walked long the shore to find the places in the guidebook for drinks, dinner, etc., took lots of sunset pictures and packed it in around 9:30. Turkey wore me out, apparently. On the way in, the Dutch soldier was going out for dinner and the owner was egging him on. It turns out the soldier decided to break the “3 day rule” and call the girl he met last night. They teased me for coming back so early and explained that I need to take a nap from 3-7ish, go out for dinner at 10 or so and hit the night spots at 12:30. I’ll take that under advisement.
