DECEMBER 7-10, 2024 DECEMBER 7-10, 2024 We got back to Istanbul by bus. From the bus station we thought we had negotiated a price from the taxi to take us to our guesthouse. I kept telling him I wanted the meter. He kept insisting that the meter would be more than he was charging. Bullshit!... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – TROY
DECEMBER 5, 2024 We all know the story from the Odyssey of the 10 year war between the Greeks and Trojans. The Greeks built a horse out of burnt ship planks and leave it at the gate of Troy. It is an offering to Athena, for destroying her temple. Then the Greeks pretend to sail... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – ÇANAKKALE
DECEMBER 4 - 8, 2024 On a hill opposite Çanakkale there is a huge mural of a soldier and a torch. An inscription reads "Stop, Traveler, This Land You Came Without Knowing and Treaded, Is Where an Era Sunk." It is the first two lines of a poem commemorating the Canakkale Victory in WW1. On... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – GALLIPOLI
DECEMBER 4 - 8, 2024 The Battle of Gallipoli was a military campaign in WWI where Britain, France and Russia wanted to weaken the Ottoman Empire by taking control of the Dardanelles and Bosphorus Strait; because the Ottoman Empire was in cahoots with the German Empire. Taking control of the two straits would allow a... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – EPHESUS
NOVEMBER 30 - DECEMBER 3, 2024 Ephesus is a place I have long wanted to go to. I always felt it would be cool to walk the streets of where the people that the apostles preached to actually lived. Paul wrote his letters to the Ephesians around 60 AD. It is also one of the... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – PAMUKKALE
NOVEMBER 25 - 29, 2024 Pamukkale had been on my bucket list for over 20 years. The first time I saw a picture of this place, I thought it was fake. Now here I am! Pamukkale means "cotton castle" in Turkish, and indeed the place looks like it is made of snow white cotton candy.... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – CAPPADOCIA
NOVEMBER 16 - 24, 2024 A note about the long bus ride: First of all, they are cheap! Secondly, the seats are more comfortable than an airplane. They are wide and recline with lots of leg room. Thirdly, they serve snacks. They stop often enough to stretch and go to the bathroom. The land of... Continue Reading →
TURKEY – ISTANBUL
NOVEMBER 12 - 16, 2024 We had to go to the Turkish side of Cyprus to catch a flight to Istanbul with Turkish Airlines. Our Airbnb had arranged a taxi to pick us up. It was really well organized. He sent a video of which door to exit the airport and where to wait outside.... Continue Reading →
CYPRUS – NICOSIA – TURK SIDE
NOVEMBER 11, 2024 We ventured over to the north, Turkish side, of Nicosia one afternoon. We had to produce our passports leaving the Greek side, then again on the Turk side. Nothing was stamped, as we were still in Cyprus, just different parts. It was like walking through the Twilight Zone. The modern buildings and... Continue Reading →
CYPRUS – PAPHOS
NOVEMBER 7, 2024 One of the days on the Nicosia military tour was an excursion day. We had chosen to go to Paphos on the southwest coast of Cyprus. Paphos has a lot of sites relating to the goddess Aphrodite (the goddess of Love). The myth is that Aphrodite emerged naked from the sea from... Continue Reading →