no longer on the road to istanbul

istanbul, crossroads of the world
october 30, 2010

no longer on the road to istanbul.  Made it.  Jill may have driven some 6,500 kms of video game.  yesterday ben and i went to the old school berber.  We both got haircuts and i had the best shave of my life.  Lots of oils and potions and lathering and massaging.  We also made our first foray into the grand bazaar.  Completely crazed.  Picture 3 Herald Square macy's laid out flat on 50% off sale day two days before Christmas.  The best personalized opener i heard from a salesman yesterday: "hello America.  Spend money."

crusty ottoman house

october 29th i think.  Safronbolu, turkey

many of the towns are blending together.  Spending two nights in beautiful 300 hundred year old wooden ottoman home/inn.  Ate dinner at a small table in the host's kitchen.  She made some tasty soup and some funky pasta.  Today raining most of the day.  We took our morning constitutional and ended up getting a little lost.  It's tough in the smaller towns and cities because when u ask for directions people just start rattling away in turkish with high speed hand motions to match.   The kids were actually pleading for homeschooling to begin as we retraced our steps a third time.  Little do they know that class had already been in session for an hour.  Tomorrow we pound out the six hour drive to Istanbul and ditch the car.

tokat kebob

oct 26,2010


Spent most of the last 16 hours searching futilely for the legendary Tokat kebob.  Featuring lamb and aubergine skewered together and broiled vertically, on a separate skewer tomatoes and peppers grilled in the same fashion.  Juices intermingling.  Then everything put on plate with a fist of garlic.  Legendary in the turkish submarine community.  Never found it.  


Had a great day in Tokat.  Pleasantly assaulted by a horde of schoolkids trying out their english, jill hung out with the saddlemaker, the yokemaker, the potmaker and the barber.  And we spent no money and took great pics.  Ben has figured out that he likes some versions of kofta (small lamburgers).  I am trying to wean myself off baklava.  At the end of Suttree by Cormac McCarthy.  The dude can turn a phrase.  Museum at Ankara tomorrow.  

Sumela Monastery outside Trabzon

fresco border with bullet holes (russian occupation)

built by accretion

monk cell 

a church was built on the site in +/- 300 ad by Greek priests fleeing the Romans 

typical Turkish approach to safety

ben and clare in aforementioned window

fern for my mother 

monk cell with great light- three exposures! 

roman aqueduct 

detail stigmata with grapes 

lady who made my bracelet

steps on the way back 

steps on the way down 

Yusufeli in a river valley near Georgia

log cabin in Turkey 

River Otel, fishing with a hand line

bait

 hay storage

River Otel, the bridge we DROVE across 

Castle near Van

to the dungeon 

harem room

another harem room

lion protects the entrance

nestled in the rocks a mosque and old fortifications 

nice light 

doric, ionic, corinthian- not 

reception hall

On the way to Van

daily road block 1 

daily road block 2

herdsman 1

herdsman 2

donkey/horse with striped legs!

the family team

limestone waterfall- mini Pamukkale 

Nemrut Dagi

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big heads of many gods 

digs chillin

sculpture bases- pre earthquake 

Mardin

nut roaster's roaster

nut roaster's shop 

nut roaster 

too much bazaar, not enough kebabs

donkey tack for sale

olives

vegetable transactions

fancy butcher

saddle makers

hand beaten metal pots to the left

Mardin bazaar  

donkeys ready to be pressed into service 

nice tack

divine pomegranates

typical Mardin scene