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Develi restaurant in Samatya
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A last look at the Blue Mosque
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And the incredible Hagia Sophia
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This blog recounts the retirement travels of Mark and Vicki Sherouse since 2008...in Asia and the Pacific, many years of motor-home travel in Europe and Turkey, 3 long stays in New Zealand, apartments in Paris and Edinburgh, 2 months in South America, a month+ in southern Africa, and many travels in the US and Canada. See website, with much practical information, at www.TheRoadGoesEverOn.com. Reach them at mark.sherouse@gmail.com or vsherouse@gmail.com. 4 SALE: CAMPER IN EUROPE: at the website!
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Develi restaurant in Samatya
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A last look at the Blue Mosque
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And the incredible Hagia Sophia
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Hemmed-in as it is, both by its own campus
and courtyard and then city buildings all
around, it is difficult to get a picture with
even most of the mosque in it |
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Interior
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Great dome, 52m up there
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Beautiful Islamic glass
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More interior
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One of the four minarets
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Larger exterior view
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There were only a few RVs at the "campground," a few Germans, a few French; as you can see in the background, the wind and sea were really kicking up at this point |
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Really kicking up |
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We thought about seeing the latest Harry Poppins movie, but, alas, it was dubbed in Turkish |
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In the bookstalls adjacent to the Grand Bazaar, a cat surveys the literary crowd; what do cats think about? |
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Beyazit Square and the entrance to Istanbul University |
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In the Square, what we dubbed the "old mens' market" |
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For example |
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Next afternoon, one of many BBQs going on along the sea-wall and in the park near us; Turks will grill just about anything, anytime |
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This one got out of hand: the old rail station, across the Golden Horn; it was a gift of the Kaiser to the Sultan way back when... |
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From our campsite Thursday night, near the narrowest part
of the straits
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The great monument at Abide, near the end of the Gallipoli
peninsula
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In the Abide memorial courtyard
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It is a huge cemetery for Turkish soldiers killed in the
Gallipoli campaign, some 86,000 of them
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Gallipoli was largely a matter of trench
warfare and the attendant terror, rot, and
disease; Bernieres' Birds Without Wings
captures it as well as any of us can imagine
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With lines and trenches literally within ear-
shot of one another, the "Johnnies and
Mehmets" (Ataturk's expression) had other
relations than enmity alone
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Vicki takes a picture for some Jandarma in the area; this must
be holy ground for them
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I am so proud: she has gotten really good at identifying
gun emplacements, tank obstacles, pill-boxes, etc., and often
sees them before I do....
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Actually, we did find turkeys in Turkey, and briefly considered sacrificing one to the gods at the Red Hall in Pergamon; but concluded that would be too messy in the camper |
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Vicki preparing Thanksgiving dinner in our little galley at Gallipoli |
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Of course, we had Trojan wine to go with the roast chicken; it was, um, epic... |
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A modest but memorable Thanksgiving dinner, 2010, in turkey-less Turkey |
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Entrance to the Hellespont, the narrow strait leading to the
Sea of Marmure, to Istanbul, the Bosphorus, and then the
Black Sea; an historic place, as long as there has been
history
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Traffic is always brisk
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Traffic on the road to Canakkale was interesting, varied...
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Our ferry, the Good Ferry Ezine, about to arrive in Canakkale
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It's been more than a year since the Grey Wanderer's last
boat ride, across the English Channel; the weather this day
was balmy, calm
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Farewell, Canakkale, and Asia, again
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Our crack satnav, Tom, ever keeping track of us; we think
this might have been his first trip to Anatolian Turkey
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Hello, Eceabat, the Gallipoli Peninsula, the Dardanelles, and
Europe
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More beautiful landscape along the way
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Most-photographed item at Troy
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Most-photographed pose
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Famous photo of Schliemann's wife wearing
"Priam's gold"--well, someone's gold
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Most of the place looks like this
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Northeast citadel, Troy VI
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Schliemann's original trench; it says
something about the place that this would
be memorialized...
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This, I thought, was the most compelling scene at Troy:
showing all 9 layers...
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To wit...
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Troy VII structure
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Odeon--Roman Troy
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Pillars thought to be part of Priam's palace...
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South gate, Troy VI-VII
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Two red squirrels, Hector of the gleaming helmet and
swift-footed Achilles, fight it out before the walls of Troy; well, actually, on the walls of Troy |