Another Photo Shoot
I had a chance to photograph Mina again this morning. After that, other family members participated in the photo shoot. Lovely! Every one of them (especially the one with white hair, all natural you know.)
Mina in RI 2009
Mina and Elif have been here for just over a week, but school closing, paper grading, and running other errands have prevented us from having a photo shoot. This morning, after sufficient bribing with a promise to watch “Frosty the Snowman” DVD, she put on her nice dress, I carried my gear down to the basement and we had a brief photo shoot. The following are selections from that. She is standing in front of a dark back drop.
Happy holidays to you all.
Lachapelle-Ormond Family Vacation
Our good friends Roland and Cathy invited us to go to Martha’s Vineyard during their vacation. They had been planning this for quite some time to spend family time with their parents and other family members. Jan and I appreciate to be invited to such a special vacation.
We arrived on MV on September 3 after a choppy travel on the Atlantic. The last few minutes were a bit too much for Jan, but after resting a couple of hours she bounced back. While she was resting I took a little walk and took some photographs which I will post later on. But later that afternoon, all the family members wore the special sweatshirts Roland had made for them and I took their family photographs. They were printed with “Lachapelle University” for Roland and his parents, and “Ormond University” for Caty’s parents and for Sheri, Cathy’s daughter. Cathy could have worn either, she chose the Lachapelle U sweatshirt. They all thoroughly enjoyed themselves and being on MV and repeated this often as if to make sure they never forget the good times and the memories they made on the island.
Thank you all for bringing us into your family and we hope that these photographs make your vacation and the happy times easier to remember.
A walk in Bursa
After visiting the Ulu Cami (The Grand Mosque) and Koza Han (see the earlier post about them), we strolled through the streets of Bursa. With a detour to see where Ergun lived when he was a young boy, we walked down the hill to a restaurant in the old Jewish district. We left Koza Han from one of its highly ornate gates. In contrast to the one we used to enter the structure, this was huge and highly ornate. I am not sure which one is the main gate. Outside, the local merchants displayed a variety of wares for sale and the passers by showed interest in the items. It was late afternoon, early evening. People made stops for snacks, or walked at a quick pace towards home; at least I thought they were going home. Those who had time to linger found places to perch like the young couple under the very old tree outside the Grand Mosque (Ulu Cami).
As we walked down the hill, I saw one of the many fountains in the city. This was mostly spraying mist, creating a little comfort zone for those who want to pause to rest. I wanted to capture the water in different states, in frozen time with droplets visible and in slow motion where moving water becomes like cotton candy. This is normally a reasonably simple thing to do by using a fast or slow shutter speed. The first was easy, the second proved more challenging as I did not have my tripod with me. The slow shutter speed photographs are taken with camera hand-held at 1/2 to 1/8 of a second. I could still hold the camera steady at those speeds.
Then we passed a statue and a small area dedicated to Cemal Nadir Guler, a cartoonist of my childhood who entered the psyche of the population with a character Amcabey. Through his cartoon art, he commented on various aspects of life in his time. I did not know that he died at the age of 45.
Mimi and Dede in the Back Yard
Yesterday our friends Jim and Carol came, we had pizza in the back yard. Mina likes them, “Jim and Carol are really nice people” she says. Jim took some photographs of Mimi and Dede, we had fun. Thanks Jim for taking these photographs.
Anemon Hotel and Grifin Fish Restaurant
Ergun, my brother-in-law and good friend, scouts the most interesting places to visit. On June 29 we visited the Covered Bazaar for some last minute shopping then went to the Tunel district in old Pera. The first stop was an interesting bookstore which seemed to specialize in historical publications. We saw some interesting books, Ergun purchased a few and we started walking down towards the Galata Tower. It was built by the Genoese in mid 14th century. Its walls are about 10 feet thick, no wonder it still stands tall.
The tower is very impressive from the ground level with a height of 220 feet. There is a hotel directly across from the tower, Hotel Anemon which serves food and drinks at its roof. We took the elevator there and the imposing tower looked even more so and felt almost touchably close. I could see the tourists on its circular walk taking pictures with the flash firing! As we enjoyed some drinks, I looked down to see a group of a cappella musicians singing to an audience. Also interesting was to see the darting swallows around the tower. Read more
Bursa
We left Tenedos on June 23, the ferry fares are paid both ways on the way back from the island. Not a bad idea at all. We drove through Çan (Chan), Biga (Big-ah), Karacabey (Karadja-bay), to Bursa with a lunch stop at Biga. Bursa is the original capitol of the Ottoman Empire and served in that capacity before Edirne, and later Constantinople. It used to be a relatively small city famous for its silk and Turkish towels. Now, its population is pushing 2 million and it has become a hustle and bustle city with heavy traffic. Ergun had made reservations at one of the nicest and oldest hotels, Hotel Gonluferah. Located in the Çekirge district, overlooking the rest of the city. For those interested (at least in the winter) it has thermal baths inside.
After a brief rest, we took a cab to one of the big attractions in Bursa, Ulu Cami (The Grand Mosque). It lived up to its name, both in size and in its appeal to many not only as a place of worship but also a social gathering place. Ergun told us that it had always served as a meeting place for people. I saw some men and women in prayer, some meditating, some chatting and socializing, one young boy was sitting down in a corner busy Read more
Tenedos, II, the second day
We wanted to see the island, and the thyme fields, once more and decided to stay another day on the island. The next morning we strolled around town, visited the Bozcaada Museum, a small collection of local artifacts and historical tidbits. After a nice lunch under the pine trees at the center of the town, we returned to the hotel for rest. Later in the afternoon we drove around the island, went to some of the beaches to look for the special sand Elif had asked for. No luck! The plane trees at Ayazma were impressive, and the house Ergun and Binnaz liked very much about 30 years ago was still interesting but in disrepair. Some of the beaches were empty due to high tide, most of the umbrellas and the beach chairs were in the water. In the evening we visited Yakamoz Restaurant again. Read more
Tenedos, I (Bozcaada)
On June 21 we left Ayvalik to catch the ferry to Tenedos, a small island on the northwest corner of the Aegean coast of Turkey. By all calculations we should have made the 1:00 pm ferry very comfortably, but since we left about 20 minutes later than planned, we made it to the boat by the skin of our teeth. The ferry ride was only about 30 minutes long and it was an easy one. Its name comes from “the island of Tenos” and it is located almost directly across from the ancient Troy.
The island has a quiet lifestyle, it has quaint narrow streets with old houses. At the heart of the town is a large medieval castle last restored by the Ottomans after they captured the island. In the evening they illuminate the castle which creates a nice contrast against the night blue sky.
We checked in at the Kaikias Hotel run by a very pleasant woman. Our room was comfortable with all Read more
Ayvalik-Lesvos Days
June 21, we learned about a wonderful cultural exchange between Ayvalik and Lesvos (Λέσβος) only one day before we left Ayvalik. Apparently it first started last year at Lesvos, alternating the festivities between there and Ayvalik. The part we saw was a folk dance performance and both the Ayvalik and the Lesvos dancers looked wonderful, young, and eager to share their cultural riches. I waited for a while and as the weather got too hot and the program was delayed due to the late arrival of the dignitaries, I left without actually watching the performance. My sister and brother-in-law spoke very highly of both groups. I thank all the dance team members, the Ayvalik group and the “Dancing Group from Loutra of Lesvos” for allowing me to photograph them.
The event was reasonably crowded, I think it could have been Read more
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