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Turkey

Istanbul Room, Cakiraga Konagi, Birgi, 1987

Çakırağa Konağı

October 23, 2023

Many years ago, thirty-six to be precise, I was on my first sabbatical from Providence College and went to Turkey earlier than usual. Jan and Elif came to join me there when Elif’s school ended. Binnaz, Ergun, and I took a long Aegean trip and stopped at many places. I will do my best to …

Read moreÇakırağa Konağı
Happy Holidays. Ice abstract by Jan Ekin

Happy Holidays 2022

December 12, 2022

As we come to the end of 2022, Jan and I wish you all happy holidays and a wonderful new year. Happy Holidays &A Happy New Year We survived another year! A series of health issues tried to tackle us, but we managed to move on. Elif and Mina managed to sneak out of school …

Read moreHappy Holidays 2022
Old wooden door, Safranbolu

Safranbolu, Part 4

May 16, 2022

In this closing article about Safranbolu, we will wander around town and see a few locals, take a ride up north, and visit Bartin and Amasra. The final experience will be a visit to another mansion run by the Touring Club of Turkey. That seems to be the last day of our trip. Some Safranbolu …

Read moreSafranbolu, Part 4
Gökçüoğlu Summer Mansion, Safranbolu

Safranbolu, Part 3

May 13, 2022

As I said, we stayed at Paşa Konağı while in Safranbolu. It was a very nice hotel run by a very friendly couple, Ismail Urgancıoğlu and his family. In addition to showing us great hospitality at Paşa Konağı, they took us around to show us their other mansion, Gökçüoğlu Summer House, and beyond. Judging by …

Read moreSafranbolu, Part 3
Macunagasi Izzet Efendi Mansion, ceiling detail

Safranbolu, Part 2

May 10, 2022

In the previous post, I presented general views of Safranbolu. This one will focus on one well-restored mansion and its owners. And after that is a short presentation of Cinci Han, an old caravanserai. Let us go in … Zamanlık for Safranbolu While walking on one of the narrow streets, Ergun noticed an eye-catching sign …

Read moreSafranbolu, Part 2
Safranbolu at sunrise

Safranbolu, Part 1

May 5, 2022

Seventeen years ago, when Jan and I were visiting Turkey, we drove to the historic town of Safranbolu. Binnaz and Ergun had arranged everything, and the four of us spent a few days in the time capsule. Back in those days, I did not write articles on my site. It recently occurred to me that …

Read moreSafranbolu, Part 1
Adana 1900s 2/4

A Little History Behind Some Historic Photographs

March 10, 2021

This is a short story of a few historic photographs of Adana, my hometown. In the late 1960s, I had returned to Adana to work at the newly established Academy of Economic and Commercial Sciences. Although I was hired as an assistant, as in teaching assistant, little did I know that my job definition would …

Read moreA Little History Behind Some Historic Photographs
Temple to Zeus, Diocaesarea (Uzuncaburç)

Old Photographs and Older Places

July 1, 2020

Old Photographs from Film Days When we were living in Adana, many ancient historic places were a day trip away. We could go west or east and stop at different places to see the remnants of times long gone. In this article, I would like to take you to a place in the Taurus (Toros) …

Read moreOld Photographs and Older Places
Colorful walls on a narrow street in Ayvalik. No, I did not put that E there

Finalizing the Ayvalik Visit

November 15, 2019

Although this time we stayed in Ayvalik for only four days, we managed to do and see quite a bit. Ayvalik is colorful and charming that invites exploration. We also met new people and saw new places. In this final post of the ongoing travelog, I will try to give you a feel for the …

Read moreFinalizing the Ayvalik Visit
Ma'Adra Vineyards

Ma’Adra Vineyard Visit

November 13, 2019

Ma’Adra Unites a Mythological Couple When we visited the olive grove for the second time in the morning, we went to Ma’Adra Vineyards on the hills of Madra mountains for lunch. The road was winding and rough, the weather a bit foggy, but traveling as a two-car convoy we made it to the vineyards high …

Read moreMa’Adra Vineyard Visit
Olive Harvest at Melin Olive Grove

Melin Olive Grove

November 10, 2019

A couple of years ago, Binnaz and Ergun purchased an olive grove as a future revenue source for the ASKEV foundation. The grove has about 1,000 olive trees, mostly old with a few newer ones. Since the purchase, they have done additional work to make the grove conform to high-quality agriculture standards with automated irrigation …

Read moreMelin Olive Grove
Inside the mirror (Ayna) at Ayna Restaurant

Another Birthday in Ayvalik for Mina

November 6, 2019

After the first two weeks in Turkey and seeing the family and friends, Elif and Mina arrived at the beginning of our third week. We spent the first night in Istanbul and the next day Mustafa drove us to Ayvalik as the girls wanted. The new roads and the bridge crossing the Izmit Bay cut …

Read moreAnother Birthday in Ayvalik for Mina
Is this Dubaiesque

Istanbul Architecture

November 2, 2019

I am probably beating a dead horse by writing about the very strange change in Istanbul’s architecture. I wrote before about the discomfort of Istanbul and I experienced the same when we visited there in October 2019. In my previous visits and related posts, I referred to the city with the nickname I coined for …

Read moreIstanbul Architecture
Mehmet-Cemal-Suleyman spending quality family time

Visiting Friends and Family in Turkey, Part 2

October 30, 2019

Continuing from part 1, this is the end of our second week visiting Istanbul and spending quality time with family and friends. Elif and Mina arrived on October 14 and we all went to Ayvalik on October 15 to return to Istanbul on the 19th. October 11, 2019 As planned, I dropped Jan off at …

Read moreVisiting Friends and Family in Turkey, Part 2
Jan enjoying a bonito at Ismet Baba

Visiting Friends and Family in Turkey, Part 1

October 30, 2019

Our main reason to visit Turkey this year was mainly to see our family and friends. As we get older, our shrinking circle becomes more important, and that brought us there. Travel, especially air travel is getting harder, at least for me, but people we wanted to see made it somewhat bearable. Landed in Turkey …

Read moreVisiting Friends and Family in Turkey, Part 1
Reflection on Istanbul Modern

The Pleasant Sides of Istanbul

November 28, 2017

As much as I wrote about the discomfort and stress I get in Istanbul, I should also mention the comfort zones, the pleasures even if they may be in the midst of the dreaded construction everywhere. There are still pleasant sides of Istanbul and you can find them. Let’s Talk About the Pleasant Sides Around …

Read moreThe Pleasant Sides of Istanbul
Tower to grave connection

Discomfort of Istanbul

November 8, 2017

This photograph has been in the making for about 20 years, maybe even more. When I first thought of taking a photograph from this point, on the exit connector from the freeway, the trees were not nearly as tall nor have the looming towers were built. The apartment buildings are situated on the slopes of …

Read moreDiscomfort of Istanbul
St. Augustine Chapel

St. Augustine Chapel

October 12, 2017

Dinner With Friends Our friends invited us to Fenerbahçe Dalyan Club last week. As we arrived, we saw an old stone building which I later learned was an old seminary attached to a church. Little did I know that it was St. Augustine Church, like the one we saw in Sheffield. During the dinner, I excused …

Read moreSt. Augustine Chapel
Binnaz and Jan at Ismet Baba

Our First Couple of Days in Istanbul, 2017

October 2, 2017

Our first couple of days in Istanbul started on the right foot! After a wonderfully comfortable flight, we arrived in Istanbul about 75 minutes earlier than expected, always a pleasant surprise! Mustafa met us at the airport, and we left the parking lot to a surprise! The ever crowded and jammed traffic was surprisingly flowing, …

Read moreOur First Couple of Days in Istanbul, 2017
Dare you!

Always Colorful Markets

November 14, 2016

Various types of markets, called pazar in Turkish, are a way of life in Turkey. There are permanent markets, like the Kadikoy Pazari (market). Others, like the Kuzguncuk Pazari, have a large weekly and a smaller permanent market. The goods range from vegetables, edibles, meat, fish, cheese, spices; to housewares, kitchenware, and many things in …

Read moreAlways Colorful Markets
Ceiling of Taxiarches - 2016

A Disappointing Restoration Project

November 3, 2016

Disappointing! One word. Although I strongly favor keeping the old architecture alive, restoration, repurposing, and keeping the texture of cities and towns to the extent possible, the old church disappoints. I see preservation in Rhode Island where I live, and in nearby states. In fact, I saw 100-year-old photographs of New York compared to photographs …

Read moreA Disappointing Restoration Project
In candle light, Mina's birthday dinner at Ayna (mirror)

Mina’s Excellent 10th Birthday

October 30, 2016

Mina is now 1o years old, time flew by, and she has become a graceful girl. This year, many things came together and we were able to celebrate first Ergun’s, then Jan’s, and finally Mina’s birthdays in Turkey with family and friends. A couple of days after Elif and Mina arrived in Istanbul, we were …

Read moreMina’s Excellent 10th Birthday
Happy Birthday Jan

A Late Birthday Post

October 17, 2016

This post is for my lovely wife, love of my life! Happy belated birthday love. Happy Birthday, Jan On October 13, we were ready to celebrate Jan’s birthday. We spent the day in the house, around the garden taking photographs, and just being together. In our garden, we have been waging a war against the …

Read moreA Late Birthday Post
The Raping of Istanbul

The Raping of Istanbul, and Elsewhere

November 23, 2015

There is a Turkish song, “I don’t like Istanbul at all anymore,” in which a lover laments the lost love. That reflects my current state of mind. The city that graced the shores of the Bosphorus for centuries, bridging the east and west, the melting pot of diverse cultures, is being raped, and the raping …

Read moreThe Raping of Istanbul, and Elsewhere
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