Turkish Pottery We were taken to the location of a family who have produced beautiful pottery for several centuries. Their home, workplace, and showroom are all in one location, up a steep hill from the main road. They must be on the list of many tour operators as there was a large parking lot. At times when a person is on a tour they end up stuck in a place like this with the hope that the tourists will buy a pile of goods worth very little. I do hate it if I get involved in something like that. When I [View Full Entry]

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Istanbul to Kayseri We flew on OnurAir from Istanbul to Kayseri, a city in Central Anatolia. Two women from Brazil, who also stayed at the hotel in Istanbul, were on the flight and same tour that we had booked for two days in Cappadocia. It was an hour and a half flight from Istanbul to Kaiseri. Thankfully we were served a drink, we selected orange juice, and a good piece of cake. Neither of us were really hungry, but that insured that we would not feel too hungry before getting to the hotel. We knew we had reservations, but we [View Full Entry]

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I just noticed- You need to click on the numbers at the bottom in order to see all 90 yes 90 photos Bill attached. The Hagia Sophia was one of the historic sites that we definitely wanted to see during our stay in Istanbul. Fortunately, on Thursday evening, the desk clerk at our hotel told us that if we wanted to see this ancient church we should do so on Friday because the church is closed on Mondays. We had most of Friday to tour Istanbut as our plane to Cappadocia did not leave Istanbul until a little after five [View Full Entry]

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While in the park where so many tulips were in bloom we found ourself tired and hungry and near several small outdoor cafes that served Turkish tea, coffee and other goodies. We found a table beside a low wall where we could look out over the water to the Bosphorus. This is the busiest seaport we have every seen. There are little ships, big ships as well as various sized ferries going in all directions. If you are a captian of a ship here, or a harbor master you surely have to keep on your toes. There must be a method [View Full Entry]

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Chalk it up to ignorance, but we did not know that Istanbul is a city of tulips. For the past three years some three million bulbs have been planted for a special Tulip Festival. We were fortunate enough to be there at their height of blooming. The median strips of the major roads and the parks were simply filled with a huge variety of tulips in full bloom. The tulip comes from this part of the world. Indeed, in the mid 1500's one of the Ottaman Sultans gave a visiting Dutch diplomat some tulip bulbs and that is how they were [View Full Entry]

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Turkey exceeded our expectations in every way, people, food, sights ... everything. We would return for another visit at the drop of a hat. We saw and experienced so much during our five day stay that we will have to post a number of entries. So here goes number 1; getting to Istanbul and our hotel. Leaving Prague we flew on Turkish Air to Istanbul, a 2 1/2 hour flight with a good meal served on the plane. I had their chicken and Nancy their pasta. Actually we selected different meals so we could share and have a taste of both [View Full Entry]

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As we walked from the neighborhood near the Prague TV tower we saw and walked through a park that led downhill toward the Museum and Wencelas Square, a walk of a mile or so, we came to an opening in the trees and found a wonderful view of the St. Vitus Cathedral and the Prague Palace in the distance. Near the exit from the park we saw a statue. I wondered who it memoralized and walked over where I could read the name on the base of the statue and saw it is to a Dr. Rigeler. I have no clue [View Full Entry]

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To one side of Prague's TV tower is what is left of a Jewish cemetery. As we wrote in the entry on the TV tower part of the cemetery was destroyed when: 1. the TV tower was built 2. years before the tower was built to make room for a small park. The official party, Communist Party, line the cemetery had been destroyed years before the tower was constructed to make way for a public park. Take your pick. I really do not know which story is true. The cemetery lies well outside the Jewish Quarter and so this is not [View Full Entry]

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We do not know if you get tried of seeing the photos of the buildings here in Prague, but we never tire of looking at them and taking pictures. The photos here are of the buildings near the Prague TV tower. Nancy and I decided that this is the neighborhood we would like to live in if we were to move to Prague. [View Full Entry]

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Some call it the "Russian Rocket," others simply call it "horizon polution. Regardless of what you call it, it dominates the skyline on the Eastern side of the city. Construction began while the Czechs were still under a Communist government and finished in 1992, after the Velvet Revolution and the fall of Communism. We have read there was, and still is, resentment over the tower being built in the city. It is in a beautiful neighborhood. I can only imagine how upset people in such lovely homes must have been to have such a thing planted in the middle of a [View Full Entry]

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