Bill and Carol

It's been a quiet, happy winter--often sunny but also COLD, Antalya's coldest winter in thirty years. Without insulation, double-glazed windows, or central heating in our building, we've been warmed mostly by the smartwool and down clothing we brought with us. I have been known to sleep in my winter jacket, muffler and gloves. We do have wall-mounted heat pumps ("klimas") in three rooms, but two of them--as well as the hot water heater--have been on the friitz quite a bit. In defense, we joined a health club in January, partly for the reliable access to hot showers! To stay warm during the day, we heat one smallish room and use it for everything. We study there, hover with guests, and eat in a corner of windows which has a view of the sea-- now that the ... read more

Hello everybody: We are writing from Nemrut in Eastern Turkey where we just heard that there was a 7.2 earthquake, centered near Van, which is fairly close by. We just wanted you to know that we didn't feel the quake and we are fine. We will send you another entry about this trip in the next few weeks. Affectionately, Bill and Carol... read more

Welcome to Bill and Carol's Senior Years Abroad, blog about our explorations in and around Turkey in 2010 - 2012. As our second year in Turkey began in May 2011, we abandoned--for a few months--our efforts at being semi-serious travelers, taking a break in our volunteering and Turkish language study. With Seattle visitors (Janet and Bill Corriston and later Catherine Crain) in Turkey to tempt us toward wall-to-wall fun, we fell into a wonderfully shameless pattern of colorful excursions, sandwiched among dips in the Sea, afternoon naps, and some truly unforgettable meals. Early in the Corristons' time with us, we fulfilled a dream of taking a Blue Cruise, an informal exploration of the Mediterranean Coast by gulet--a small wooden boat. We (just the two couples) hired a sweet, smallish gulet belonging to a friend of a ... read more

Welcome to Bill and Carol's Senior Years Abroad, our travel journal for Months 8 and 9 of our two-year adventure in Turkey. This journal's theme, "Burada Turkiye" (This is Turkey), is a phrase that we've uttered a lot recently to express admiration, befuddlement, or frustration. For example, when we moved into our flat, an old, unused building across the street was quite an eyesore. We learned that it couldn't be refurbished because it had an illegal third story, made of thick concrete. Then, one day, two men with sledgehammers showed up. With bare hands and their own brute force, they knocked down the top story. We watched as huge chunks of cement, glass, and plaster came crashing into the street (which was not closed to cars or pedestrians). Now legal, the building is being renovated as ... read more

Welcome to Bill and Carol's Senior Years Abroad, Month 5. At breakfast this morning, we had a stocktaking chat about how to characterize this past month. We agreed that it was SEEKING BALANCE or "terazi aramak." Here's one recent balancing effort: after spending one very hot season here, we decided to find a refuge for hottest part of next summer. The Alps of Slovenia seemed like a good prospect--cool, gorgeous, not overly expensive--so we went there to check it out. For those whose geography of eastern Europe is as sketchy as mine, I'll mention that Slovenia shares a border with Italy to the west and Austria to the north, and this northeast corner was our first target: the Julian Alps. Slovenia is famous for two of Bill's passions, bicycling and trout fishing, so we knew he ... read more