This was an incredible day, busy, but definitely one for the memory of a lifetime books. We drove up to Mae Sai, a town on the border with Myannmar (still called Burma here). Our guide helped us fast track across the border for a few hours of sightseeing. It was raining more today than any other day, but none of us going to Myannmar cared. ( I'll still never get the people that choose to stay in Mae Sai shopping). We rode motorized rickshaws around town, mud, ruts and all, but it was great fun. We stopped to talk to local family and visit a school, although we couldn't go in, but did learn about the education which is not compulsory and children from the hill tribes are brought down for school at the government's expense. ... read more

Today was mostly a travel day with about 6 hours total on the bus. We stop to visit with some rice farmers along the road. They can get $400-500 twice a year with each crop, assuming no floods like last year. This is tough work but their families have been doing it for generations.. Sukhothai is the first capital of Thailand (Siam) from 1238-1362. The ruins of the original city's temple ruins, Wat Mahathat, are supposedly the best preserved in Thailand, and they were spectacular. We saw so much here it's hard to get started. It's World Heritage Site so there is a lot of protection of the current remains. There are 2 standing Buddhas there that are original to the site. There is also an original bronze Buddha but it was removed to a museum ... read more

I may not have done justice to Bangkok in my last entry. I was just sooooo excited about the tigers. Bangkok is a very large, very crowded city as one would expect. It doesn't have much history, about 250 yrs as the capital and that is nothing by Asian standards. However, if you want to shop, this is the place. I preferred spending my time with a massage though. After a very brief bus tour of the city (too much traffic to go anywhere really), we went to visit Wat Po temple which contains the Reclining Golden Buddha. That thing is big! But to know it it is all hand laid gold leaf is amazing to imagine. We saw someone restoring gold leaf at a temple the next day and it is a considerable manual effort. ... read more

On Sunday (11/6) we left the Asian side of Turkey to return to European Turkey into Istanbul. That's about it for Sunday. It's the Holy day of sacrifice today for Islam so most everything was closed but there were still some industrious people in Istanbul that kept things open. Since we rushed to see Troy on Sat and it was planned for Sunday am, we arrived in Istanbul around 3:30 with free time but very little open to spend our time in, including tourist traps like the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market. That night we had our farewell dinner as a group at a fish restaurant in the Armenian section called Okyanus, meaning ocean (original, huh). We had traditional appetizers of mere, anchovies, yogurt with garlic, crushed tomatoes and eggplant. We were then served calamari ... read more

Finally, I can say I've been to Ephesus. And it was worth it all. I've seen ruins in Italy, Crete and other places but they still amaze me. Even though only 20% of the city has been unearthed, that 20% shows the advancements of the Romans and Greeks over 2000 years ago. Ephesus is one of 5 most important cities in the ancient world. With a population of over 250,000 at it's height, it contained one of 7 wonders of the ancient world and had the 3rd largest library behind Alexandria and Pergamum (which we see tomorrow). Like Troy (which we will also see tomorrow), Ephesus was built several times. Unlike Troy, it was built in different locations. The first was founded by one of Achilles' generals after the Trojan war. Legend has it he had ... read more