East 'n Bull

Thanks for sharing your impressions of Istanbul
A few days ago I watched a fascinating PBS video entitled "Islam.". Its narrative covered the animistic period on the Arabian Peninsula through the peak of the Ottoman Empire. Of course there is a lot more to the story, and when the video ended after having told the story of the great Ottoman sultans Mehmet and Suleyman (sp?) I wanted to learn more. Perhaps there will be a sequel. Istanbul was one of my father's favorite cities. He visited friends there several times. I'd like to go there someday, but my next trip will not be very exotic, but hopefully spiritually inspiring. In September I will fdo a one week Buddust retreat ln the island of Iona off the west coast of Scotland preceded by hanging out with friends in Oxford, Bristol and maybe Cambridge. I'm reading a book about a battle in Belize to stop a dam and save the tiny remnant population of scarlet macaws, one of Latin America's iconic birds and dreaming about doing a road trip there from Mexico that would loop through Yucutan, Chiapus and Guatemala. The TESL grammar class is not hard,but it is humbling because it's making me realize I don't know jack about English grammar. Wishing good travels to you Jon!