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Birinci Kültür

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    • Turkey - Gate1 - October 2019

      Trip to Ephesus

      October 21, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ 🌙 52 °F

      Starting two nights at this hotel, so nice not to pack again. Here’s the schedule for today. ( interesting that we used to live in Smyrna, GA). Call to prayer boomed out of loudspeakers every day reduces the need for an alarm clock. :)

      DAY 6, Monday - Full Day in Izmir
      Enjoy a full day at leisure in Izmir. With over 3500 years of history, the port city known historically as Smyrna offers a variety of impressive archaeological sites, not to mention easy access to ancient Ephesus. Perhaps, relax in the city and sip Türk kahvesi, authentic Turkish coffee, at a café set along the scenic Pasaport Quay. Don't miss the optional tour to Ephesus, considered one of the greatest ancient cities of the world. Here, you'll visit the House of the Virgin Mary, Basilica of St. John, the library of Celsus, temple of Hadrian, the theater and the Odeon. After lunch at a local restaurant return to Izmir
      Optional: Full Day Ephesus & House of the Virgin Mary with Lunch Overnight: Izmir
      Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

      On the highway heading south , we learn that when they were constructing this Highway, they found a marble highway used by Alexander the Great.

      Heading to the House of the Virgin Mary this morning ( see map) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_the_Vi…      Read more

    • International Jaunts 2020
      Day 19

      All’s Well!

      March 16, 2020 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F

      Just checking in. Not a very exciting day ... which is not necessarily a bad thing these days. It’s a bitterly cold day with a strong wind making the chill worse than it should have been based on temperature alone.

      A few chores and errands ... some internet work ... some iPad Kindle reading ... a few more rows of knitting.

      Oh ... and we canceled a few car rental reservations and the B&B we had booked for our brief stay in England in May. All were pay-on-arrival ... so no financial impact to us from our change in plans. I’m going to work on canceling the more complicated arrangements after we get home.

      All’s well in our little corner of the world.      Read more

    • EuroCrossing & Türkiye 2022
      Day 52

      Heading Home

      May 9, 2022 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 52 °F

      Today is the first of our two travel days to get home … have to overnight in Houston, Texas due to flight schedules.

      Mui did a “bit of shopping,” so we’re going back with an extra bag. One of these years we’ll learn to pack light 😊.

      More later …      Read more

    • Türkiye 2021
      Day 82

      Happy Thanksgiving

      November 25, 2021 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 54 °F

      Had we been at home in Colorado, our Thanksgiving celebration would have been a quiet one. But we weren’t … and it wasn’t.

      In fact, we had a very festive evening. In addition to my immediate family — mom, Deniz (my brother), Aylin & Murat (my sis & brother-in-law), and Hakan & Serenay (my nephew and niece-in-law) — we invited Cici, my cousin’s widowed wife, and Nevra, mom’s neighbor.

      Thanksgiving is not a holiday that is celebrated in Turkey. But that did not stop us from doing so with all the trimmings. Mui was responsible for the turkey and the green bean casserole … both of which he cooked at mom’s. Mom was responsible for the mashed potatoes and stuffing. The gravy and cranberry were store bought from the commissary … as was the pecan and key lime pies.

      A festive and joyous occasion … with good food, good camaraderie. With the ongoing pandemic, we all certainly have a lot to be thankful for … most importantly our health and being able to share this special day with loved ones.      Read more

    • Türkiye 2021
      Day 76

      Nature, Gardens & Fantasies

      November 19, 2021 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 55 °F

      The Arkas Family, though of French Origin, have a history in Turkey that goes back to 1902 when the company carrying their name was founded. I’m guessing the family actually arrived in the country earlier than that, but for my purposes knowing this much is enough.

      In the building where the French Consulate is housed, two floors are dedicated as the Arkas Art Center. The family frequently sponsors art exhibits here … often featuring pieces from their own collection. We've gone to several of these exhibits over the years … none have disappointed. This one — Nature, Gardens, and Fantasies in the Arkas Collection — did not either.

      The exhibit is billed as offering “… the opportunity to reconsider the relationship between art, nature, garden and humankind … .” Mom, Aylin, Deniz, and I went to the exhibit together. None of us was familiar with any of the artists, but their pieces inspired a feeling of peace and quiet. I also enjoyed the few tapestry pieces with the same theme. Even the vases on display were selected in the same vein.

      After wandering around the exhibit, the four of us went to Léone, a popular patisserie, for afternoon tea. We were lucky with our timing as the place filled up within minutes of our arrival. A sweet treat was the perfect way to wrap up our day.      Read more

    • Türkiye 2021
      Day 12

      Murano’s Kitchen

      September 16, 2021 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F

      Today is Aylin and Murat’s 33rd wedding anniversary. Hard to believe so much time has passed since my younger sister got married, but there you have it. Time flies whether we want it to or not. They’ve gone off to Karaburun for the weekend, so we’ll celebrate together belatedly in October.

      In the meantime, the four of us — mom, Deniz, Mui, and I — will be heading to Bodrum tomorrow. Our bags are packed and ready to go.

      Not wanting to have left overs sitting in the fridge, mom shut down the kitchen yesterday. So, we went out to dinner. The plan was to go to Venedik Pizzeria for some Italian food. Alas, the place was booked solid with a long line of patrons waiting to be seated.

      Plan B took us to Murano’s Kitchen, another Italian restaurant just up the street. Tasty food … no complaints.      Read more

    • TravelerIzmir
      23
      Day 1

      1. Day Izmir II

      August 7, 2022 in Turkey ⋅ 🌙 29 °C

      Alsancak Quarter is the place to be ;)

    • EuroCrossing & Türkiye 2022
      Day 27

      İzmir: Surprise, Mom … We’re Here!

      April 14, 2022 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

      Although I was born in the US, I grew up in İzmir, Turkey. Some forty years ago, Mui and I were married in İzmir, and soon after, we made the permanent move to the US.

      We’ve been back and forth practically every year since to visit family. Flying in and out mostly, but on a few occasions, we departed by ship out of İstanbul. This was our first time arriving in İzmir by ship, however, so it was a special occasion for us … especially doing so on Insignia’s maiden call to the city.

      What was even more special today was that my sister, Aylin, and I had made arrangements to surprise mom. Aylin and her daughter-in-law, Serenay, conspired to get mom out to a café for brunch. Unbeknownst to her, we were waiting for them at the café. We had a delightful reunion and meal, joined also by Murat, my brother-in-law, and Hakan, my nephew.

      After brunch, we all went to mom’s place where we had an afternoon of catching up. From the non-stop chatter, you would think that we had not visited them for four months just last fall.

      Aylin and Serenay had a surprise for me as well … a birthday celebration redux. My birthday was actually on the 11th and we had already marked the occasion while in Haifa! I enjoyed the surprise birthday cake … after making sure that two celebrations within just a couple of days didn’t mean that I would be adding two years to my age ;-)      Read more

    • Türkiye 2021
      Day 98

      Fun Food Day

      December 11, 2021 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

      It seems like I have a lot of food-related posts when we are in Turkey. What can I say, the food culture is very strong here … lots of restaurants and cafés and patisseries. As a family, we enjoy visiting our favorites … and checking out new places to see if we can grow our “favorites” list.

      Today, we started our day with breakfast, joining Aylin & Murat, and mom and Deniz at Léone, a French-themed patisserie. This was a pre-reward for mom, Aylin & Murat, who then went to get their COVID-19 booster shots.

      Sandy, our neighbor in Colorado makes beautifully decorated cookies. When Aylin and mom were visiting us in 2019, they got to taste some of the Christmas cookies Sandy sent over. I had thought about ordering cookies to take with me to Turkey this year, but the timing did not work out. No worries. Aylin found some at a Turkish patisserie. She had us over for afternoon tea today so we could test-drive the cookies. Yummy!

      We continued our food-themed day with dinner at Paprica … an Italian restaurant just a few steps down the street from mom’s condo. The food is always good here … and the service as well. Murat made reservations in the indoors section … we had the whole room to ourselves. I usually have pasta, but opted for the Paprica Beef Special, which is not unlike çökertme kebabı … small chunks of beef served over shredded fried potatoes with yogurt and tomato sauce. We ordered the caramel cake to share six-ways just to refresh our palates. We were so enjoying our meal that I, alas, forgot to take photos!      Read more

    • Türkiye 2021
      Day 83

      Happy 40th & Belated 33rd

      November 26, 2021 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

      When Mui and I got married in 1981, our wedding fell on Thanksgiving Day. This year, it fell on the day after. Forty years … that’s how long we’ve been married.

      To celebrate, we all — meaning, mom, Deniz, Aylin & Murat, and us — went to a new Italian restaurant in Alsancak … Da Enzo. We turned the occasion into a joint celebration … a belated one for Aylin and Murat, whose 33rd anniversary was in September.

      The food was excellent … as was the service. Mui enjoyed the chance to speak Italian with Chef Enzo, who came out to take our order himself. He’s rightly proud of his food. Alas, I completely spaced out taking photos of the delicious dishes we ordered … except for the dessert sampler with which we wrapped up our meal.      Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Birinci Kültür, Birinci Kultur, 1. Kültür

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