Exploring the culture, history, and cuisine of Turkey through the eyes of not-just-another-tourist
Day 2 of our trip to Çanakkale started with a trip from Bursa to Troy. Although I had read that Troy wasn't much to see, I was really looking forward to it. I tried hard to remember which high school teacher had forced me to read Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey to no avail. On this... Continue Reading →
Matt Krause has begun his 1305 km walk across Turkey. I think this is just amazing, and I told many people about his goals and why he is doing it. Interestingly, everyone asked me the same question. So I passed it on to Matt. Some of Terry's readers asked, "How will Matt deal with the... Continue Reading →
When I meet a Turk for the first time, they inevitably will ask me where I am from. This is not the case for most Europeans. They always know from my [insert adjective] accent that I am American. Most Turks though aren't trained in distinguishing the English speaker's accents as easily (not that there aren't... Continue Reading →
This is a must read story of an American man who is about to set off across Turkey - on foot! I really wanted to tell them about how people are just the same. Living in Turkey had reminded me of this but human nature forces us to focus on the differences. It makes us... Continue Reading →
One of the great things I like about the States is the attempts to recycle practically everything. I realize we are still far behind and there's always more to do to save Planet Earth. But compared to Turkey, we are miles ahead. Behind? Absolutely! I remember one day back in the 90's (I think it... Continue Reading →
Today's guest blogger is the son of dear friends. Kemal is a 9-year-old "almost typical" Turkish boy. He's typical in most ways but one, he spent a year living in the United States, learning the English language, going to school, and making new friends. Reading this, it will be obvious that he had a little... Continue Reading →
I would like to introduce to you a new friend, Alan Fenn. Alan is a "virtual friend." One of those to whom I referred on a previous blog - one I have never met but highly revere. In my mind, Alan is many things; an author, a blogger, a political virtuoso, lover of flora... Continue Reading →
You know, I've been writing the series about my weekend adventure. Last night, as I was contemplating how I would end the story with one day left to go, Warren Zevon popped into my head. Excitable Girl, they all said, excitable girl. It's true. I'm easily excited. I love taking in life. When I went... Continue Reading →
Since I was 6 years old, I have always lived on streets where folks must parallel park their vehicles. My father was a truck driver and two brothers followed in that line of work. So when it came time to learn to drive, believe me, I knew I had better learn to parallel park or... Continue Reading →
. . . and still I am not done! April 15th is Tax Day in the U.S. The day of reckoning. This year that fell on the weekend, so it should have been pushed to Monday. But thanks to some never-heard-of holiday in D.C., it was moved to the 17th. And let's not forget it... Continue Reading →
Easter is coming. In addition to thinking about how I will spend the day (or days) and what I will cook, today I began to think about how I used to celebrate the death and rising again of Christ. During the weeks leading up to Easter in my early school days, we would go to... Continue Reading →
It was a long and rough winter for us in Ankara. For a moment there, I thought all of the stars in the sky had a bad case of dandruff - it snowed that much! In fact, we had flurries again yesterday. But now the sun is shining and flowers are poking their little heads... Continue Reading →
I am far from being an "authority" on parenting skills. Fortunately, this post is not really about that. From what I have seen in many parts of Turkey, children are raised differently from those in the U.S. - for the most part. Of course, there are exceptions. But most children are treated like little gods... Continue Reading →
Musings of a Philadelphia lawyer - who married a Turk, quit her day job, and set out for adventure!
-by Terry Henson Kaymak
Adventures in Ankara 