Buyuk Ozcihan Hotel Antakya

21 Oct <br>I prom&#305;sed Ismail I'll meet h&#305;m at the Golba&#351;&#305; area &#305;n the morn&#305;ng where we f&#305;rst met before I go off for Antakya. When I got there he was w&#305;th another g&#305;rl probably around the age of 19. I wasnt sure &#305;f she was h&#305;s g&#305;rlr&#305;end at f&#305;rst and Isma&#305;l def&#305;n&#305;tely dressed n&#305;cer than usual. Isma&#305;l &#305;nv&#305;ted me to jo&#305;n them anyways and he &#305;ntroduced her ...

... near Dalyan to the sheer fairytale dreams of Cappadocia. It truly has something for everyone!<br><br>3) Baklava. Does Turkey make the best in the world? We don't know yet, but we intend to keep on investigating throughout the Middle East. For those who want to find out, the current winning city is Gaziantep which happens to have over 180 bakeries.<br><br>4) Bazaars. The bartering, the aroma of spices, the noise and the fact we are usually lost. "How ...

... good people and hospitality of Syria. Entering Turkey was as easy and welcoming as walking into your own country, minus the $20 visa fee. Conveniently we were dropped off at the Antakya bus station and could walk to our next hotel. We said a parting goodbye to our Japanese friends as they would continue onward to Cappadocia. Meanwhile we were going to get our first taste of Turkey....

... ancient city of Antioch) and preached in the cave which is now known as St. Peter's Church. This was between the years 29 and 40. In 1098 the crusaders who conquered Antakya extended the church with two arches on the front. The floor still has some traces of mosaic tiles and there was a fresco on the walls, only some red smears are left. There is a water container on the right side of the alter that has water in it and a cup. It is said many pilgrims come ...

Antakya Arrivée vers 20h, la ville semble plutôt glauque .. Déjà, la misère pour trouver un hôtel: mon bouquin donne une adresse à éviter, mais malheureusement, tous les autres n'ont que des chambres doubles ou il faut payer double ou sinon les pires crades chambres que j'ai vu en turquie ..pour 10e!! Finalement de dépis, je tente ma chance à Seker palace ...

... a pinch of an accent while speaking Turkish. We constantly jump from being to being. Therefore, the concepts of personality and memory are not attached to our souls. When we transport into a new being, we assume its personality and memory. Our sole only experiences. However, there is a pinch of a memory that is a part of our soul. We recall our past tranportations in the form of dreams and de ja vues... I added this wierd stuff just to give my parents a scare ;)

... from 19 different countries and we are good will ambassadors. At each port we have a flag ceremony and a plaque presentation to important people in the town, such as the Mayor, Heads of the Chamber of Shipping, Commerce, the Municipality and the Marinas to thank them for hosting us with cocktails and dinner. So far we have been escorted by the Turkish Coastguard as well. We are about to go to Syria at the start of our Middle East visit.

2nd May 2008<br><br> Not Much Doin' in Antioch<br> <br>Upon getting into Antioch/Antakya, meeting Koray and taking my gear to his apartment--a short walk from his university office--we met a university friend of his, Varol Topaç. The two of them treated me to a dinner at a local eatery.<br><br>Varol is a sculptor/visual artist, and of the university faculty. (He gave me his card. It lists websites to see his work. The first one, at geocities.com, won't show up via Turkish wi-fi. I ...

1st May 2008<br><br>In Ni&#287;de I had checked out of the hotel and walked about 4/5ths of the way to the bus station (less than a half mile) when there stood before me Mustafa! He said he had called the hotel and learned that I had left.<br><br>We walked the remaining block to the bus station and Mustafa did all the talking to confirm who I was and have the pre-ordered ticket handed over. (At this rate my Turkish is not going to get any better. I'm now thinking Ill have to wait until I can ...

... by about 8 at night. I got myself a cheap meal then went to a very nice pub with cheap beer (2.50 Efes - whooo!) but unfortunately it was full of Turkish men listening to the soccer on the radio. I retreated back to my hotel room for an early night. <br> <br>Friday (November 09) <br> <br>I was woken by the sound of rain pelting against the iron roofs of the surrounding apartments. I looked at the window and it looked like a really ****** day. So what better way to ...