Golden Age 2 Hotel Istanbul

... baths etc so time was tight. We raced for a local tram but were pursued by an old man after running past the taxi stand. He said his name was Jimmy and his English was pretty good. He said he could take us to the baths for $5 US and so we relented. We were dubious but he was persistent so we threw caution to the wind and jumped in his vintage 1967 Impala with a million miles on the odometer. Best decision so far. He was great and got us ...

... Dave got into town in true backpacker style on a 9-hour bus ride from Sofia and was there to greet us in the hotel lobby (or was he just sitting there to get his wireless fix?). It was late in the day already, so we hit the streets to wander around a bit and got our first of many kebabs for dinner. Our al fresco dinner was nice and relaxing until a torrential downpour came in, breaking the awning of the restaurant ...

... a translator. They went through basic questions - Your name, father's name, mother's name, birth place...for each of them. Next to you take this person by your own free will. Yes. Yes. Everyone at the desk signs some papers and you are married. They usher people around the corner and picture were taken.

Traditional gifts are either a gold coin that is pinned to a sash around the bride and groom's necks or a gold ...

... believed that music and dance represented a means to induce an ecstatic state of universal love and offered a way to liberate the individual from the anxiety and pain of everyday life. Central to the dervishes is the sema, or whirling ceremony. Love is the central theme of the mystical cycle of the sema, which symbolizes the sharing of God's love among earthly beings. In other words the dance is a spiritual ascent to divine love or ...

... arbors, gardens and exhibitions - *definitely* recommendable. If you wanna marvel at thousands of tile designs, visit the harem [beware of bathroom effect;)]. It's not a huge bedroom but more of a living quarters;). The harem was ruled by the sultan's mother. This was a place to struggle for since the Ottomans didn't observe primogeniture and thus any son could be proclaimed a sultan - it was just about influence. Then there are some treasuries housing gold articles, precious stones ...

... it was very difficult to go in because the rocks were slippery and they hurt my feet! so then alice had to leave early because she was going to Efesis (spelling?) for the weekend with her program. the rest of us eventually made it back to the dorm and hung out the rest of the night saturday was kind of crazy. Jane, Erin, Ashley, and I went to Kanyon mall and metrocity mall to buy some going out clothes which none of us actually found but we did get some ...

... is especially old and picturesque.  So when the attendant pointed upstairs we followed orders, not knowing quite what lay ahead.  Upstairs in an open balcony around the entrance   "lobby" were a couple dozen little rooms where you disrobed, wrapped yourself in a towel and locked the door.  Then back down into the lobby, where sat men and women sipping tea and fresh squeezed OJ after their baths.  We walked ...

... Istanbul. . Bring sunscreen. Tough to find here in march. Am considering buying little burkas fro the girls for sun protection. . Know the names for the men's and women's room in turkish. It makes a difference and is a mistake you only make once. Better yet, avoid using any public toilets altogether. . The people are incredibly hospitable and knowing a few words of turkish goes a long way. . Istanbul is really clean, despite the massive number of people on the street ...

How to get to JFK from Reading PA without making my husband drive me three hours thru the crazy New York traffic? I found "Dave's Best," a van service from Philadelphia to JFK/Newark. So a quick hour on the PA turnpike to the Doubletree hotel in Plymouth Meeting, where I met the van driver. at 9:30am. A few stops at private homes, one Conference center stop and one at Wendy's then we headed north to JFK. Roundtrip was $110 plus tip. So ...

... for the Turks, the Europeans have also decided to move Cyprus 400km west so it sits nicely with Greece. Now that is cheating. The other dominant story here revolves around the possible passage by the new US Congress of a bill that makes it a crime to deny that a genocide took place in Armenia in 1915. This is pretty much a straight slap at the Turkish Government (and people) who vehemently disagree with this description of events. For all those who ...