Sheraton Cesme Hotel Resort & Spa Ilica

... my requested trip from turkish Cesme directly to italian Ancona (2,5 days) was suspended for unknown reason. So there was the other option to use a 3-stop-strategy to get to Italy.

First stop of my ferry journey was the little hop from turkish Cesme to Chios. And that means HELLO GREECE, HELLO EUROPE!!! Ok, it also means hello high prices...

... to eat which served steak, and it was an expensive meal but one of the best steaks I've ever had. Chris said the same of hers. We had asked if they had any amaretto for Christine, but alas no. However, when we’d finished the meal the waiter brought out a couple of crème de menthe liquors on the house, so that just topped it off nicely.

http://www.umitevotel.co m

... with amazing murals and icons. There is also a famous icon of the Virgin Mary (without child) here along with some really beautiful mosaics inside the Church. The church also houses an out building which houses several bones from victims of a massacre in which the deceased were either shot in the head and killed, had a sword jammed into their head and killed or impaled through their rear ends and left to die (perhaps the worst way to to as death was ...

Trying to get stuff from my Mac to an internet cafe PC! First try froze the sclerotic PC. Actually, I'll have to go back and convert the text to .pdf to transfer, I guess. Or, go on to a hotel or pension where my Mac does interface with the wireless modem, as in the present case it does not. Stay tuned.

... to pass before we could head home. A Day Trip To Turkey and the Adventures of Super Mario the Deck Hand Our original intention had been to head down the Turkish coast. However we had heard on the yottie grapevine, that the port of Ayvalik, our first port of call in Turkey, was suffering from end of seasonitis. A German couple had just been there and said that it was smelly and the marina was particularly unpleasant. We decided to take a day trip on the ...

... and relaxed for the day. Everyday, Jeff goes and picks up bread, a variety of cheeses, soda, cheese pies, etc. etc. that we use for breakfast and lunch. The food, esp the cheese, is outstanding. If we can figure out the pix situation, we will send you a few. We are leaving on Thursday for Athens and then home on Sunday All the Best from the Sprouts!

... A bearded bear of a black-robed monk is talking to a small party near the door of the cathedral and the only other people I run into are an elegantly dressed middle aged couple and two young men in white shirts and ties inside the narthex which turns out to be an ossuary. A large glass case along the wall contains maybe 50-60 skulls and piles of human femurs. A sign explains that these are the relics of the approximately 100,000 Greek residents of Chios ...

... with infections -- we couldn't really follow the details -- but he has come to this place to find relief no doctor can give him. We wish him luck and return to the sunny square outside. We take the long way back to Chios, climbing high into the mountains where each curve brings a new exquisite panorama of cliffs dropping into an impossibly blue sea. Today is Tuesday. The car is ours until 10 tonight and it's time to head north to the place according to legend that Homer was born.

... dedicated to the seven sleepers. Paul (our "social worker") believes it's a myth. However, it's mentioned in the Quran apparently. Anyway, food first...the gozlemes were delicious and the setting was perfect. We ate outdoors but with proper roof cover structures Turkish style on low tables and floor cushions with backrests. Quite a few Ayrans (Turkish yoghurt drinks) and gozlemes later...it was hard for me to follow up with more sites. So some of sat on whilst the ...

... overnight tourers back to Istanbul, the rest of the day until after dark was getting there. There were the compulsory every two hours bus stops along the way. This allowed me to spread the gospel on Turkish snack foods that I have discovered. The Brownie Golds. The lemon lime Finger icy poles. The Cornetto Nogger ice cream sandwich. NZ'er Riki is a man willing to sample the goods. The Noggers are a taste sensation. We all stay a little out of town at a place ...