TravelStream™ news feed for member juanitobosque on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/juanitobosque en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Mon, 08 Jun 2009 20:03:29 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244433600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244433600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244433600/tpod.html Mon, 08 Jun 2009 20:03:29 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

You will be able to see, in viewing these photos, that I had fun taking them. It was really enriching to get a closeup view of the village life, both in the water wheel and the Bishoi village. I hope you enjoy these pictures. Jon

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244413351/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244413351/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244413351/tpod.html Sun, 07 Jun 2009 18:24:52 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

These photos are my favorite from the Rhajasthan city of Jaipur. In Rhajasthan the cities seem to be cleaner and more organized than those of the areas that we have already seen. But, as we get closer to the Great Thar Desert it is getting hotter.

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244338661/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244338661/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1244338661/tpod.html Sat, 06 Jun 2009 21:40:02 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

As I stated previously in my blog, there is not much to see in Agra, but the Taj Majal and the Agra Fort. Because it is pretty overwhelming, most of the pictures are from the Taj--I hope that you enjoy them. Jon

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Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India

These are the famous erotic temple photos from Khajuraho. Matter of fact, there is not much else to see in Khajurajo--except their Kama Sutra type temples. If you are under 18 years of age you will need your parents permission before proceeding.

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Gaya, Bihar, India

Here are a series of pictures that we took on the road to Boda Gaya and whle in Boda Gaya.

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Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India

When I tried to decide on two pictures for each city and send it all in one blog, I was stuck. I ended up with about 100 favorite pictures, so I will break them up in areas and try to give a short description of each one. I am starting with Varanasi.

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243360200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243360200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243360200/tpod.html Tue, 26 May 2009 13:52:44 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Istanbul, Turkey

May 22nd

38th installment

The sun rises over the Asian half of Istanbul and I am here on the roof terrace to watch it. I am also writing in my journal and sipping a cup of Nescafe (yuck!). Out the window I see 3 families of seagulls airing out their young chicks on the nearby rooftops. The fuzzy grey youngsters are guarded by one or both of their parents at all times. It appears that the enemies are the crows and the other seagulls that are trying to get close to the young birds. Every time one of the strangers get too close they are run off by the gull parents.

On another roof top, small rugs are laid out to "age". This is a process that we have learned about over the past few weeks. When you look at rugs in a rug store, they always distinguish between the new rugs and the more expensive old rugs. The old rugs are more valued because the older techniques produced a better quality rug than the newer techniques. We are usually told that the older rugs are anywhere from 60 to 80 years old and although they don't look new, they don't look like they are much worn. So, the trick used by the rug sellers is to make their new rugs look old. One method is to give them a light chemical bath to cause an artificially aged look. Another method, and quite common, is to lay the rugs on the sidewalk in front of the shop so the passers-by will walk on them. The third method involves wetting the rugs and leaving them out in the sun and weather for a few weeks-the process that our neighbor is using. The neighbor has a rug business in the shop below and he is simply increasing the value of his inventory.

Today we have two goals-well three including the purse purchase. We want to see the ancient underground water cistern and also the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts.

The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts is located in the former palace of the number one advisor to Suleyman the Magnificent. The building itself dates from the 16th century but the 40,000 exhibits date from the 19th century, all the way back to the 7th century. On the ground floor we first see the ethnographic section that shows village and nomadic life of the ethnic Turks. There is an actual Yurt of the style that is still used today by the nomads of eastern Turkey. There are also examples of the portable looms used by the nomads and the tools that they use to spin the wool

On the second floor is an incredible collection of Turkish carpets. Some of the carpets had been recovered from tombs and others from mosques-some look new and others are threadbare in parts. There are 4 carpets that date from the 14th century and enough of the original material remains that you can still make out the designs. These carpets look very old and it is not because they were sitting on a rooftop somewhere. We note that some of the patterns are the same ones that are used in present day Oaxaca, especially the Greco design. Some of the oldest rugs, dating from the early 14th century incorporate the swastika symbol.

Leaving the museum we took the short walk to the "Basilica Cistern". This unusual tourist destination is a vast underground water storage tank. The cavernous vault was laid out und the ruler Justinian in the year 532 and is still capable of holding water. Although the Ottomans conquered Istanbul (Constantinople) in 1453, they were not aware of the existence of this water storage system. After several years of occupation they heard about locals being able to draw buckets of water, and even fish, thru holes in their basement floors, and after investigating, discovered this water storage system.

The roof of the cistern is held up by 336 columns, each over 25 feet tall. Two of the columns are supported by bases onto which have been carved the face of Medusa. These were probably plundered from monuments that had been previously constructed. We see another that is carved like a tree trunk and onto another the face of one of the gods. I guess they were recycling pillars from other sites. Inside the cistern it is semi-dark and damp. Some of the columns are illuminated and in areas the water is lit enough that we see fish swimming in the shallows.

The sunlight overwhelms us as we leave the underground vault and re-enter the animated world that is downtown Istanbul. Now it is time for lunch. To you readers it must seem like we are eating all the time, but the food is so wonderful that I always feel compelled to mention it. So, with that in mind, we now return to Doy Doy for a great lamb shish kabob lunch before making our final foray into the market......in search for the perfect purse.

The Arasta Bazaar is part of our daily ritual in Istanbul-so much so that many of the shopkeepers recognize us as we pass by. Judith's favorite is a leather/carpet shop that has the purse that she has been eyeing. In past visits it amused the owner to see Judith admire the purse and then tuck it away behind other items before leaving-in hope that another shopper will not see it and purchase it before she can make up her mind. However, today being last chance, Judith has to make up her mind between the two purses that she has been admiring.

In previous visits she has convinced the seller to reduce his price from 200 Turkish lira (about $120 US), to 150 lira. So, today we drink some tea, and make some small talk while Judith decides. It turns out that the owner is not too motivated since he just made a big sale to some Japanese buyers-negotiated in Japanese. It also turns out that Judith can't make up her mind, so after some more talk, Judith buys both purses--despite her inability to negotiate a better price.

Now we are done. It is time to say our goodbye to Istanbul, but with the hope that we may return some day. We have enjoyed these last 2 weeks in Turkey, but in a different way than we enjoyed out 25 days in India. Both countries have their appeal and their charm. We have had the good fortune to have visited both.

This is the final chapter of the story of our epic journey. We still plan on sending one or two more posts. One post will have some of our favorite pictures and another one will hopefully have some of Judith's reflections on the trip.

We hope that you have enjoyed reading about this journey and have learned something from our experiences.

Jon and Judith
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243187940/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243187940/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243187940/tpod.html Sun, 24 May 2009 14:02:19 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Istanbul, Turkey

May 21st

37th installment

This morning the weather is changing in Cappadocia-time to leave. The air is cool as I sit on the terrace, working on my journal as usual. I wait for the balloons to pass overhead but that is not happening....I guess the weather is too unpredictable and/or too windy this morning. For a while I hear one or two of the giant blowers, then silence. But the weather has not stopped the local traffic, so between paragraphs, I watch the locals heading out for their daily chores.

We would have liked to stay longer here in Cappadocia, but now the plan is almost set in concrete and I can't go back to Dorotea to ask for another change. But, I tell myself, we will come back to this enchanted valley again some day. Cappadocia and especially Goreme, have taught us a lot about history. We learned about the early struggles of the Christians and the extremes to which they went to practice their faith; we learned about the Muslim religion and what it means today to be a Muslim; we learned about the geological beauty of central Turkey; what life in a Turkish village is like, and lastly, we learned what it is like to float above the earth like a cloud, gazing down at the world.

We have a chilly breakfast and chat with the other guests for a while before going to our room to finish the packing details. Once everything is in order, we make arrangements with Faruk to take us to the airport in the "rickety van" at 10am for our noon flight.

It takes us about 45 minutes to travel to the airport, say our goodbyes to Faruk and check in our bags. We have accumulate some things in Cappadocia, the biggest being the rug--neatly bagged and weighing about 25 pounds-that we checked in as luggage.

We have a smooth hour and a half flight back to Istanbul. As we fly, Judith fills me in with details of the book she is reading, "The Sacred Cow of India". The book attempts to explain, not only about the sacred cows, but also the "quirky" (at least for non-Indians) behaviors in India. (The cow is sacred because it was the favorite animal of the God Vishnu and it is also believed to be the last step in the reincarnation cycle before becoming human) I should read the book to try to understand some of the cultural aspects of India that mystified me-or at least put the book on my long list of books to read.

Back in Istanbul the weather is wonderful. The sun sparkles off the beautiful Marmara Sea and the Bosporus is full of sailboats taking advantage of the nice weather. Our hotel for the next 2 nights is the Tashkonak, which is only a block away from the Emine Sultan where we had stayed previously. We are given a large room with 2 twin beds and a queen size bed, which gives us enough room to spread out and repack our suitcases. The hotel has a friendly feel to it and a nice rooftop terrace where breakfast is served.

After a brief respite we head towards the Sultanahmet to enjoy the view, the people and, of course the shops. We stop at the Doy Doy and have a late lunch on the terrace while enjoying the view of the sea below us and the Blue Mosque which is slightly above us.

This part of Istanbul is magical, although a different kind of magical than we encountered in Cappadocia. This is a big city; I believe that it is the second biggest in Europe. The atmosphere is European and of course they have been trying for years, without success, to join the European Union. The younger women here dress conservatively, but nothing like Goreme. Most of the middle-aged women here wear head scarves, but less than half of the younger women. In Goreme, almost all of the women, young and old follow the Muslim tradition of covering the hair. In neither location do we see many of the more orthodox women wearing black and covering their faces. However, even in Istanbul, a mini-skirt is a head turner and is most likely worn by a tourist.

After a satisfying lunch we stroll thru the shopping areas, looking for a certain coffee mug for Judith and a T-shirt for me. We also stop to visit a shop keeper who remembered us from our earlier visit. Judith is looking at some leather purses with woven textile panels, but can't make up her mind. The merchant is patient as Judith promises to come back tomorrow.

There are an amazing number of tour buses entering the Sultanahmet at all hours. Like a train of elephants they climb the narrow streets early in the day to disgorge their passengers, returning later in the day to pick them up. Some are hired by the cruise ships to provide transport for their guests; others are identified as being with commercial tours. As we walk thru the area now, late in the day, the buses are all crawling towards the Blue Mosque to pick up their passengers. We feel fortunate that we are staying here for days instead of having to absorb Istanbul in a fleeting afternoon. We can see on the faces of the passengers that are leaving, the wistful look of someone who wants to see more. We have now enjoyed 7 days in Istanbul and feel like it is not nearly enough.

As evening falls we head back to the Tashkonak to get settled for the night. Since our late lunch was ample we skip dinner and spend the rest of the evening writing, organizing photos and reading.

Tomorrow is our last full day in Istanbul and then it is back to North America.


]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243068900/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243068900/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243068900/tpod.html Sat, 23 May 2009 04:58:18 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Cappadocia, Turkey

May 20th

36th Installment

Today dawns a bit chilly in Cappadocia. There is a light wind blowing and the sky is slightly overcast. The weather is not great but the balloons are floating away by 6 AM as I write on the laptop. I really enjoy these early mornings on the terrace. As I work on my journal I enjoy the balloons and later the early morning village traffic. I see a horse pulling a cart with a man and wife on board; a tractor heading towards the fields, men in white shirts, black pants and coats looking like they are walking to an office job-except they have a shovel or a pick over their shoulders.

Judith joins me for a breakfast of yogurt, fruit, cold cuts, cheese, and fresh bread. As other guests join us we briefly talk to 2 couples from Australia who are driving a rental car around Turkey. A young couple also from Australia joins us and we all chat for a while.

Faruk joins us as the other guests file away to start their adventures for the day. Judith has been dying to ask, Faruk (who is Muslim) about the customs of the Muslims that live in the villages. In response to her questions he tells us that some, not all, of the marriages are arranged. In his case it was arranged (we don't think that he is happily married). He then goes into a long discourse about the Muslim philosophy. Mohamed was the last (and greatest) of a long line of prophets-which also includes Moses and Jesus. However, Mohamed made it clear that he was to be considered numero uno. We asked Faruk about the creation of the Koran and he said that it was written by Mohamed. When Judith pointed out that Mohamed was illiterate, he said-"well maybe he dictated it". Faruk said that the Christian nations could never find the happiness that Mohamed promises, so we asked him about his perception of happiness in Afghanistan, or Pakistan, or Saudi Arabia. His answer was interesting. He said that in Turkey they practice a more pure form of the Muslim religion. That is to say that they try to follow the teachings of Mohamed. In other countries the politicians have taken over the religious leadership and are steering the people for the benefit for those who are on top. He points out that the basis of his religion is all about peace and it is the humans who are fouling things up.

I told Faruk that he seems troubled at times and maybe unhappy. When he told us that he had too much stress, I suggested that he should consider becoming Buddhist. At this suggestion he just looked at us, laughed and said "that would be impossible".

I quickly realized that he is right. Sometimes we take for granted our own religious freedoms-to change, adopt several religions, or none, but poor Faruk, living in a Muslim village, having been raised as a Muslim, part of an extended Muslim family, completely immersed in the Muslim culture, could not become a Buddhist, or Hindu, or Jainist, or Christian, or Jew, or even a member of the church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster God, without completely losing his social identity. The men all go to the Mosque together, pray together, socialize together and the fabric of the Turkish village life is completely interwoven with the Muslim faith. I guess that I won't be able to convert poor Faruk to Buddhism.

Contemplating these issues further, I realize that this same concept can be applied to many areas of the world. I haven't really studied this issue, but it seems to me that in a country where there is a predominant religion, the culture and the religion are going to be inextricably blended. As we saw in India, the culture and the Hindu religion are so intermixed that you can't begin to understand the culture without having a general concept of the religion. Even the people often can't tell you if certain activities are based on religion or on culture.

The same analysis applies here in Turkey where over 90% of the populous are Muslim. If you think about it, even in the United States the people often confuse the American culture with the Christian religion. In my own experience, the same concept applies in Mexico with the Catholic religion. What do you, my friends, think of this?
As we conclude our discussion with Faruk, we make plans for the day. Since today is our last full day in Cappadocia, so we decide to have a free day-- to take it easy and wander thru the village.

We are just preparing to leave for our walk when all of a sudden the wind picked up and blew so strong that the air was filled with blowing dust and sand. We retreated back inside as the open lobby of the hotel filled up with dust. Luckily it quit as quickly as it had arrived and we took a slightly windy stroll back into town.

We decided to splurge for our last day and ate again at the Alturka. After a great Anatolian lunch we retreated to the Kismet to see about accommodation all the stuff we have bought.

Tomorrow we fly back to Istanbul
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243017000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243017000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/juanitobosque/1/1243017000/tpod.html Fri, 22 May 2009 14:31:33 -0400 India and Turkey - Exotic adventures

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Cappadocia, Turkey

May 19th

35th Installment

This morning I was on the rooftop terrace watching the balloons taking off at 6 AM. The sight of those rainbow clouds drifting by was inspirational. So, I work on my journal for a few hours, looking up occasionally as a balloon passed by. By 8 AM Judith has joined me and we eat a quick breakfast before taking off for the Goreme Open Air Museum. We wanted to get to the museum before the tourist buses so we took a local taxi to speed things up.

We almost beat the buses, however, there were already two in the parking lot when we arrived. Luckily their passengers were on a tighter schedule than us, so they quickly moved on while we stopped to take many pictures. Once again we are in a valley. Green grass grows between the paths on the bottom and sandstone cliffs surround us on all sides. The museum is another UNESCO World Heritage site and some efforts (not much) are being made to preserve and restore the area.

First we see a tall monolith of stone that looks to be about 4 stories high. The hill was once the home of the Kuzlar Monastery. Monks lived and worked in the hollowed out formation using ladders to get from one level to another.

We start to feel like the Flintstones as we next enter the Elmah Church. This chapel dates from the 11th century and you can still see the remains of what once must have been elaborate frescos. From the Elmah Church you can see monks cells carved into the rock on the other side of the valley. This is where the monks lived and practiced their religion and made caves.

Next stop is the Barbara church, so named for the large fresco of Santa Barbara inside. We also see frescos of a Jesus as well as frescos of Saint Georgus and Theodorus killing a dragon-is that a bible story? I really don't know.

We also climb steep stairs to visit the Black Church; the Vilanh Church, the Karanlik Church, the Cankli and Katherina Churches. Given my own personal beliefs, I was worried that one of these church caves may fall down around my ears, but it was not to be. Safe and sound we walk out of the valley and make the 30 minute walk back to the hotel. As we pass the bus parking lot we see that about 50 buses have disbursed their passengers at the site, making us happy that we chose to get an early start.

On the way back we happened by the Alaturca restaurant again and took the time to have a nice meal on the outside terrace. I ordered a "meatball" which turned out to be a large hamburger patty with mash potatoes. Now those of you who know me well, know that I am not a meat and potato man; however, after over a month of spicy food, this burger really hit the spot.

Back at the Kismet we get Faruk to show us some of the rugs that he has for sale. It turns out that a friend that owned a rug store had died, and the sons left the contents of the store in Faruk's care. Faruk, who used to be a rug salesman agreed to show them to guests to see what could be sold. After looking at most of his collection we bought a rather large, old rug that we may use in the home.....or something.....anyhow we liked the colors and the price was good. However, I am worried once again about the weight limits for the flight home. I guess we will figure out something. Judith fell in love with some woven straps, the kind that the nomads used to tie their belongings on the back of their camels. She paid only $30 for 2 straps that she later saw for $75 apiece in a store in town. Looking back on the afternoon in Faruk's improvised rug store, we should have bought more, but where are we going to put all these beautiful damned rugs?

In the evening we return to the Firin Express where we had eaten the stuffed pita breads yesterday. Tonight we had a great eggplant plate and fresh warm bread and watched the movement in the village below-a great way to end another beautiful day in Turkey.

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