Random thoughts from Selçuk

The DRC is descending into chaos once more.

The elections that once seemed so distant are coming up on Tuesday.

I miss Ev. Hope we'll be able to go to Amsterdam for the next bayram.

Mum and A. Es are shopaholics. I need to get them into a program ASAP.

Need to add new music to my Creative player.

My eyes itch. This hotel room is aggravating my allergies.

Did Idaho turn my brother into a Republican or did my brother turn Idaho into a Republican state?

Paul Simon songs remind me of Alexia and time in The Gambia.

Ran into one little Turkish girl here that had dressed up as a cat for Halloween. Where was the party and why wasn't I invited?

Blackalicious, Sky is Falling

Random play mode is not at all random.

Wending through Şirince

House in Şirince

Minaret

St. John the Baptist Church, f. 1832

On the road

It's a week into my month-long vacation and the main feeling here is mmmmmmmyes! My mum and her oldest sister arrived last week and after a few days in the Bul and visiting the Princes' Islands we headed south to Çanakkale, where we spent two days wandering the Gallipoli battlefields and Troy. Finally being able to see the Dardanelles strait and surroundings has added to/cemented the vivid mental map in my mind, something that only an in-person visit can do.

It's surprising to me how quickly I can forget about the routine of work and strict schedules and fall into vacation-time ease. The thought of work, that life, that chronic tiredness, is abhorrent right now. Why return to it?

Currently staying in Selçuk, where I lived for a month back in '06 while attending language school in Izmir. I had a great experience here then and not much seems to have changed.

This town just gives me the ultimate feeling of calm. I stroll the cobbled roads without a worry on my mind. And it has been a pleasure to share this place and the surrounding sites -- Efes, Meryemana, St. John's Basilica -- with my mom (my aunt had been here before). Tomorrow we'll wander the streets of Şirince and taste every variety of fruit wine imagineable. Though my mum does not usually partake of alcoholic beverages, I think we'll be able to convince her into making an exception, or several.

Mum & Tita Espie at Efes (Ephesus)