CRUISING THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA...

Tuesday, our tour group had a FREE day

(meaning there were NO planned activities)

Rick Steve's Tours are busy & require a lot of walking,

so, at some point, you need a "vacation from your vacation"...

Fourteen of us (plus Mert, our tour guide) chartered a boat
for a two hour trip around the Antalya Harbor.
What a fabulous idea! 

The boat dock...
as you can see, it was a lovely day... sunshine, with a slight breeze!
Perfect weather after our chilly days in Cappadocia & a rainy drizzle in Istanbul.

sandals & cropped pants... what a treat after wearing walking shoes & socks!

this guy was fishing in his inflatable boat!

other fisherman had climbed down the rock cliff to fish!

our boat driver stopped the boat off a small cove so most of the group could jump in the water!

(l-r: Cathy, JPE, me, Tommy & Jennifer)

searching for a warm current!

actually, the cold currents weren't that cold!

I believe I remember Mert saying the water temperature was about 74 degrees...

a refreshing dip!

worth every penny

($25. each for our 2 hour trip)...

KONYA & RUMI...

Mevlana Mosque (Lodge for Rumi)

Well... we finally have some internet connection, but details of our days are melting together. We are on information overload! which is GREAT, until it's time to pull the written words together to detail our journey.

Street corners are decorated with whirling dervishes which I'll address in a future post!

Konya, Turkey

is a very conservative city!
Most women on the street cover their heads with headscarves... but we also saw Westernized attire worn by young women (perhaps college age?)!

Stephanie asked for prayer beads from Konya! Do you think she'll like these?

JPE & I are amazed by the number of mosques that dot the horizon...

these clay bottles act as chimneys & prevent rain from entering the flue...

a shopkeeper cleaning the sidewalk in front of his store!

one benefit of staying in a business hotel is comfy beds!

ummmm! endless cups of coffee or tea!

crispy potatoes with cumin, sausage or hard-boiled eggs...

an assortment of olives...

apricots (the tastiest dried fruit ever!), raisins &

 cereal (similar to cocoa puffs), as well as cornflakes...

& a chef to cook your omelette!

after one night, we're off to Antalya (on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea).

ISTANBUL STREET ART...

 Having nephews who appreciate street art & body adornments,
this post is dedicated to street art!

(ALL art was found in Istanbul)

bold & thin line lettering!

lettering = AMAZING!

Roger Rabbit & his motorcycle...

Mr. Spray Can...

building art near Galatasaray High School!

art in the alley way!

Spider Man & a modern woman...

(Bosphorus Strait)

Artist name? or musical instrument?

(at the bottom of the Galata Tower)

street art requires skill & talent... I can barely manage a paintbrush,

SO, I know using a spray can to create art must be a lot more difficult!!

STREET FOOD... ISTANBUL

SLE (Steph) suggested I try pomegranate juice from a street vendor!

Oh my, it was delicious! a bit thick, with some pulp. It was very refreshing!

roasted corn (on the cob)!

we observed children eating this as a snack!

round bagel-like breads with sesame seeds on top!

an example of  a street vendor selling pomegranate juice.

Some people like a bit of orange juice added to sweeten the rich, red juice.

The vendors cut the fruit in half & squeeze the juice into a cup.

We watched this woman roll out a thin bread (similar to a flour tortilla)...

she added spinach & cheese then folded it in half!

(JPE also had her add potato to his sandwich)

she plopped it on the warm grill until the cheese got warm & melty!

yummy!

(yep! we looked like tourists with our cameras around our necks!)