In Ankara

My friend and I went for our vacation and came back to Ankara. We had a real good time. The island was beautiful with cool water, nice breeze and fresh air. I slept like a baby every single day.

The hotel at Gokceada Petrino, was wonderful. They have only 8 rooms in an old stone building. It was tastefully furnished and impeccably clean. The owners were attentive to every detail and were so welcoming. Definitely would go back.

Every morning we had fresh and breads and pastries, olives, cheese, a selection of homemade jams, tomatoes, cucumbers and eggs made to order. 

You will see a video of a crazy good surfer we saw at our favorite beach below.

After Gokceada, we went to Assos. More on that later.

Gokceada (Imbros) after sunset

Gift store Mostly Handmade Items

Petrino Hotel LOVELY!

Our Daily Breakfast 

Hope to post more pictures soon. I had a HBP attack for a few days after we came to Ankara. Still recovering. 

Nowadays, I am trying to get together with a bunch of friends and having a good time.

I will resume posting more frequently after I return home in Istanbul.

Getting Ready

I love to travel but, I do not like packing and unpacking at all. I am trying to pack the least amount of things possible.

I was going to start packing tomorrow but, I need to attend a funeral at noon so, I started today. A High School buddy of mine lost her mom and the service is not too far from where I live. It is not an unexpected loss but, still losing a parent is extremely hard.

As I age, the hardest part of packing has become my pills. I take 6 pills every day for, HBP, Vertigo and allergies. I also need to bring additional meds just in case. Gokceada is not a heavily populated and touristic place. It is one of the very few natural beauties we have left. There is just a small town center. No loud beach clubs or anything like that.  I also take my pulse-oximeter, my blood pressure monitor, a bunch of masks, a small first aid kit. Yes, a small bag just for health supplies.

It is getting chilly so, I think, I need to pack a sweater and a light jacket. Once, I go down to Antalya, it will probably be much warmer than Gokceada.

On Sunday, before I go to pick up my friend from the train station, I will change my sheets and put my comforter in a duvet cover. By the time I come back home, I am thinking, it will be pretty cool in Istanbul.

There is so much to do. 

Wishing everyone a relaxing and nice weekend.

Finally!

I finally got my behind off the armchair and purged my wardrobe today. I still had a bunch of jackets and few pants that I do not think I will be needing anymore. I kept 3 jackets and 3 pairs of tailored pants and purged the rest. A few blouses also made it to the donate group. I tried every single thing, I am parting with. 

I then, got on my treadmill and walked for 35 minutes listening to the Rocky IV soundtrack. After the walk and shower, I felt like I wiped off Ivan Drago like Rocky. 

One more purging session is due when I come back from vacation end of October. There are 4 boxes of winter clothing and some summer clothes I am wearing now, that will be purged.

And, here are some more Edinburgh pictures:

Dolly the First Cloned Sheep

Monument of Sir Walter Scott

Holyrood Palace

Missing in Action

I have been MIA lately. I got busy and really did not have to write much about. Hope, everybody is doing fine. I need to catch up on reading my favorite blogs.

I do not know what happened to August but, September is here, the weather is somewhat milder and this is the beginning of my favorite season.

Next Sunday, I am going on vacation with a very old friend, the one with whom I had a month long vacation 2 years ago. This time it will be a lot shorter. After that, I will go see my uncle and hit the beach down in Antalya for a few weeks.

We are going to an island Gokceada (Imbros) for 5 days. It is located in Northern Aegean Sea. 

On Sunday September 10th, we shall drive to Gelibolu (Gallipoli) and stay there for one night. Early in the morning on Monday, we will get on the ferry to Gokceada. 

That whole area has great historical significance for us, the Turks. Some events led to the fall of the Ottoman Empire and birth of the Republic of Turkiye. 

On the way back from the island, we may decide to stay in the area for a couple of days but, we have not planned that yet.

Here is a map of our drive to Gelibolu, I have highlighted the border with Greece in red.