You are currently browsing the daily archive for November 15, 2009.
July 25, 2007
Dearest Jay!
Departed from Newington at 1pm traveling to JFK by ways of ‘Creative Transportation’, a service utilized by the World Affairs Council in Hartford. There was a lot of traffic getting there but we really made pretty good time, arriving at JFK at 3:30pm. Check in was quick and uneventful allowing us plenty of time to sit and relax and talk. Amy, Megan, Marilyn, Maria and I had lots of stories to tell. Marilyn has lots of worries, I am alittle concerned but know she’ll make it through!
We boarded the plane around 6:30 but sat on the runway until 7:50, a long delay. Drinks and hazelnuts were served and dinner shortly after. First taste of Mediterranean fare, two shrimp with alittle eggplant salad, green salad, cheese, roll, chicken, rice and great veggies served with the regions spices. White wine was served. Yum!
Love the Turkish Airlines! Seats recline and push forward giving one a needed space to relax. Each person receives a small pouch with a handle, that contains- eye mask to block out sleep, a comb, a shoehorn (who ever uses them anymore), socks. Toothpaste and a toothbrush.. All you need for a restful, clean flight!
Each seat has its own little TV screen on the back of the seat in front of you. There are a variety of movies to choose from, games to play and news hot off the press. Great choices too!
You can either ‘touch the screen’ for interactive or use a remote control that rests on the side of your seat.
It was really interesting watching the screen at take off! You had the sensation of moving up into the sky by watching a video screen, watching as it soared over water, wild. I guess its like an interactive game but you’re playing the part for real, seated there, at the mercy of the pilot! Strange sensation for sure.
It’s about 10:30pm and yes, I’m sleeping. I took ½ lorazapan to help with the anxiety and its making me sleepy. According to the flight schedule on the screen it will be a 9 hour flight? We’ll just have to see…
Slept on and off for probably about 4 hours, waking up because my arm or leg was asleep and stiff. Enjoying being on a comfortable plane. though with turquoise colored seats, more roomy, though a smaller planes with seats of 2, 4, 2. There are actually a few empty seats on the plane and a few lucky flyers are stretched out vertically across four seats, so lucky! I remember flying home from Russia in 1992 and had that luxury. Once in a lifetime that was probably my only chance.! Woke up groggy, sleepy and a little nauseous but pleasantly surprised that there was less than 3 hours to go!
Amway in Amasya!
I was traveling through Turkey on a Fellowship with twenty four educators from all over the United States! We spent seventeen days traveling over 2,100 miles by bus, getting lots of glimpses into the various regions the country had to offer. I was not only so fortunate to have been selected for this opportunity but loved each and every stop and adventure. I sat on the lengthy bus rides, doing one of two things: looking out the window, not wanting to miss anything or recording on my laptop the images I was seeing! It was my first trip to Turkey and I felt like a child in a candy shop, each and every moment a treat.
Just before arriving in Amasya I glanced at the guidebook to see what this city had to offer. We were on such a wild rollercoaster tour, stopping and touring so many sites and cities, it was difficult at times to prepare for our next site. Guidebooks always help to fill in the gaps and give you enough background info to get started on the learning. Our travel agenda said ‘Museum’. I climbed off the bus ready to explore!
I usually tried to stay at the front of the line when our group of almost thirty weaves in and out of various cities and historical locations so I that I can capture as much as I can on videotape. Our large group I came to eventually discover had a member of the Turkish team always strategically placed at the back of the group, just in case anyone dawdled or got lost. That was very easy to do, especially if I was videotaping. I’d often want to get at the back of the group so I could film the scene minus any teachers in our group who were always armed heavy with cameras and like me ‘clicking’ away trying to capture the moment. If I stayed at the back of the group, I stood a chance of capturing the scene, most naturally as possible, as the group moved forward, but of course this meant that I had to move fast and quickly. Yes, it would make much better footage if there were no American tourists in the scene. I could then show others the side of Turkey that I saw.
As we strolled down the most beautiful street, Yesilirmak (Iris) River and mountain on my right, we turned down a narrow street lined on both sides with traditional Turkish Ottoman wooden mansions, white wooden houses with dark brown trim and roofs. This village is tucked between the ancient cliffs and the Yesilirmak River, narrow and curving road and paths, crisp and clean. It was spectacular!
We stragglers at the end of the group were taking it all in! One of the women in the group asked our Turkish guide what the sign said located just above one of the white and brown doorways. She translated, ‘This house has been turned into a woman’s teahouse’. We all stopped to talk about this, how different it was in America, but again we were in a country rooted with strong Muslim values. Someone in the group asked if we could go in? She smiled and quickly pulled out here cell phone and made a call. She said ‘Serhan, her boss and our main travel guide, had said we could go in for 10 minutes, no more! And we were to meet him at the mosque at the end of the street.’ We were thrilled! At last we were going to be given an opportunity to experience Turkey ‘off the beaten path!’.
We entered the dwelling, climbing a set of stairs and entered the tea house. There was a group of about 5 women sitting by the window overlooking the beautiful river below, sipping tea. They smiled and asked the 5 of us to sit and we too were served tea. The women were between 40 and 55 years old, full of smiles and asking our Turkish guide lots of questions. I glanced down on the table and saw catalogues of Amway and quickly realized that these women were meeting and discussing Amway, as distributors of this American conglomeration. Wow! What were the odds of this! They asked if we too love Amway, and not wanting to crush their balloon, we all agreed that ‘yes, Amway was a fine company!’ We continued to ask each other various questions through our translator. “Did we work? Did we have families? And how old were we?” We laughed and felt a strong connection to our new Turkish friends. None of us wanted to leave, but our guide was getting very nervous and after at least 20 minutes she graciously told the group that we must leave and we must hurry. Just about running down the street, we reached our group. Our leader, Serhan, started yelling at our guide, of course in Turkish, so we don’t really know what he said, but we all felt it was worth the looks we were getting from the others for keeping the group waiting. It truly was one of the best personal experiences that I had in Turkey, connecting to a small group of woman, sipping tea and sharing brief histories of our lives. Yes, women are women no matter where they are from. Smiles, hugs and sipping tea have connected us forever!
