Were you wondering what happened to us?
The pace has quickened since joining our tour and Internet is flaky in back door Turkey. Add to that a nasty cold and you have a a sound set of reasons for our absence.
During our final unstructured moments on Sunday afternoon we boarded a boat and puttered along the coast of the Bosphorous Strait. The day was perfect and warm and the scenery spectacular. Istanbul goes on and on and on. 16 million people call the city their home and it shows.
We joined our Village Turkey tour on Sunday evening with 18 other people; 1 other Canadian who hails from Vancouver and the others are neighbours to the South. Our guide is Turkish woman in her mid-to-late 30’s who has been working with Rick Steves for 4 years. 
After orientation we walked to the Blue Mosque and heard more about the history and construction of the building. Then we all piled into a quaint restaurant and filled the place. Eating among the Turks has been a challenge for this little Celiac and it was a treat to have our guide take care of translating “gluten-free” to the wait staff.
Yesterday morning at 7:00 the bus pulled away from our hotel and headed for Galipoli. The site is a combination of memorials to the soldiers who fought here in WWI. It’s one of those dear places visited by parents and wives and children of our Australian friends who lost their lives in a battle they could not hope to win. The main monument stood tallest and commemorated the Turks under Ataturk, whose army won the day. Someone commented that there were no winners here. I felt sad.
There were other stops enroute and I hope the photos will tell a little more of our day. 
The bus arrived in the tiny seaport of Assos for the night after an 8:30 pm dinner and we hit the hay!
Breakfast is included at most hotels and the scheduled start will take some getting used to. The bus begun its climb to the ruins of Troy – yes, we thought it was in Greece too – and on the return route we pulled off to a tiny town built on the ruins of Assos. The city was made famous by Aristotle before he began his tutorial role in Alexander’s life. The Apostle Paul stopped here with Luke and we could easily imagine him discussing evidence of Messiah in the Torah and challenging followers of Athena from the high places.
Turkish countryside is lush with its vineyards and olive groves. Shepherds herd their flocks with motorbikes and the more traditional sheepdogs. The townspeople are ever ready when the bus pulls into the Otopark with wares from India and China. Some handmade items hang with the manufactured ones but sadly, it is hard to tell the difference.
The plan this evening before our late dinner involves a name game, reminiscent of camp, that our tour mates have been preparing for throughout the day.
Tomorrow we board the bus again and continue to make our way south to see more of this remarkable country!
