note: Chania, the second largest town-city in Crete, is 'ch' as in loch. video of where the last post left us, still in Ramadan, İstanbul Havalimanı: 0:00 /0:18 1× Taxi from Heraklion (Ηράκλειο) airport, called Νίκος Καζαντζάκης, to Chania. Yes, Nikos Kazantzakis, known in the anglophone

Every intention of visiting one of two intact remaining Byzantine churches in İstanbul, Aya İrini, Hagia Irene or Αγία Ειρήνη in the original Greek, the other being Θεοτόκος Παναγιώτισσα, Mary of the Mongols. Acknowledged by Kübra in Fener-Balat as a heroine of İstanbul, the church in her name is still

Semiha Berksoy: Aria of All Colors ... a major exhibition devoted to Semiha Berksoy (1910–2004), celebrates a pioneering artist whose versatility and resolve enabled her to break new ground in both Türkiye and Europe. The exhibition brings together her expansive body of work – spanning the performing arts, visual arts, cinema,

Although called the Princes' Islands, named as being a place of exile for unwanted heirs apparent, I know it for the exile of Byzantine queens and empresses who are favoured in John Ash's account (cf. After Ash). The great English poet who lived and drank in İstanbul

good morning İstanbul! Günaydın! stashed our luggage at the Hilton and headed out to the flea market minutes from it. The ladies, by Maurice Sendak, pictured above prepared gözleme with spinach and feta. Inspired, I contemplated restarting my typewriter collection and other aberrations, like a good flea market should. I

I am hoping to catch up to historic events along our trajectory from KSA to Oman, before the war, even Egypt, a post about which I have started, after months . . . to current events. Today is International Women's Day in İstanbul. The police are out in force bearing arms