On today’s walk I stopped for a bowl of soup at a rest stop (oh, there was such a bounty of food today, compared to yesterday). As I finished eating and was about to leave, a retired turnip farmer sat down next to me. We ordered another round of tea and began...
Slept in a pear orchard next to the road last night. It was beautiful out, so many stars, so bright. I haven’t seen that many stars in years. However, I did not like waking up feeling like I needed to get out of there before I was discovered. Walked the couple...
In February, 2011, I watched a TED video where William Ury, a professor at Harvard, mentioned Abraham’s Path and walking as a way to promote peace and understanding in the Middle East. I practically fell out of my chair and said, "That’s what I want...
On Thursday afternoon, 11 October, I walked into the village of Bahtiyar. The first thing I came to was a middle school, so within moments I was surrounded by boys about 10 years old. On this trip I have found I am prejudiced against pre-teen and early teen boys. I...
On this walk I’ve had the pleasure of attending a handful of dinners at various families’ houses in various villages, and they are unlike any dinners I attended in my six years living in Istanbul. I don’t take photos at these dinners, since they seem...
In December I’ll be guest speaking for a week at a school in Tarsus (www.tac.k12.tr). The students are middle schoolers and high schoolers. The school and I are discussing subjects to talk about, but I’d like outside suggestions too. So bring ’em on....
This tea house is the local equivalent of the donut shop, where the retired farmers hang out in the mornings. I stopped by to say thanks again on my way out of Bahtiyar this morning.
Mehmet, in leather jacket at center, was my host for dinner last night. Thanks Mehmet, those were some amazing French fries. I’m getting hungry just thinking about them now!
