Archive for the "Turkey Spring 2011" Category

After a month journeying together in Europe and the Middle East, we are now in Frankfurt and making our way back stateside towards the Link basecamp in Colorado. It was a full final day in Istanbul yesterday with Sunday School in the morning up on the hill by the Hagia Sopia, where we shared the final chapters of the Gospel of John together in conclusion of the world religions class exploring primitive Christianity. Then it was final shopping for gifties in favorite spots around the city, some house, and then dinner out at a kebab place overlooking the Bosporus Straights.

The troops are currently sleeping (hopefully…) in preparation for their flight home tomorrow.  Looking back over the photos from the abroad, we thought it would be fun to honor each of the travelers with a portrait – although there were so many good ones to choose from!  There will be another entry or two once [...]

Sometimes there just aren’t words to describe the beauty of a place. I am enchanted by Turkey: rolling hills strewn with limestone, birds flitting in and out of almond trees – which are in blossom – and daisies blanketing the ground.  It is all-beautiful to me. I joined the Link crew a little over a [...]

Today as we were hiking in a rural section of the Lycian Way, we came upon some old Lycian ruins next to a field.  This sight was amazing to me.  The Lycians lived 2500 years ago, and some farmer is using the same field today.  The longevity of the place contrasted the number of civilizations [...]

Some might think that America came up with the democratic government system we use today and that the founding fathers were the first to have that brilliant idea about how to run a country. But think again.  Today as we hiked along the coast of ancient Lycia and looked down at ruins below, I learned [...]

This morning I woke up to a quiet knocking on our door. Nobody answered, and I wondered if it may have been just a figment of my imagination. I kept my eyes closed and went back to my daydreaming thoughts. Knock, knock, knock, knock. More insistent this time. But still, no movement from the adjoining [...]

Part of our preparation for our travel to Turkey was a class on the Turkish culture, and specifically the acceptable clothing within that culture – particularly for women.  Turkey is fairly conservative – no bare shoulders, no knees showing, certainly no shirts dipping below the collar bone so, it was with a bit of trepidation [...]

One thing I have noticed about climbers in my life is that, if nothing else, they are persistent. We set out today in high hopes of returning to an incredible new crag that we had visited a few days prior, thinking that returning on our own (without the bus driver) would be no problem. So [...]

Today we woke up early to bread and honey sandwiches made for us by the family that runs our hotel. After sunrise, we hopped onto a boat and began our four-hour journey to the small Greek island of Patmos, or, as our tour guide likes to put it, “The Jerusalem of the Aegean Sea.” John [...]

Yet another thought expanding day exploring ancient sites from Bible times around Ephesus.  We read chapters from the Gospel of John up in the Basilica of St John where he is entombed.  I am getting so much more from the Scripture reading here in this setting, where both the people, and somehow the ideas, too, [...]