Istanbul, Turkiye 14 January 2023

 Hello All; This will be my last posting from  here this trip , as I return to Canada tomorrow afternoon. I have had some problems with my Chromebook computer, so this will be short, and a complete report will issue after I get settled back in Ottawa.

My friend from Poland was here for a few days, and we did a lot of exploring, as one of the ladies here has a car, and a drive to show the area. We have seen Taksim square, a famous shopping area that had some security problems a few months ago. One sunny day, we went to the only real forest in Turkiye, Belgrad, and walked trails there and had lunch. Several hundred years ago, thousands of folks from Belgrade, then in Yugoslavia were deported here. A small village shares the same name. I will report more upon my return.

Stay safe, and enjoy this New Year.

Christmas in Istanbul, December 25, 2022

 Hello all.  Three weeks from today and I will be returning to Canada. Today is like every other day here, with few exceptions, like banks and such. All stores, malls and shops are open their usual hours.  Next Sunday, being New Years day, most will be closed...if they go the normal route. Kids in school only have the weekend off, but will have a short vacation mid January.

We have had nice weather compared to many places.....like Canada. Lows some nights around three degrees, and daytime temperatures up to 18 and 20 some days, but mostly around 12. The next week is also looking good. A week ago, the forecast was for 10 CM of snow for December 30, now will be around 14.

We have had breakfast at the famous Pierre Lotti restaurant, located high on a hill side where you go up in a gondola. The place has a number of restaurants ans is located above thousands of grave sites. Many of the hills here are used for grave sites and have done so for hundreds of years so I am told.

We spent one day in the huge Egyptian Market where almost anything can be found. We saw places that were selling fake U.S. one hundred dollar bills......true.. The next day, we were having a coffee at one of our favourite places and saw a pile of the fakes on the next table....they had been ripped to shreds, but we retrieved one for showing off.....except for one word, it could not be picked out of some real bills.

I have a friend coming down from Poland for a few days, and at that time we will visit the Chocolate museum, and the Grand Bazaar, etc,,,,,you know how it is....... get two or three women together and shopping will be the order of the day....here there will be ladies from Poland, Morocco, and Turkey....all great friends of mine. 

Istanbul Turkiye, December 11,2022

 Hello All. Yes, I arrived here on time yesterday, in fact we were thirty five minutes early. I was in and out of Passport Control/Customs in five minutes. So everything was ahead of schedule. We got in just before the evening rush.

In the past, I always stayed at the Ramada  Alibeykoy hotel, however it was booked for the times I needed, so my friends found a good  apartment for me. That hotel is where my friends and I set for a place to meet, and it worked out excellent. Another friend from Warsaw is expecting to come down for the first week of January, and we have set that hotel as the place to meet then also,

On the route here, we were above clouds all the way from Canada.....no ground visible until just before landing. Our route was Montreal, St Johns Newfoundland, Dublin, Munich, Belgrade and on to Istanbul.

By the way, I have spelled this country as it now wants to be identified. Travel agents and anyone dealing in that business are being encouraged to use this spelling.

We have a quiet day planned for this afternoon, and will do more starting tomorrow, when Hussian, my little friend here , is back in school for the full day. We are still good friends because I brought him 20 Birthday Cake Tim Bits.....his favourite.  We start the day tomorrow by having coffee at the Cafe Pierre Lotti which I have previously referenced.....there is several ways this place is spelled...sometimes one and sometimes two ells. That will be all for today.

Ottawa, Ontario, December 8, 2022

 Hello All. This will be a short report, as not much travel-wise has happened since my last update in November. I will be departing here during the noon hour Friday, December 9, and travelling via the VIA Rail system to Dorval, then a shuttle will take me to the airport. This ticket is included in the rail fare to Montreal. I will have a few hours at the Montreal airport, then at ten P.M., we will depart for Istanbul on Turkish Airlines flight  TK 36, for the estimated nine hours and three minute flight. 

My friends in Turkey have arranged for me to rent an apartment that is about three transit stops from where they live. My Turkish friends and another friend of theirs, (and now of mine), from Morocco, will be making plans for what activities we will get involved with. On January 5, a friend of mine from Warsaw will come over for a few days to visit that area for the first time. I have been kidding them that there will be three people bossing me around .

For those who wish to do so, you may wish to Google some of the places we see, and will do again; The Istanbul Chocolate Museum, The Pierre Loti Cafe...(the views from above an old Cemetery are outstanding on a clear sunny day.). and MiniaTurk, which is a large area of miniature models of many scenes from within Turkey.

 I should point out that now, we are seeing the modern name....Turkiye on many documents and in the newspapers.    I will report in after I have arrived in downtown Istanbul. 

Ottawa, Ontario November 3, 2022

 Hello All. It has been some time since I last had an update, however, my work and other activities have kept me very busy up to now. The Civic..(city) and school board elections in Ontario were scattered over three days in October, and I always work at them if I am in Ontario. I worked this year on October 7, 14 and 24th. My specialty was operating the voting Tabulator machines. These machines did all the counting, after voting closed on the 24th...no more counting by hand.

As soon as the election was over, it was time to start planning and booking all the components for my next adventure out of Canada. The final step was completed yesterday, when I got my Turkish Visa. I will be going to Turkey for almost six weeks starting December 9. I take the VIA rail train to Montreal in the mid afternoon of December 9, and, go to the Dorval station. At the Dorval VIA (west side Montreal) station, VIA have a shuttle every fifteen minutes to the Montreal airport. This shuttle fare is included with the main ticket. At ten that evening, I depart for Istanbul on Turkish Airlines flight TK 36.....for a flight of around nine hours. I may have mentioned before, but Turkish is the oldest established airline in the world. It started service in1933. (There is  now a ladies perfume called TK 33in Honor of that.) I will return with Turkish Airlines to Montreal on January 15, overnight at a hotel at the airport and return to Ottawa the next morning on VIA. The last train from Montreal on January 15 is too close to my flight arrival time to make the connection.

My friends in Turkey are looking after arrangements there and all the activities that we will be doing. My next update will probably be after arrival in Istanbul. Take care, and enjoy the holidays.

   

Ottawa, August 13, 2022

 I have now recovered from the long trip home, and am about up to date with the work I had waiting for me. From the time I departed my hotel in Bangkok to arrival at my Apartment was 36 hours, with very little sleep. As one gets older, the body takes more time to recover from the change of routines, and the different meal times, and so on. 

My time in Bangkok was limited to the times required for the dental work which in the end was five different days  spread over a month. I returned to Bangkok from Pattaya, (two hours south), to meet one appointment. This was a bus trip which cost about three dollars Canadian each way. One of the most interesting places we visited this time is a Tropical Garden known as..Nongnooch. It is located just outside the city of Pattaya, and is easily found on Google. One could spend several days there and still not see it all. In my view, they have gone overboard with the number of model birds and animals....but, who am I to say. It was very enjoyable , and, if the opportunity arises, I would go again.

My friends also took me to a mountain where an image of Buddha is carved in outline on the mountain face. This image can be seen for miles, however we drove very close and posed for photos. I am attempting to find a name for this mountain...in English. 

In the south-center of Pattaya is a range of very high hills with a huge Buddha that can be seen for miles. We drove up there and took photos out over the beach and sea, probably the best views of the area . The sight is simply called...The Big Buddha.

I had prearranged a visit to the Pattaya Orphanage, so we went there one afternoon and had a good visit with the staff. Because of restrictions around Covid, we did not interact with the children.

I knew when I booked the trip that it would be the rainy season, however, after waiting almost three years for the major dental work, decided to go anyway. The rain was no problem...mid afternoon each day, it came down so hard that all traffic just stops for the 20 to 30 minutes then out comes the sun until tomorrow, then the same all over again.....lots of water.

Hello From Ottawa, August 6, 2022

 Yes I am back in Canada, and am sorry that I could not post any stories while in Thailand. My last blog where I reported my arrival in Bangkok was an alert to the Thai government and as a result, they banned my entrance to my blog...that's a fact. In January, after working with techies and attempting to obtain a Thailand Pass, I quit in disgust, and wrote a letter to the Bangkok Post Newspaper...titled...Its Time For a Change....the letter was published. Some background...when the army took over about eight years ago, as I understand the situation, they...(army) insisted that if certain internet companies wanted to operate in Thailand, the army ... or government, would need to have control.....within Thailand. Next came a law that sets prison terms or fines for people who may criticize the government....within Thailand.

A friend in a high position in the Bangkok Tourism Office had informed me, prior to my letter to the newspaper, that over 90 thousand people had complained about the same issues that I raised. I did not know that such information was not public, and I guess the brass got excited. I was able to use my computer all the time I was away, but was not able to get onto my blog page.....my Thai friends were able, and had lots of comments about the issue. I will say no more.

My trip went  mostly as planned, no other travel problems with the exception of the time that Canada was undergoing the internet outages. I had four dental appointments set for my time there, and had all the dental work I needed completed with a smile. When Booking.com, the company I use to book hotels tried to clear my credit card for my next hotel, it was rejected and my reservation was cancelled. I contacted the hotel and they reinstated my reservation without any problem. 

During my travels, I met some new friends and at all times was treated to the great hospitality that Thailand is known for. I had a taxi reserved to pick me up at my Bangkok hotel on August 4 at three A.M. At Midnight, the power went off on my floor, but stayed on in the rest of the hotel. I went to the lobby and with others stayed there until the taxi came. After returning home, I received an email from a  counter staff member expressing her regrets of the incident....that's Thai hospitality.

I will end here for tonight, and will have more travel information in a few days as I get back to speed here at home.