In our travels we see incredible countries that are historical and welcoming; yet people are what makes this World great.  Without people, the World may be beautiful but boring.

So, let’s talk about a few of them.  These are the good people who come to our office twice a week to clean.

Nadjia – During the Halloween celebrations at the Embassy, she posed near some of the decorations so a friend could photograph her.  So, I pulled my phone out to take some also.  The one below is her with Camal.  Then with her and Yousef.  These images  perfectly portray her innocence and love of Life.  Only a very few times have I seen her quiet, which was usually because she was tired or feeling ill.  She works 5 days a week at the Embassy, and the weekends cleaning other places, plus finding time going to school to learn English.  If you ask me, she is more a success than a great many people in the States.  Even among some of the arrogant American Foreign Service officers.

As I told you before how she learned the term, “See you later, alligator.”  Followed with her learning the response, “After while, crocodile.”  Recently, she learned to say, “Okey Dokey.”  Except her rendition is “Oinky Doinky.”

Camal – Camal is quiet and friendly, yet I see where Nadjia irritates him at times, because she is so light-hearted while he is serious.  She sings while she works and he mutters to her in Turkish.  She just smiles and continues singing.  Once Camal noticed I had cigars in a box on my desk, he asked for a couple for him and his friends.  I obliged.  The next Monday, he told me they were too strong and he didn’t want anymore.  But I still offer to him at times.

Yousef – As Camal moved on to other cleaning jobs, Yousef took his place.  Very quiet and extremely polite.  He always smiles at me and I greet him whenever I see him.  “Günaydın, Yousef Bey.” (Good Morning, Yousef, Sir.)

One of finest Turkish men I have met, is Fekrit Calim.  He is the father of one of our Turkish Technicians, Aydin.  Often when we go to Istanbul or Adana to work, he will come with us as they have relatives all over.  He is one of those people who you want to stand when they arrive. He’s only 11 years older than me, but I show him the respect that is given for the revered elderly.  Below is him sitting with Aydin.

I gave him the excuse of my mother being 900 years old and loves the pictures I send.  He was delighted to oblige.  The man speaks excellent English.  Started learning it as a kid while  working with the Intelligence agencies, cleaning their barracks.  He has a good assortment of stories to tell.

About a month ago, one of the cats on the Embassy grounds scratch a kid, thus prompting calls for their ouster. (cats, not the kids)  Most likely, the kid had it coming, because the cats maybe a little leery of us, but they are non-threatening.  Below is a image I thought was worth posting.  Management said to quit feeding the feral cats.  As a friend said, they obviously do not know the meaning of feral.

Terese went with me to work on the G20 Summit down in Antalya and on the way back, we decided to stop and purchase some potatoes and onions from one of the many roadside vendors.  We purchase a bag each for a total of 30 TL, which is about $10.50.  Split it up and gave some to Serkan and Allison.

Okay.  Times up.  But currently, I am having an interesting conversation with the Damn Cat and hope to share it soon.  Until then, kick butt.  D.

Last night two events took place that required my attendance. Savas Uyar, one of my Turkish security techs married a pretty Ukrainian girl, named Vita; and at the same time the 2015 Marine Ball was commencing. So, I attended the wedding first, which as with all Turkish weddings, is a simple process. The bride and groom enter the Nikay Salonu, (Wedding Hall) and sit at an elaborate table with the female facilitator and the two witnesses.  The facilitator speaks a few minutes to the audience, causing a bit of laughter, so I laugh along with them not knowing what was said. Then she asks the bride something who responds, Evete (yes). Then realizing she needed to speak louder, Vita leaned into the microphone and again, with a little more voice, Evete!

Then it was Savas’ turn. The facilitator asked him something and he leaned toward the mike and stated, very loudly, EVETE!! And everyone erupts in applause! At this point, the Facilitator has Savas and Vita sign a large book, and then passes it on to the witnesses to sign. Afterwards, the facilitator turns to Vita and tells her something unusual to an American wedding. I was sitting next to a very interesting gentleman I have met several times, who speaks incredibly good English. He leaned over to me and said, the facilitator told Vita, that her last name has been changed and she is now Vita Uyar.

This was the second Turkish wedding I have attended and found it interesting that during the whole process, from entrance to the concluding processional, there are several people moving about taking pictures, even close-ups, sometimes just a foot away from the couple.

After the ceremony, the couple stands outside the chapel and the hand-shaking and congratulations take place. This is followed by cake, singing, dancing and yes, drinking.   … and all is right with the world!

This was the 240^th Marine Ball and the fourth we have had the pleasure of attending. I didn’t get but a very few pics of it, since I just mostly sat and visited with the people at our table.  But below is a picture of one of the Marines who was the Master of Ceremony, and one of the several dishes provided.

Not much to show on this one.  I was tired and just wanting to sit, relax and watch the people.  We will discuss more later.  Until then, kick butt.   D.

We were eagerly awaiting the Oktoberfest celebration but the week before, the horrible attack on the peace-protest at the train station in Ankara took place.  The German Embassy decided that it would be inappropriate to have a celebration the following weekend.  Also, Andrea Merkal arrived to pay her respect which consumes resources.

My boss was in the States for about 6 weeks leaving me to be the man of the house.  Finally, after his return, Terese and I took a trip down to Antalya with two other couples.  One of them was the couple whose wedding we attended last year.  She is an American and he is a Turk. The resort we stayed at was one of those which has everything inclusive.  Pay for nothing except the initial daily fee.  It was expensive, but we needed to get away for a few days.

Now, the interesting part of this story is the Turk who married the American.  His name is Serkan.  Her name is Allison.  Full of energy, he cannot sit still more than 60 seconds.  He speaks so rapidly and often, I swear I lose weight standing next to him.  So, what I will do is post several pictures taken during the few days to get a better idea of his personality.  The first is him with Allison.

Quick stop at Starbucks on the way out.  Then fuel.  (For those who are going to comment about my smile, it’s on the inside.  As always)

The other couple are interesting people.  Arturo and Rill.  Friendly and easy to laugh with.  I don’t know who’s worse, Terese corrupting Rill, or Rill corrupting Terese?  But as a group of three couples, there was always something to laugh at.  Especially with Serkan around.

The last night at the resort, I was joined by Serkan and Rill as I enjoyed my cigar.

Serkan is one of those rare individuals who wants to stop and talk with everyone. Allison told me if he sees a flock of sheep near the side of the road, Serkan will stop and visit with the shepherd.  So on the way home, when we took a rest top near an apple company, Serkan and Allison saw mounts of apples in the distance and went to investigate.

That is truly a mound of apples in the distance.  Most will be made into apple sauce.  And yes, that is Allison in the distance.

As we continue on our return home, Serkan found a small town on the side of the mountain that looked like it had some interesting things, so he decided to stop.  I was able to get some beautiful shots of Turkey.  Notice the aqueduct in the distance on the first one.

At one point, Serkan stopped to ask an old man about the street ahead, and the two carried on a conversation.  Afterwards, the old man gave us a couple of berries as a gift.  May sound silly to us, but to him he was giving us a bit of the town and himself.

There are so many jokes that can be said about the picture above, but it typifies Serkan’s energy and not just his love of Life, but the thrill of it.

As we continued home, we stopped at a small cafe along the road and had chai.  Terese sat down and some little cat knew right away she is a good woman and jumped in her lap.

Traveling further, we stopped at a small parking area on the side of the road to take pictures.

Turkey is an amazing country with incredible resources.  But one thing this country suffers from, is the careless way its people treats it.  Below is the garbage that was thrown out.  This not an isolated instance.  It is everywhere.  We can look out from our apartment window and see trash strewn all over the area.  I have seen a car pull up to a curb near some trees, and open his doors and toss out all the trash in the vehicle and drive off.  It’s sad to see this.

We continued on and stopped for fuel and food.  Always good food in Turkey.

As you travel along the highways, even small farm roads, you will see stands selling the local produce.  A lot of produce.  At some places, these stands were less than a mile apart.  We decided to stop and get a pumpkin for Halloween, and I had to take a few pictures of these amazing places.

I will forever be moved by the beauty of this country and all it encompasses.  I was not expecting its people to be so friendly and helpful.  They will give you anything you need with a smile.  And they will always take compensation, but not without a smile and a heartfelt thank you.  Just like every country I have set foot on, I take a bit of it away with me.  We placed our bid for our next post and look forward to finding out where we will be placed.

One more thing to say.  It was one evening that we were all sitting and eating, that Serkan commented about some answer to a test he took in the States this past summer.  What I didn’t realize, though everyone else did, he took the Citizenship test and is now a US Citizen!  My respect was already high for this man, and now it has been elevated.  I am truly glad he is a friend of ours.  He considers himself not only American, but also a Texan, plus I think I got him voting Republican, perhaps to Allison’s chagrin.

Serkan, I plan to stay in touch with you the remainder of my life.  Stay genuinely happy, and since you are now a Texan, don’t hesitate to kick butt.     D.

A few months ago, Terese started having pains in her left shoulder, which over the next few weeks, started having loss of feeling down her left side.

She went to the doctor at the Embassy who told her she had a displaced first rib.  Don’t feel bad, I’ve never heard of it either.  So, they sent her to a chiropractor who did blood tests and MRIs.  What the tests showed, was Terese had several herniated disks in her neck and upper back, as well as calcification in several.

The calcification indicates the damage has been there awhile.  The Doc asked Terese if she had been in a major accident in the past year and a half, and Terese said, No, but I got ran over by a bull several years ago.

It turns out, when Terese had her short dance sequence with the bull three years ago, she landed on her head which caused damage to her neck.  Since then there was no noticeable effects of the bull other than a damaged foot, until she started having the pain in her shoulder.

Now, after several weeks of physical therapy, with several more, she is healing slowly but steady.  The therapy is painful, but the shoulder is improving and the numbness is gone.

I don’t know of any moral that can be expressed here, other than choose your dance partner wisely.

… and keep kicking butt.      D.

I made a trip to Adana a few weeks ago.  One of our favorite places to eat at noon is a second floor restaurant across the street from the Turkish airbase, with a very enjoyable and interesting view.  Lately, due to threats against the Base, there is a curfew in place to limit the traffic going in and out.  As a result, many of the establishments that cater to the people on Base shut their doors, as it would not be lucrative.

So, we had to find other places to eat.  With my Regional Security Tech, Aydin, we drove around looking for a place to eat.  We turned down a side street in a warehouse district and came across several worth trying.  It is like finding a truck stop to eat at, because truckers know the best places to eat for their money.  Same here.  The people who work at the commercial establishments and warehouses, know where to eat.

We sat outside on a little table.  It looked to me like it was on a sidewalk.  Below are a few pics of the restaurant and the food.

Any meal is always complete with chai.

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I encounter many people that leave me in awe.  Remember our dear friend Hiwot in Ethiopia?  I find there are a great many “Hiwots” in life and I feel they alone are worth living life for.  Let me tell you about a few I have met in Turkey.

Selin is a beautiful young lady I have mentioned before.  Meek and quiet.  She wears her hair in a braid at times and with her glasses, she looks almost like a little old lady.  Yet her passion in life is dancing.  She has a tattoo on her waist that says, “Dancing is my life.”  On the weekends and holidays, she travels all over Europe competing and teaching the art of salsa dancing.  Just recently, she (and I would guess friends) opened a dance studio to teach.  She is celebrating her love of life in ways many of us will never experience.

Then there is Nadja and Camal.  They come into the office several times a week and clean and empty trash.  Camal is an older man who could pass for Nadja’s father.  It is most interesting to watch the interaction between the two.  Nadja is light-hearted and often sings while she works.  Camal will at times get on to her for not working harder.  She just smiles and continues singing with a twinkle in her eyes.  Camal just moves on.

Then there is a young Turkish girl who works in the Commissary store at the Embassy where we can buy minor things.  She is friendly and always smiling.  Visiting with her, I find she also is a dancer and competes at contests.  She is a published author and has promised me a copy of her book, although it is in Turkish.  Furthermore, she plays a concert cello.  You would never know without taking the time to visit.

I know a young Turkish woman who was raised in France and can speak that language better than her native tongue.  Plus she knows Russian, German and Latin.  Her mastery of the English language is such that I forget it is not her primary language.

There is an office in the Embassy which employs people with more intelligence than I have.  One day, I was visiting with a young lady from that office and asked her what her ancestry was.  Thai, she said.  Never been to Thailand, but she is Thai.  I asked her what her schooling background was, and she said she has a degree in Physics.  And a degree in Mathematics.  I tried not to show my surprise that she had two degrees.  Then I asked her if she was going to go back to school and get her Masters in one of those.  She said, No.  She instead decided to get a degree in Electrical Engineering.  I found it hard to suppress my awe.  After a few weeks, I was talking to her husband, and he stated his local band was in need of a bass guitarist and since his wife also was a concert violinist!!, he thought he could teach her.  So, after a weekend teaching session, she is now the bass guitarist for the band.  He told me he was afraid to teach her lead guitar, since she would probably play better than he can.  And this little woman will bake cookies occasionally and will always bring me a dozen or so.

I do not feel belittle with these good people I meet, but instead I become more in awe at humanity.  You never know what is in the minds of people you meet.  Likewise, you never know what people endure deep inside.  What Life has shown me, is if you take the time to accept people as they are, you will understand why they do the things they do and why they say what they say.  I am convinced, the gift of Understanding, is one of the most precious aspects of Life.

Sometimes, it’s best to kick our own butts.   D.