Sid and Doris Bonkers and their Epic Journeys
"Everybody is normal until you get to know them"
In which Sid and Doris cross the Dardanelles, see Troy, sneak a lift a miles south and find a ‘new’ ferry to Lesbos The Turks would seem to be punctual people. All of TJ’s arrangements for our drivers and guides have gone well. This morning, in true Audley (our usual travel agents) style, we were escorted to the ferry to…
Read moreIn which Sid and Doris evade Istanbul traffic with their very own trip to Gallipoli Having discovered how hard it is to cycle into Istanbul we have decided not to cycle out. But our cunning ruse of subscribing to an organised Tour of Gallipoli and Troy meant that at 7am we and the neddies were travelling in fine style in…
Read moreAs I mentioned, I got a bit philosophical while cycling across the Danube plain, and I decided it was time to focus on something other than war. 1. Mosaics I have always been fascinated by mosaics. I had “Mini Mosaic” as a child, fun to make the mosaics but a terrible challenge to prise the little tiles out of the…
Read moreThe mosaics in the Chora church were really fantastic and inspired me to Poesy: I am a Pasha With a hat I wear my turban Just like that Some people say That it’s too fat But I am THE Pasha And this is MY hat.
Read moreQ: So the Epic Journey to Istanbul has delivered! What changes did you make as you went along? Doris: I think we became a little more fixated on Istanbul as a destination as we went on, and that straightened the route out and meant less sightseeing. We didn’t go to some bits of Bulgaria and Romania that we originally had…
Read moreIn which Sid and Doris go to the Topkapi Palace, after several trips to Istanbul this is apparently their first timeToday were we not sure if we would find some esoteric thing to see, bimble around our neighbourhood here or Do A Sight. On our way down the hill looking for cafes we found the Plaster Board Museum and certainly…
Read moreThe Epic Journey was originally conceived of in three parts, adding up to 16 weeks plus a bit in the UK to get home from the ferry:1. An outward leg to somewhere Epic2. A slower bit with some free time taking ferries across to Greece and Italy and having some chill-out time en route, eating leetle feeshes in harbour towns…
Read moreIn which Sid and Doris visit the Rahmi Koc collection of almost everything Rahmi Koc is the main shareholder of Koc Holdings which is the largest company in Turkey. They own Tofas (see Posts passim), they build Ford trucks, they build the Army’s tanks, they own the biggest electrical goods business. Rahmi is a collector with means, which means he…
Read more“This is my flat.It is part of a larger house. When the house was built nobody had balconies.Now we all have balconies, and mine is very traditional, with windows and wooden walls.People point to my balcony and say ‘That balcony will soon fall off the building’.I know they are just jealous.”
Read more1. Domes “We in Turkey love domes. We can make any building shape you like out of domes. We make big ones then smaller ones round the edge, then smaller ones to fill in the bits. Some people build their religious buildings with sloping roofs with straight edges but they are wrong, and we must kill them. Other people build…
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