April 4th, 2002
Touring Kapadokya
A visit to remains of an ancient cave civilization
From Istanbul we departed on an overnight bus to Ugrup, Kapadokya where we rested for one hour, put our bags in our hotel and started the first leg of the Kapadokya tour. Day one we toured Devrent-the imagination valley, Avanos, Zelve, Causin, Goreme, Canak Somlekci in Avanos-a pottery factory, and Uchisar. The tour provided historical as well as geological information about the caves & rock formations. The layers of rock on top of the soft hardened mud are puzzling. The formations are explained by volcanic ash below harden volcanic rock and the erosion of the ash which supports the rock below. Each year the rock formations grow up or rather the volcanic ash below the rocks erodes down into the stream, hence the ground is sinking.
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March 31st, 2002
Istanbul. Tasting The Orient
Amazing city with historic monuments, fun people, and a taste of oriental culture.
When we arrived at the Greek-Turkish border we first turned over our passports into a basket and waited a half hour. Then we proceeded over a river that divides the two countries. In Turkey I immediately saw military enforcement and a lower standard of development. At the passport control office in Turkey I had to scheme up 45 US dollars for the visa fee. This was the first time since September I’ve held USD in my hand. Meantime, the inspectors emptied all the bags out of the storage compartments to search for any large quantities of items that could be resold in Turkey.
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March 28th, 2002
Lovin’ Thessaloniki
Greek culture and a big seaside city.
In Saloniki I finally connected with Elizabeth. From the bus station it was a long walk through the city to the youth hostel in town. The next morning, we saw the white castle and other archeological sites near the ocean . There was a fun market offering fresh and live fishes, displaying semi and fully-skinned meats, fruits, vegetables, grains, etc. At this point we were not up to par with the cultural siesta where everything closes at 1pm to 4pm and people mysteriously vanished. Where do they all go? There’s obviously some secret we don’t know about. During that time, we recognized an over abundance of female and male mannequins nude in store windows. Also, on television commercials and posted in the newsstands is the acceptance and celebration of the female body; completely exposed. Within 2 days of Thessaloniki, Greek culture was becoming clearer.
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March 10th, 2002
Brighton
A fun day out to the ocean with friends from Wigram.
Brighton is definitely a place to see in England. Its a city with a special charm that even on a bad cloudy miserable day you’ll be happy to have visited. Christian, Rie, Richard, Johannes, Emily, Chris, Flore and I spent the day having a ‘good ole time’. The Brighton pier supports a huge amusement center with some fun rides above the ocean. The city reminded me of Benny Hill & other old English television shows; but of coarse, the Beatles with its hip hippy vintage store appeal. Surprisingly,Brighton holds the largest gay club in UK and probably all of Europe. It’s a free expression feel kind of city with its 70’s style hippies and laid back atmosphere. The music played at the fair was house music, and I am starting to understand how dance music is an instrumental part of the complete UK culture. Along with this taste of music, there is a great nightlife ‘right-on’ the boardwalk, a nightlife you cant find anywhere else with local Fat Boy Slim poppin in to spin at the clubs every then and now..
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February 4th, 2002
Edinburgh, not enough time.
One day is never enough for any city.
My time in Edinburgh was too short to say I actually been there. The city offers a wide array of culture, history, and many sites to see. Unfortunately, I was finishing the last leg and invested my time into the Highlands and Isle of Skye for this journey. I may return in August, if time permits, for the famous festival and some better weather. The weather was typically cloudy and didn’t allow the best opportunity for satisfactory pictures. Edinburgh has a great pub nightlife and I highly recommend a trip there, its a place to see.
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February 3rd, 2002
Fort Willin’ to Sterlin’
Ye last o’ leg o’ me trip’ ye comes’ ye’ end
Some of the most scenic parts of the highlands were from Fort William to Sterling. Our group stopped for some Hairy Cooin’, snow fightin’, Glencoe wanderin’, water tappin’, Castle Stalkin’, Scottish food eatin’, and finally some William Wallacin’. This tour came to a close and was a last minute unexpectedly well worth it decision.
It was very interesting seeing the William Wallace Monument and the controversy of the statue really portray the message of ‘Freedom’. First of all, it’s locked in a cage. That’s because the Scots hate it and try to chip “Braveheart” off the shield. Coincidentally the statue looks like Mel Gibson (Australian) and was erected outside the William Wallace Monument AFTER the movie was released. Do you agree with how American culture is altering the culture of other countries?
Check it out.
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February 2nd, 2002
Glen Shiel, Eilean Donan Castle, then we met our tour guide’s parents.
From Kyleakin to Fort William, I jumped back on the next energetic circuit of MacBackpackers tours. This tour was interesting with its new tour guide ‘assistant’ Joanna and jumpin in his seat Graham. They made the rest of my trip really enjoyable. They took us around to Eilean Donan Castle, Glen Shiel, and then we went to Graham’s house to visit his parents and experience the ‘highland hospitality’ of Scotland. Afterwards a girl from South Africa, Nicola, decided to make us a memorably delicious curry for dinner. Tonight was the Rugby game in Edinburgh versus England took place and from being exposed to a Scottish perspective of history I can understand the underlying meaning and aggression from this turf’ fighting game. The English won and celebrated the ‘proper’ way with tea and crumpets, but if Scotland were to win, Graham would guarantee the country going absolutely crazy. Apparently soccer is already banned between the two countries because the last time the Scots won and crowded the field to grab parts of it. The tour helped me understand the distinctive differences and hatred between English and Scottish.
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February 1st, 2002
Skye’s My Limit
A venture around the beautiful island and its volatile weather
Skye is a must see portion of Scotland. It’s the northern western island that fronts the Atlantic Ocean. The island is inhabited by few people and after experiencing it, I can understand why. The weather was somewhat brutal and changing. Clouds move rapidly and the weather shifts momentarily, at least during my experience. Also there isn’t much other than you and nature, so it may take a ’survivor’ to actually find the rewards of living there. What you will find on Skye is a great appreciation for nature as cliffs confront the ocean. I found it very interesting how Skye is obviously damp, yet the botany on some portions of the island can look somewhat desert-like. Although people find time to spend weeks of their life on Skye, I was short of this time so renting a car with another macbackpacker, Adrian from Australia, was the best option to introduce me to this ‘talked-about’ place.
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January 31st, 2002
Jumping off in Kyleakin
I decided to see the Isle of Skye the next day, so I jumped off!
From Inverness to Kyleakin I saw few sites in the span of a couple hours. The tour would directly go from Inverness to Fort William today but I decided to jump off in Kyleakin, Skye, to see the Isle of Skye. We ventured into Rogi Falls, Loch of Carron, and finally Kyle of Lochalsh which connects via a new toll bridge to Kyleakin, Skye. Kyleakin is a small little town so there was hardly anything to see or do, so relaxing in the ‘homely’ hostel was the best option. Because MacBackpackers don’t operate a tour of Skye unless there are more than 6 people booked, Adrian (Australian) and I figured we were going to rent a car and do it ourselves.
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January 30th, 2002
Battlefields, Monters, and Dancing
The first day of my tour of Scotland.
From Edinburgh to Inverness our tour stopped at the Hermitage, Culloden Battlefield, Pitlochry, Ruthven Barracks, Loch Ness to see ‘Nessie’, and then some cultural Scottish dancing in Inverness. The day was interesting and rewarding. I was glad to hook up with MacBackpackers tours because I was starting to experience parts of Scotland I had in mind.
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Welcome to my site and I hope you enjoy it. When I first travelled to Europe while I was in college I really had the time of my life seeing the many different types of cultures. The flavors of the food, the welcome of the people, the love shared across the world was so much greater than living in the United States ... 
