Turkey was truly delightful! We spent our time in three different parts of the country: Ankara, Cappadochia, and Istanbul.
Our time in Ankara was shaped by our reunion with our good friends. Special friends we have known since our time in Japan. Not only do we all enjoy each others’ company (not an easy thing to do when you have a total of four adults and six kids) but we are also able to travel together. That’s really not an easy thing to find! We have traveled together in Japan, Thailand, The States, and now Turkey. They graciously hosted us and shared their favorite parts of Ankara with us: the castle, the local market, the Hammam (Turkish Bath), the simit (large sesame seeded bagels),the friendly and generous nature of the Turks (the kind boy who shared his Ben 10 cards with the boys, the friendly grandmothers and gentlemen), the joys of Turkish chai/tea, their crazy dance game, and the warmth and love of their home (despite the fact that we shared some bad germs with them: Noah announced his arrival in Ankara with a high fever and some dramatic vomit in the airport…after we signed paperwork declaring we were entering Turkey free of illness and undergoing fever scans). Minus the yucky sick stuff, our time in Ankara was a great way to begin our Turkish adventure.
Originally written for Dim Sum, Bagels, and Crawfish