Turkish Cultural Foundation - July 2009

July 9 - Museum of Anatolian Civilizations & Mausoleum of Mustafa

2009-07-16T21:36:00.000-07:00

Museum of Anatolian Civilizations This is the finest archaeological collection in all of Turkey and the primary reason Ankara is worth a stopover. Housed in a 15th-century caravansary and covered bazaar constructed under the reign of Mehmet the Conqueror, the museum contains a remarkable record of every civilization that passed through Anatolia as far back as the caveman.

The exhibit begins with artifacts believed to date to the Paleolithic Age and follows the progression of time throughout the museum. The most impressive Neolithic Age findings are an 8,000-year-old wall, clay and ceramic representations of bulls' heads, images of a fat and misshapen Mother Goddess called Kybele (later Cybele, forerunner of Artemis and probably the Virgin Mary), and wall paintings from Çatalhöyük, man's oldest known stationary civilization. The collections illustrate the first time that man tills the soil, builds homes, and takes it upon himself to decorate his surroundings. The Neolithic section gives way to artifacts recovered from Hacilar, the center of the Chalcolithic Era, and includes a large collection of stone and metal tools and decorative jewelry.

The Hatti tribes dominate the Bronze Age display with an abundance of solar discs, deer- and bull-shaped statuettes, and an evolved (and much thinner) version of the Mother Goddess. Loads of gold jewelry give a rare look into the daily and religious practices of this ancient people.
Findings from the Assyrian trade colonies discovered at Kültepe, near Kayseri, are represented in the southern hall. (The Assyrians are credited with the introduction of the written word into Anatolia, much of which records transactions, receipts, and business agreements.) Over 20,000 clay tablets, inscribed in Assyrian cuneiform, have helped reveal a priceless amount of information on this period.
The highlight of the Great Hittite Empire exhibit is the famous relief of the God of War taken from the King's Gate at Hattusas, but the bronze statues of fertility gods, bulls, and deer are not to be overlooked.

http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/europe/turkey/ankara/24384/museum-of-anatolian-

Mausoleum of Mustafa

THE END

Will be adding personal reflections over the next few days. Processing so much information and need a little more time to think things out.

Field Videos

2009-07-16T21:01:00.000-07:00

Cappadocia (continue)

2009-07-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

Cappadocia & Carvanserais

2009-07-16T19:15:00.000-07:00

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Cappadocia which is unique in the world and is a miraculous nature wonder is the common name of the field covered by the provinces of Aksaray, Nevsehir, Nigde, Kayseri and Kirsehir in the Central Anatolian region.

In the upper Myosen period in the Cappadocia region as a result of the vulcanic eruptions occurred in Erciyes, Hasandag and Gulludag, in the region was formed a large tableland from the vulcanic tufas and together with the erosion of the Kizilirmak river and wind over ten thausands of years there appeared the chimney rocks which are a wonder of the nature. In the old Bronze Age the Cappadocia which was the population zone of the Assyrian civilization later has hosted the Hittite, Frig, Pers, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman civilizations. The first Christians escaped from the persecution of the Roman Empire in the 2nd century B.C. came to the Cappadocia over the Antakya and Kayseri and they have settled here. The first Christians finding the underground cities from Cappadocia have been hidden in these underground cities which gates were made in such way in which they couldn't be easily observed and they have escaped from the persecution of the Roman soldiers. Due that they had live in the underground cities for long duration without being able to go out they have developed these underground cities by making provisions rooms, ventilation chimneys, wine production places, churches, abbeys, water wells, toilets and meeting rooms.

In these cities made in form of rooms connected to each others some of the rooms were connected to each other only with the tunnels tight and permitting passing of just a person. At the access gates of these tunnels there were huge stone rollers used for closing the tunnels for security reasons.

Caravanserais:
The caravanserais (also called “Han” in Turkish) are an architectural design developed in Central Asia by the Karakhanids and Ghaznavids tribes and passed into Anatolian Turkish architecture. The institution of caravanserais has its most variations in Seljuk Anatolia, using the forms of Anatolian stone architecture. These buildings would offer travelers in rough terrains all the comforts needed and effectively provided a social foundation at a time when Anatolia was still subject to much migration and at the center of trade routes. The organization of a caravanserai offers many clues about the typical characteristics of Turkish society at the time. They were havens in which caravans and individual travelers could take shelter and reflect the needs of a culture that finds its origins in the nomadic lifestyles of the Turkish tribes of Central Asia.

July 6 - Neolithic Anatolian Site

2009-07-16T18:45:00.000-07:00

Neolithic Anatolian Site

The word Neolithic consists of two separate words, Neos=New and Lithos=Stone, which make up New Stone Age. Neolithic age was the scene of many major developments and changes that the Human achieved after the relatively static Mesolithic period. The two important events caused this change, first was the cultivation of plants, and the second was the domestication of wild animals that both were acquired wild before. With the beginning of agricultural production by man, there was a problem that the man had to deal with, that was how to protect their crop from animals and enemies.

So, human had to leave the caves and rock shelters that he previously lived in and build homes to stay within a close distance from his farm so he could keep his eyes on his farm. Actually Neolithic period is to be considered as the beginning of real civilization. Quite often, this period is referred to as Neolithic Revolution for its remarkable inventions. Because this period saw the major changes in human evolution, for example, village life began about this time, religion became a social product, some significant developments in the art forms, architecture, farming, fire baked pottery and ceramics, advanced tools and weapons etc, controlling the fire.

One of the most striking developments was in the architecture. We don't have yet, any evidence of any fortified town or village in Anatolia. However, Neolithic houses were built adjacent to each other so forming sort of a defense system in place of massive fortification walls. Neolithic people built single-storied houses in rectangular shape, supported by wooden beams and buttresses. Most houses were built with a flat roof that provided working space where they prepared their winter food. Interestingly, houses did not have a door but were entered through openings in the roofs that they reached using wooden ladders. After entering their houses, they pulled the ladder down into their houses to keep them safe from possible enemies and other people in the village. Inside the houses were the raised platforms and benches running around the room which they used for sleeping and sitting. Underneath the benches were buried the dead. They also decorated their walls with spectacular paintings which depict religious figurines, death and excarnation, hunting, wild animals, flowers, geometric patterns, imprints of hands, stars etc. They painted even an erupting volcano. Ceramics and pottery produced during this period are mono-chrome were built in a better shape and polished.

The settlements at Cayonu, Catalhoyuk, Hacilar, Norsuntepe and Kosk represent typical Neolithic towns. Although Catalhoyuk in Central Turkey is the most advanced among all, but Cayonu in the Eastern turkey goes back to around 7,250-6,750 BCE. which makes it the oldest Neolithic village in Turkey. The layout of Cayonu gives a square in the center of the town with some rectangular shaped monumental buildings and houses around it. Most of the buildings have the lower parts built out of stones and upper parts out of mud bricks. Apparently the people of this town knew the farming techniques and grew wheat, because many farming tools have been found at the site prove this fact. Besides the farming, various domesticated animals such as sheep and goats were also available in their towns. It is believed that the Dog was the first domestic animal of this period. Also, the figurines of a female deity found at the site are a clear evidence that the religion came to be an important event in their lives. Later, this female deity came to be known as the Mother Goddess of Anatolia, and has been worshipped for millenniums under the name "Cybele".

http://www.ancientanatolia.com/historical/neolithic.htm

Anatolia and the Caucasus, 8000–2000 b.c.

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/02/waa/ht02waa.htm

The Goddess from Anatolia (GREAT DESIGNS)

http://www.marlamallett.com/chupdate.htm

Early Neolithic site in southeastern Turkey dated to 11000 years ago: Göbekli Tepe, Urfa

http://ancient-anatolia.blogspot.com/2006/09/early-neolithic-site-in-southeastern.html

Anatolia

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/22897/Anatolia/44343/The-Neolithic-Period

July 6 - Pamukkale - Meaning "cotton castle"

2009-07-16T15:41:00.000-07:00

UNEP

http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/pdf/Hierapolis.pdf

The world-famous hot spring waterfall terraces of Pamukkale are spread out across a mountainside below the extensive ruins of the ancient Roman hot spring resort of Hierapolis, where St. Philip was supposedly martyred. After the fall of the Roman empire, the resort fell into decay and the hot spring water was allowed to cascade down the mountainside, eventually creating the blindingly white calcite terraces of Pamukkale - one of Turkey’s must-see attractions.

http://www.worldreviewer.com/travel-guides/hot-springs/pamukkale/14406/

The Hotel in Pamukkale was Out of this World! - July 5

2009-07-16T15:09:00.000-07:00

THIS WAS THE VIEW FROM OUR ROOM IN PAMUKKALE.

I WISH I COULD FLOAT LIKE MICHEAL BECAUSE HE MUST HAVE HAD AN OUTER BODY EXPERIENCE WATCHING THAT SUNSET.

THE WATER WAS SALTY BUT NOT AS BAD AS THE GULF OF MEXICO

July 5 - Temple of Aphrodite

2009-07-16T14:22:00.000-07:00

Temple of Aphrodisias

Peggy from Tennessee

Bonnie Group Leader

Basilica of St. John

Village School: Atakoy Ilkogretim Okulu

July 4 - EPHESUS

2009-07-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

Ephesus aka Ἔφεσος

Ancient Greek city of Asia Minor, near the mouth of the Menderes River, in what is today West Turkey, South of Smyrna (now Izmir). One of the greatest of the Ionian cities, it became the leading seaport of the region. Its wealth was proverbial. The Greek city was near an old center of worship of a native nature goddess, who was equated with the Greek Artemis, and c.550 B.C. a large temple was built. To this Croesus, who captured the city, contributed.

History:

In the year of 10 BC, Androclos, the son of King of Athens-Kodros, was searching a location for establishing a site. Androclos belonged to Akhas, was running from the Dor invasion in Greece. He was leading one of the migration convoys. It was predicted by an Apollon oracle that a fish and a boar would show the location of the new settlement. Days later, parallel to the oracle’s prediction, while frying, a fish fell down from the pan, irritating a hiding boar behind the bushes. The feared boar escaped immediately. Androclos followed the boar and established the city of Ephesus, where he had killed the boar. When Androclos died in the wars with Carians, a mausoleum was built to the memory of the first king of Ephesus. The mausoleum is considered to be placed around "The Gate of Magnesia".
Ephesus was ruled by the Lydian king, Kreisos, in the mid 6BC. The city reached the "Golden Age" and became a good model to the Antic World in culture and art, as well.

Location:

Ephesus was constructed on a river bend, that was eventually dredged into a full harbor near the mount of the Cayster River, on the western coast of Asia Minor (modern Turkey). Along the coastal plain between Smyrna to the north and Miletus to the south, the site is now about six miles from the Aegean Sea. The city shifted in five distinct locations over time, each within a small area. The Apostles Paul and John were familiar with the city that scholars have dubbed "Ephesus III" the largest (in area) of the five.

The areas where Ephesus located on as follows: Ephesus I: Aya Suluk (St. John Area); Ephesus II: Artemission area; Ephesus III: Port of St. Paul: base of Mount Koressos;Ephesus IV: north of Aya Suluk; Ephesus V: Selcuk area.

Because of the man-made harbor structure and the flow of the river, a backwash flow caused the harbor to frequently silt up (by 449 BCE we already read of problems documented about the silting. Later, Eusebius records that Ephesus honoured Emperor Hadrian for dredging and making navigable the harbor).

When cleared, Ephesus was in a location that justified a great seaport. The city sat at the convergence of three land routes with a shipping lane from the north via the channel created by the Island of Chios and an opening facing the cities of Macedonia. The land routes that converged on Ephesus included: 1) The Colossae / Laodicea road (traveling east), 2) The road to Sardis and Galatia (northeast), and 3) The Smyrna (north) main road.

Population: Some scholars estimate the number of people living at Ephesus to have exceeded 250,000 inhabitants during Ephesus III, which would make it perhaps the fourth largest of its day behind: 1) Rome; 2) Alexandria; and 3)An Antioch. This large a city was an economic stronghold in Asia Minor, and justified the title supreme metropolis of Asia though there is an evidence that its overall economic standing may have been slowly declining.

Excavations in Ephesus

Since 1954, excavations and restorations have been carried out not only by the Austrian Institute, but also by the archaeologists of the Ephesus Museum. In their intensive work since 1954, they have uncovered and restored important structures. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism accelerated this cooperative work in 1979 through its program "Selcuk-Ephesus Excavations, Restorations, and Systematization of its Environs."
In recent years, new perspective informs the project.

The main accent no longer lies so much on the excavation of further buildings and public spaces, but more on the care and pereservation of the buildings that have already been discovered. Accordingly, the project has restored important structures and monuments in the past fifteen years.
In the course of the excavations, which have now lasted over a century, only ten percent of the ancient city of Ephesus has been unearthed.

Excavations will go on for many years together with restoration works.

http://www.ephesus.us/ephesus/ephesus.htm

July 3 - Turkish Shadow Puppet Theatre

2009-07-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

Turkish Shadow Puppet Theatre

Karagöz can be deceitful, lewd, and even violent.[1] Other characters in these plays are the drunkard Tuzsuz Deli Bekir with his wine bottle, the long-necked Uzun Efe, the opium addict Kanbur Tiryaki with his pipe, Altı Kariş Beberuhi (an eccentric dwarf), the half-wit Denyo, the spendthrift Civan, and Nigâr, a flirtatious woman. There may also be dancers and djinns, and various portrayals of non-Turks: an Arab who knows no Turkish (typically a beggar or sweet-seller), a black servant woman, a Circassian servant girl, an Albanian security guard, a Greek (usually a doctor), an Armenian (usually a footman or money-changer), a Jew (usually a goldsmith or scrap-dealer), a Laz (usually a boatman), or a Persian (who recites poetry with an Azeri accent).

Karagöz (meaning blackeye in Turkish) and Hacivat (also written Hacivad) are the lead characters of the traditional Turkish shadow play, popularized during the Ottoman period. The central theme of the plays are the contrasting interaction between the two main characters: Karagöz represents the illiterate but straightforward public, whereas Hacivat belongs to the educated class, speaking Ottoman Turkish and using a poetical and literary language. Karagöz's native wit always gets the better of Hacivat's learning (but his money-making ventures always fail).

JUST PLAYING AROUND

Karagöz-Hacivat plays are especially associated with Ramadan. Until the rise of radio and film, it was one of the most popular forms of entertainment in Turkey. It survives today mainly in a toned-down form intended for audiences of children.

July 3 - Adapazarı School

2009-07-16T10:50:00.000-07:00

Adapazarı School

Immediately after the earthquake on August 17, 1999, ENKA foundation joined Turkey’s collective effort to provide relief to victims by building schools as quickly as possible. In the province of Adapazarı, which suffered the worst damage in the tremor, a public day school for children in temporary accommodation and a private school for those who had lost their parents in the earthquake were planned, built and opened in record time.

The resources of Enka Group were immediately rushed to the disaster area and construction began in earnest in the first week of September 1999. By October 25, Adapazarı had two brand new schools ready to open on the same day. The primary school in the temporary accommodation area of Emirdağ was handed directly over to the Ministry of Education. On the other hand, the Enka School in Adapazarı was designated a private institution of learning, as ENKA Schools’ second branch. The Enka community is thankful to the residents of Dağdibi village on the outskirts of central Adapazarı, who donated a 6.4-hectare plot of land, on which the Adapazarı Enka School now stands.

In its first school year, 1999–2000, 186 students, 64 of whom attending on a boarding basis, enrolled in the new school. It quickly became one of the best schools in the region with 310 students by 2001. All the students, ranging from pre-school through to the eighth grade, receive scholarships every year from Enka Foundation. The Enka School in Adapazarı plans to accept 48 new students each year. The total number of students is expected to be 568 within three years, by which time all levels will have been introduced, including high school education, which will commence next year.

The Adapazarı Enka School offers a full range of facilities, including a 10,000-volume library, two computer instruction labs, a swimming pool, an indoor sports hall as well as dormitories and a dining hall. Thousands of trees adorn the ample campus, which is progressively developing, a recent addition being a new running and cycling track.

Accommodation and recreational facilities for the staff are also provided. In a multi-ability environment, applied learning is given a special emphasis. Teachers and personnel are given continuous training to ensure the psychological and social development of the students. The entire staff attends routine seminars in the spring and the fall while new teachers undergo a thorough training period before they begin in the classroom.

The Enka community is grateful to each of more than 200 individuals and companies from Turkey and abroad, who have generously made donations to Enka Foundation for the development of the Adapazarı Enka School.
The Enka Schools in İstanbul and Adapazarı constantly cooperate both in academic and extracurricular pursuits. The two schools jointly organize a sports and arts festival every spring complemented by regular programs to develop the students’ science and foreign language skills. In addition, there is a wide range of scheduled activities for students during the summer months including camping trips and other diverse activities at the İstinye complex. Enka Schools have good community relations and other children in the vicinities of the schools are also welcome in the summer programs.

Darussafaka School for Orphaned Children - June 30

2009-07-16T10:21:00.000-07:00

Darussafaka School for Orphaned Children

Darussafka School enrolls students from 80 of the 81 provinces around Turkey. The school is residential and entrance requirements include students who are fatherless or orphaned, come from an impoverished background, and are also gifted and talented.

"Darussafaka students learn foreign languages from the 4th grade, which is the youngest grade in the school. They refer to grades 4 & 5 as the primary school. Language based curriculum presented the same challenges that we face in the US."

Jeanne Tribuzzi

"Jeanne Tribuzzi in Instanbul with Curriculum Mapping"

Darüşşafaka High School is one of the most prominent and influential schools of Turkey and is currently located in [Maslak, Istanbul. The school was founded by the Darüşşafaka Association with the name "[[Islamic Education Association]" in 1873. This date is controversial, with some sources claiming it was 1872. However, there is a consensus that the school started instruction in 1873 in the Fatih section of Istanbul, with the first graduation occurring in 1881. The school moved to its current location in 1994.

School Website:

http://darussafaka.net/turkce/

http://www.slideshare.net/jtribuzzi/darussafaka-school-istanbul-presentation?nocache=2141

Darussafaka School Istanbul

http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=darussafaka-school-istanbul-1228161572561057-8&stripped_title=darussafaka-school-istanbul-presentation" />http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=darussafaka-school-istanbul-1228161572561057-8&stripped_title=darussafaka-school-istanbul-presentation" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="355">

View more presentations from

July 2 - Bahcesehir Science Technology High School

2009-07-16T09:39:00.000-07:00

Bahcesehir Science Technology High School

"This was one of the high points of the trip in my opinion. I have never seen a school like this and was completely blown away with the campus and students programs. Students seem to enjoy competitive learning and excell at high level in Math & Science. Learning looks so fun here for the students and teachers."

Turkish School System Data Link Below: Great PowerPoint Guys

http://www.scribd.com/doc/7237881/turk-eitim-Sistemi-Ve-Dershaneler-Ing

Turkish students gain lifelong skills, experiences in TSTIP

Suha Soydan teaches at Private Bahcesehir Science and Technology High School, in Istanbul, Turkey. Soydan is using Inspiration, a computer program that he first became aware of while participating in Iowa State University’s Turkish Student-Teacher Internship Project (TSTIP), and was able to purchase after receiving a U.S. State Department grant.

http://www.hs.iastate.edu/news/inside/view/191/

New High School Student's Genetics Course

Science Labs

July 2 - Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Mosque)

2009-07-16T09:12:00.000-07:00

5 a.m. Wake - Up
Culture Change at its' Best, Not in Tennessee anymore clip

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Dubbed the "Blue Mosque" by Europeans because of its beautiful interior tiles with flower and tree motifs manufactured at the end of the high period of the great Iznik workshops, this is the only mosque in the world with six minarets.

Construction was begun in 1609 under the Ottoman Sultan Ahmet Khan I, who wished to create a place of Islamic worship to rival the Aya Sofya, or Hagia Sophia, constructed under the Roman ruler Justinian II in AD 532 and located across the Hippodrome, the old city’s central plaza. Completed in 1619, the interior of the mosque features a massive dome supported by four grand columns, five metres (16ft) in diameter, as well as characteristic Ottoman tile patterns and brightly-coloured windows.

Hundreds of Muslims still use the mosque for daily prayer and worship. Visitors of all faiths who are modestly dressed may enter the Blue Mosque; special slippers and head and shoulder coverings are distributed at the entrance.The dome is 23.5 meters wide and 43 meters high.

The shrine near the mosque houses the tombs of Ahmet I and his wife Kosem Sultan. On the east side of the mosque is the Arasta, a bazaar filled with souvenir shops. The Hunkar Mansion at the north side is today's Carpet and Kilim Museum.

July 1 - Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum

2009-07-16T08:23:00.000-07:00

"I thought I was headed to a unsafe, "dustbowl" in the Middle East. But, instead, I learned that Turkey is a beautiful landscaped, progressive country in the center of the world that rivals many countries in Europe. The Turks are very friendly, the food tastes great, and the history is rich."

-Timothy Drinkwine

Istanbul's Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art (Türk-Islam Eserleri Müzesi), on the Hippodrome across from the Blue Mosque (map), is a treasure-house of beautiful objects from the Ottoman (14th to 20th centuries), Seljuk (11th to 13th centuries), and earlier periods beginning in the 8th century.

The museum is housed in the restored Palace of Ibrahim Pasha, a sumptuous residence built by Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent's Grand Vezir (and intimate friend) Ibrahim Pasha (served 1523-1536). What you see is only part of the original structure, whose foundations date from about 1500.

The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art is open from 9 to 5 (closed Monday). Admission costs TL10.

Hippodrome - June 30

2009-07-16T07:35:00.000-07:00

Istanbul Hippodrome of Constantinople

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV1y-cPENoI

The Hippodrome of Constantinople was the place for horse races. It still survives as a park in which the traces of the old race course are clearly visible It was constructed in 203, during the reign of the emperor Septimius Severus, and after 324 expanded by Constantine the Great. It was about 130 meters wide and 450 meters long, and could accommodate about 40,000-50,000 people. The place, which is more or less northeast-southwest in orientation, is in Turkish called Sultanahmet Meydanı or At Meydanı ("Horse Square").

http://www.livius.org/cn-cs/constantinople/constantinople_hippodrome_1.html

Great link for additional information:

http://www.helleniccomserve.com/hippodrome.html

Ebru (Marbling) - June 30

2009-07-16T05:54:00.000-07:00

What is Marbling?

It's called Marbling because the results look like the swirls of color in marble stone. It's been around as an art form for a long time - old books sometimes have marbled end-papers. The idea is that you float fabric paints on the surface of a thick liquid that you prepare (called "Size"), kind of like oil on water. The floating paints can be swirled and mixed into patterns. When you lay a treated shirt, piece of fabric or paper down on top of the paint, the paint adheres to the fabric exactly where it touches.

The swirly patterns of colored paint are tranfered to the shirt or fabric. Each design is unique and can never be repeated. As a technique, it's both easy and hard. It's easy to do, great fun for kids and safe. It's hard in that the more you do, the better results you will get and the difference between your early designs and your later designs will be very noticeable.

History

The earliest examples of Ebru are found in the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, and are dated 1539, but the detail and quality of the work suggests that Ebru was present long before this time in the Ottoman Empire. Ebru has traditionally been rarely signed, and therefore many great artists remain unnamed. Modern day students may study for more than 10 years before being considered master marblers, learning how to make the perfect dye, water bath, and design. Since each dye bath can only be transferred to paper once, every original piece of Ebru is unique. http://www.ebru.tv/en/a.1464.html

June 30 - Bosphorus Cruise

2009-07-15T13:32:00.000-07:00

What is the Bosphorus?

Student Question #1 - How long is the Bosphorus?

(Satellite image of the Bosporus, taken from the International Space Station in April 2004.)

The Bosphorus is a narrow, navigable strait between Europe and Asia connecting the Black Sea to Marmara Sea. It is about 31 km long and varies between 1 and 2.5km. The name Bosphorus means “ford of the calf” in ancient Greek. With the shores rising to heights up to 200m (650ft), lined with palaces, ruins, villages, and gardens, this is one of the most beautiful stretches of scenery in Turkey. Two bridges cross the Bosphorus. Another crossing, Marmaray, is a 13.7 kilometer-long undersea railway tunnel currently under construction and is expected to be completed in 2012.

Turkey is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

Teacher's just chillin out!

June 30 - ISTANBOL

2009-07-15T07:13:00.000-07:00

DAY 1

Istanbul embraces two continents, one arm reaching out to Asia, the other to Europe. In the city's heart, the Bosphorus Strait, connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara and creates the famous Golden Horn. The former capital of three successive empires - Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman - today Istanbul honors and preserves the legacy of its past while looking forward to its modern future.

6 A.M.
The Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Turkish: Sultanahmet Camii) is the national mosque of Turkey, and is a historical mosque in Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey and the capital of the Ottoman Empire (from 1453 to 1923). The mosque is one of several mosques known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.
It was built between 1609 and 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I. Like many other mosques, it also comprises a tomb of the founder, a madrasah and a hospice. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque has become one of the most popular tourist attractions in Istanbul.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultan_Ahmed_Mosque

View from Hotal

For an Istanbul map, quick information about the city and recent events please see: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/destinations/europe/turkey/istanbul

June 28/29 - Megabus to Chicago

2009-07-15T06:49:00.001-07:00

Megabus to Chicago

I started this Teachers' Study Tour by boarding the Megabus stright to Chicago. Due to short notice, I refused to buy a $500 plane far from Memphis to Chicago, so it was a nine hour drive with four stops and one pick-up. Wi Fi made this bus trip a pretty good one and almost everyone slept the whole way to Chicago. Moreover, it only cost $20.00.

CHECK OUT MEGABUS.COM

What is the Turkish Cultural Foundation?

2009-07-15T06:33:00.000-07:00

Turkish Cultural Foundation

The Turkish Cultural Foundation was established on January 1, 2000.
The Foundation's main goals can be summarized as:

1. Promoting and preserving Turkish culture and heritage worldwide, through original programs and cooperation with like minded organizations.
2. Supporting education, particularly in the area of humanities, for disadvantaged students in Turkey.
3. Supporting research, documentation and publication in the humanities related to Turkey.
4. Supporting the preservation of Turkish cultural heritage abroad.
5. Helping to build cultural bridges between Turkey and other countries to support a better understanding and appreciation of Turkish cultural heritage.
The Foundation is a US tax-exempt public charitable organization supported entirely by private donations, with offices in Boston, Washington DC and Istanbul.