4/4/98: Took tour of Topkapi Palace. Met up with Chris and Beth again for a visit to Taksim and Beyoglu. Ate gozleme sandwiches at a local (non-touristy) restaurant, then stopped at a…
Category: RTW Trip
Meetings With Remarkable People
4/3/98: Switch to Istanbul Hostel after an early morning search for a better deal. Turns out they opened only the day before! Very nice and clean. Met up with Chris & Beth…
Istanbul, Not Constantinople
4/2/98: We switched rooms at the hostel because there were openings this morning. We purchased a phone card to call Chris and Beth B. to make plans to connect on Friday. And…
Border Crossing By Train
4/1/98: Up early for a 7am train to Istanbul. The train stopped in Pythion, the Greek border town. 4/1/23: When I wrote “the train stopped in Pythion,” I didn’t mean Pythion was…
Overnight in Thessaloniki
3/31/98: Boarded 7am train to Thessaloniki. There was only first class tickets available. Pricey but very nice. Greek countryside was gorgeous in the misty morning and foggy afternoon. Better than postcards. We…
Mars Hill and Contextual Apologetics
3/29/98: Visited the Acropolis, and a walk through Monastraki neighborhood. Found a music shop that sells bouzouki (Greek mandolins). After the V’s get home in the evening, George took me to his…
The Why (You really quit your job for this!?)
3/28/98: We moved from our pensione, Student’s and Traveler’s Inn, to the Valiakas home, thanks to their generous invitation. We also visited the National Archeological Museum. 3/28/23: So, other than being young,…
The How (getting from here to there)
When someone asks me “How did you travel around the world?” I dryly, but truthfully, respond: “Mostly lanes, trains and automobiles, but also by ferry boats on the sea, busses with chickens,…
The Where and the When
3/26/98: Still rainy and cold, power out in Athens for several hours, but we manage a stroll through Plaka and Monastraki neighborhoods. Gerry (Ruth’s cousin from Maui) and George Valiakas invited us…
The Who and What
3/25/98: Today, we arrived in Athens, Greece via Frankfurt, Germany. We were picked up in the early morning hours after an overnight flight by Gerry and George Valiakas. Gerry is Ruth’s cousin,…
RTW Trip: Arriving at departure
3/24/98: “We are leaving this time. On our way to the airport in fact. … We are really leaving Chicago, and heading off on our Big Adventure in search of the spirit…