holy turkey batman

well gin and i parted ways this afternoon...was hard to say goodbye...really enjoy traveling with her and feel like she is going to miss out on something amazing...on the other hand she is eager to get home...she has a summer fling with our garden and it has been calling...as do the whimpering dogs who have certainly missed her by now...

the flight to paris was uneventful...felt a little rushed in the connection until i realized i miss read the times...found a couple of french baguette sandwiches and loaded the plane for istanbul...

istanbul customs lines were long but uneventful...a breeze actually...i walked up to the visa window, asked for a visa and within 2 minutes i had a stamp in my passport and was 45 euros less in my wallet...no questions...just the exchange of cash for the stamp...good for 90 days...hmmmmmm

passport alley was also a breeze...long lines with a colorful array of people...no questions...a smile and another stamp....

in the past 2 weeks i have said many times that with each new country and city it feels like i have landed in a new world....this has never felt as true as it does tonight...

the diversity in people is crazy...most obvious in the women i think...we have scarves people...lots and lots of scarves...on the other end there are my counter mates also texting and messaging...a cute blonde on the end...a young african american guy from the states...a young woman from mexico who LOVES istanbul and then there is me...me in my ripped jeans, coca cola t-shirt and blonde streaked hair...

the wait tonight will be long...6 hours until the next flight...have a few episodes of criminal minds loaded and a few more hours of time on the ipod...will find a place to settle in after a while...will look for a few folks on facebook and then find a spot to sleep a little....

be back later....

kir (- her gin)

ps for ginny - i do ( love you that is)...and thank you babe for an amazing trip...will look for you online...remember you can always find me here...

farewell tour comes to an end...

well our last day in copenhagen was wonderful...this morning ginny went out to see her friend jytte for a second visit...dan roamed a little, checking out a few new sites and i did laundry and packed for turkey.

at 12:30 we met and caught a train to roskilde to visit the viking ship museum...along the way we walked through roskilde parks...

 the ship museum is appropriately located on the water...

along our way we encountered this "book share" in the park...there were many "shelves" or cubbies full of books

 we walked through the shopping area of roskilde...these huge pots or urns caught my eye...

 we came upon a pedestrian marking unlike any we had seen...worth documenting for sure...

 upon our return to copenhagen we set out to find a place to eat our final meal together...there was a series of fountains and we could not resist playing a little....

 this is a "swimming hole" along one of the canals...it was a beautiful day and the danes love their sun!

 another of the elephants...this chick lives to ride :)

 we walked and walked...and finally stopped at a corner cafe for dinner...we sat at a table on the sidewalk...we were thirsty and the the coke and the beer hit the spot...

 carlsberg beer on tap...

 a happy ginny...

 on our walk back to the hotel we stopped by the stock exchange building for a visit...the tower is fantastically unique...

 the sun is down and the daylight is losing ground...good night copenhagen....

sweden...

tuesday morning we took the train to sweden...a short trip...a walk through old malmo...lunch along the water...a little shopping....

this is the malmo train station

 a square in "old town"

 the water is a moat surrounding the malmo castle....

 we walked along the water and at the end of the line we stopped for a light lunch...

 the turning torso building stands above the other buildings on the shoreline...it really is a fantastic sight...

 the return walk to the station takes us through the "old town" once again...

the trip was short but was memorable...i am looking forward to a return trip...

oh denmark

sunday evening we arrived in copenhagen...the plan is to stay until thursday.  at that time ginny and dan will return to the states and i will start my turkish adventure with byron, joce, haakon and allegra johnson-pihlaja...

on our first evening in copenhagen we went to tivoli...it is a small amusement park in the heart of the city...it was a perfect evening...

 the gardens were amazing...

 on monday morning we hoped on a tour bus...the tour was poor so we bailed on the bus and walked for most of the day...here are the larsen sibs early on in the ride...

 we got off the bus to see the little mermaid...she is the hans christian andersen mermaid that was the inspiration for the disney film...

 we abandoned our tour bus at the mermaid and ventured out on our own...

 polser or hot dog stands are all over the city...

 we stopped in at the "marble" church...ginny and can not resist...we mark our spot...

 this is taken from inside the church...no stained glass here...

 we made our way to the palace and caught a changing of the guard...

 there was a tesla "shop" and dan and i could not resist a look...

 we hit nyhavn for lunch...

 theses elephants are everywhere...all painted differently...themed...

 gin takes a minute to rub hans christian andersen's knee...

 on monday evening we visit old friends...

ginny and jytte

 the pic above is ginny and hilda (a friend of jytte's)...gin and jytte met each other in the early 80s on a safari in kenya...we had a lovely time with jytte, hilda and jytte's beautiful border collie (bonnie)...

  on tuesday we visited sweden (see next blog)...after the trip we hit the streets of copenhagen for a little more...this is the round tower...

 view from the top of the tower

 ginny gets ahold of the camera....

 it is my turn...a great shot!

hamburg...

thursday we arrived in hamburg...the plan was to met dan (ginny's brother) on friday morning and to spend a couple of days in the city and visiting ginny's friend ellen (another und colleague)...the weather gods interfered with dan's flight and he ended up being re-booked for the following day (to arrive saturday am instead)...the hard ship was softened with a first class seat from atlanta.

once the word came from dan and the alternative plan for his arrival in action, ginny contacted friend ellen.  friday we spent the day visiting and sight seeing...here we are...marking our spot....the red and white shoes are ellen's :)

we took a quick tour by car in the downtown area and then found a place to park near shopping and alster lake.  after eating lunch and having a little coffee, we took a boat ride on alster lake...a lovely day and a great chance for ginny and ellen to chat...

after the ride we saw a few more of the sights...here are ginny and ellen...

we stopped at city hall..this is a pic of the inner courtyard...

this sewer cover says hamburg...so here we stop...

on saturday morning brother dan arrives and he is eager to hit the streets (he actually slept a little on the flight...must have been those full reclining seats in first class...)

along the harbor we found a beach bar...the signage alone was worth the stop...hot beer...lousy food...bad service...welcome

the 24-26th were harley days in hamburg...motorcycles EVERYWHERE...

this is the bus we took...fahrt (fart) means trip...hee hee

on saturday night we were invited to dinner at ellen and frank's...frank is in his 80s and has been hunting since the age of 16...there were over 120 pairs of "horns", tusks, antlers etc...proudly mounted and marked with the location of the kill and the year...it was AMAZING...i was dumbstruck...

we had a beautiful dinner and then we went out into their gardens...

there are two large ponds on the property...full of fish of course...

the flowers were fabulous...

this is the ginny flower...

after a little wine and dessert we returned to the city of hamburg...full tummies and eyes full...

thank you ellen and frank for a wonderful evening...

sunday morning we will leave for copenhagen (a short trip to sweden is on the itinerary)...this swedish girl is very pleased about that...