Turkey - Pammukale Cotton Castle

The name Pammukale means Cotton Castle in Turkish, and and it gets its name from this white "snowy" limestone hill in the background.

People have bathed in these pools for thousand of years. The 33C waters of Pammukale is famous for its benefits to the eyes and skins, as well as its curing properties for asthma and rheumatism

Parts of the ancient city of Hierapolis, built on top the white castle. An ancient spa of sorts.

Turkish delicacies ...

It would have been pretty funny (for me) if the honey did actually fall ... hee

Greek yogurt with poppy seeds, apple tea in the corner

I thorougly enjoyed this.

Turkish meatballs

Simply delicious. I don't know why the Turks call them meatballs though. I mean, they are round, but obviously not balls ... right?

Our Turkish Camel

I was referring to the bus, not the girl ... hehe

It is not an exaggeration that we spent about half our time in Turkey on this coach.

Turkey is so huge, travelling from one place to another takes hours. But travelling is not all that boring. Turkey's scenery changes dramatically after every hour or two of travelling - from snowy mountains to vast plateaus, deserts and salt lakes.

And when I'm really bored, there's always a movie or two, like P.S. I Love You, and a sobbing girl beside me to add =)

Something really interesting though. Most, if not all the coaches in Turkey are white. And the drivers are really hardworking too. It is a common sight to see coach drivers washing their vehicles during lunch time.

Sitting pretty =)

Turkey - Istanbul

Smiling weary-eyed at Istanbul Ataturk Airport after an 11-hour flight

Day 1 of what has to be my best holiday yet.

We were in Egypt? Originally erected by Egyptian pharoah Thutmosis, the Obelisk stood in Ancient Egypt for hundreds of years before findings its place at Sultanahmet Square

The Blue Mosque, the belle of Istanbul

One of the Blue Mosque's six minarets

Inside the Blue Mosque

I was very much intrigued by how much the floorings of the Blue Mosque's compound took on the shape of the Star of David. Our tour guide pointed out a slight difference. The stars are joined together in a continuous fashion - the sign of an omnipresent God.

Entrance to Topkapi palace, residence of Ottoman sultans for over 400 years

Second entrance to Topkapi Palace.

It still amazes me somewhat how a predominantly Muslim country with a large Asian influence and heritage can be so Walt-Disney like in its architecture

A new start

Its been awhile since I've blogged.

Writing for me used to be fun, enjoyable,

Writing allowed me to express myself, my thoughts, things that amused me and the percularities of life.

In other words, writing allowed me to be smarter, wittier and funnier than I really am, heh.

But I lost all joy in writing not long after taking on my current job.

The long hours of crafting news releases, stories, speeches ... urgh ...

Little did I know though that my stopping writing would cause pain to the one I care dearly about and love.

So this blog will see a new start.

I will continue write, albeit not so frequently, and with more pictures than words.

For those who had frequented my blog, I say had, cos I know nobody does any more, heh,

I'm fine. I'm in good health. I'm happy and I've found that someone. Her name is Angela. And for everyday that she is by my side, I think I'm the luckiest guy around =)

Will be posting up pictures of our trip to Turkey soon =)