Weekly Panoroma from Bilge...

I have started a new project in my newspapers' website 3 weeks ago. I go through all the important events happening in a week, choose them and write the descriptions under the pictures. Then we put them in the gallery link of the website.

There are so many picture galleries in so many websites but most of them are just pictures with no informations. So go and click my site.

All you have to do is go to http://www.sabah.com.tr/ adress and go to multimedia and see "Bilge Eser'den Haftanin Panoramasi"... or copy/paste http://galeri.sabah.com.tr/?galerisec=3401...
I publish it every friday morning and it stays there until next week's new gallery.

(the picture is a printview of the page)

I am waiting for your comments...

Have a nice weekend...

Guests in the ferry...

Today is the last day of eid-al-adha, or with Turkish saying: Kurban Bayrami... I have visited my granparents, saw my old uncle that I havent seen for many years... Ate a lot of meat. My aunt, Makbule, has prepared a very nice meat with rice and ayran (a drink made with yoghurt and water)... But my cousin is crazy. He recorded a video of the cow before it was butchered. Then just as we were eating it, he started showing the video. Everybody was looking at each other trying to get rid of him, but even this didnt stop us finishing the delicious cow:))

Half of Turkey is on holiday but we journalist- or so called slaves- work... Because some people in some parts of the country should sit down in their breakfasts and read their papers. But, I travel the world when they are working so no need to complain a lot...

Every morning I take the ferry from Kadikoy to Besiktas to come to work. I buy cookies (acma) and coffee. Nowadays the weather is freezing but with sun. So I tend to sit outside to feel the breeze on my face. This morning I had guests... Some small birds were trying to eat their breakfast, pieces dropping on the floor from my cookies... I know it is not a great picture but with my Ericsson mobile that is the best I can get (Swedish mobile is chosen deliberately!!)

I dont like winter, depressing, cold... but in Istanbul every season is worth to live... and the life is much more worth to take the best...

Have a nice day to all..

Kurban Bayrami-Eid al-Adha-Festival of Sacrifice

(- O my sweety. Your child? Tell me what do you want to be when you grow older?
- Cooked meat)

Today is the first day of festival... Today, everybody wakes up early in the morning, men go to mosques for morning prayers... Then big family breakfasts, then visiting relatives. I like every idea that brings together the friends, families and people that havent seen each other for months.

One big religious festival is Ramadan. The second one is Eid el -Adha. In the second one, you sacrifice one animal, either a cow, a sheep or a ram. You divide the meats and deliver to people in need. Western world mostly likes to criticize about cutting so many animals in the world. I know sometimes there are wild scenes. But there is a much deeper meaning in this. The reason for cutting an animal dates back to thousands of years. When Prophet Abraham wanted so much a boy from God and promises that he will sacrifice it at the age of 13. Then his son, Ismail, borns and reaches the age 13. Abraham takes his son to a place to sacrifice as he has promised. But just at the second he puts the knife on his son's throat God sends him a sheep thanking that he kept his promise. So he sacrifices the animal and saves his son. So from then every year Muslims thank God for saving their sons. If you want some information go to links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eid_al-Adha

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham#In_Islam

Have a nice Bayram...

Troya and real trust

The handsome but coward Paris, the Troya Prince falls in love with Greek Helen and takes her to his hometown. But what they forget is the thousands of Greek ships coming to open the war of honour on Troy... They fight for 10 years, millions die... Nobody wins like in all of the wars... But the beautiful heaven city Troy burns down to all its ashes..

This war -maybe the only war that started for a "good reason" -woman, going back to thousands of years, happened in these lands of Turkey, called Canakkale, on the northwest coast. The actors of the story that Homeros told thousands of years ago have lived in my land. 

For the last six months, the successful "Fire of Anatolia" dancers have been performing the story of Helen, Paris, Achilleus, Hector and thousands that have died to protect the people that trusted them...  More than 200 dancers perform the dances of different regions of Anatolia. They come one by one, from Aegean, Black Sea, Lydians, Amazon women and all others... 

I was very impressed on how they danced so in great harmony. The musics and costumes are wonderful. They have already started touring around the world. So if "Troya" ever passes your city, never miss it!!! 

(You can watch the trailer on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6wxqNVPfoM address)