Midnight Express

Images of marketplaces and the sounds of exotic places have been in my mind lately, especially with the devastating ice storms we had in Central Massachusetts this week. When I was a child, my grandfather went to Istanbul quite often for business. I remember my grandmother saying he was in Turkey just like he was down the street. It never occured to me he was half a world away.

A few times a year he traveled and I waited impatiently for his return with stories and treats from afar. Sometimes it was only his unused coins if he had no time to shop around. The coins that I have kept. Symbols of storybook adventures saved for years. His treasures were always educational somehow and opened my mind to this world being bigger than what I knew. I have yet to visit Istanbul, or Greece where he was from. The imagery and the mystic allure of these places resonates to my depths. One day...until then, I will let the kaleidoscope of color, music and traditions, like the evil eye amulet of both countries, keep my spirit shooting for my turn to venture.

Today the tourism in Turkey is flourishing and people from all over Europe are flocking to the seaside. Turkey is surrounded on three sides by water with enough inspiration for literary, geography, archeology and history junkies. Now if they could just stop fighting over Cypress, unify and get themselves in the EU. They could look ahead to a prosperous future and take their advantage as being the power gateway to the Black Sea. Hopefully by the time I get there Turkey will be that place.

Images: Evil Eye Amulets and marketplace collage from picasa and tapestries via travelpod.com