Words from Kaye, March 14, 2009 Ankara

Visiting the Wright Family was certainly the Right thing to do! Not only are they an incredibly enchanting family, they are living in an awesome country.

Impressions of Turkey--lots of men dressed in black, and I mean thousands crowded along the streets. Few women, except in shopping areas and then mostly with other women. All Turks we dealt with were very kind and helpful, often going out of their way to help us.

Let's discuss the traffic in the three areas we visited. Disney should visit Ankara and ride in a yellow cab for a harrowing ride with a skillful and adept driver. Where in the states we use the lines in the road to indicate where to drive, in Ankara the lines are often used to straddle with the tires on either side! What's more, a 3 lane road can contain 7 or possibly even 8 cars, no problem! And they drive at breakneck speed! Very exciting and I think it has a real possibility at Disneyland!

Now in Istanbul they speak of rush hour traffic yet the drivers seem to drive with decorum and even caution. Some of the very old roads twist up steep hills barely wide enough for a car, much less a bus, but it seems to work. No hair-raising rides in Istanbul but many sights that awed the eyes.

Now in Cappadocia, this time of year, few cars, few buses and no taxis! Leisurely pace although the drivers did need to be aware of dogs in the road, carts pulled by donkeys and large trucks hauling concrete blocks.

We are so thankful that Cortney, Brian, Lacey, Maren, and Aeden invited us to visit. We celebrated pretty Maren's sixth birthday and that was a joy. Lacey has grown into a lovely young lady* and Aeden is a busy, gorgeous nearly two-year-old who enchants everyone! We loved meeting Cortney and Brian's friends. One couple told us about Mass at the Vatican Embassy Church which we really enjoyed. Brian's school is huge, many buildings and a nice campus on top of a hill. Cortney's school is tucked into a corner of a busy area and bright and cheerful and inviting to pre-schoolers.

*in school plays and showed us her "clogging".

One more note of interest--buffet breakfast in hotels always includes 6 to 8 varieties of olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, other unidentifed objects, hard boiled eggs and wonderful, fabulous bread! (We might call it French or Italian but it is Turkish.)