Friday, February 14th

Today was mostly a travel day.  We loaded up the bus after breakfast and were on the road at 7:30.  I only had a few hours sleep before our wake-up call so feeling deprived of rest.  Throughout the day I struggle to keep my eyes open.

Gate 1 is good at breaking up any long days with bathroom stops every two hours which allows us a moment to stretch our legs as well.  Today we were in the bus for four hours passing beautiful green fields and orchards.  Barley, wheat, grapes, olive and other fruit trees are the most common crops.  The picture at the top of this page shows a sample of the beautiful scenery we passed by.

Then a stop for lunch at the small village of Gallipoli which is most known for the failed World War I campaign.

Gallipoli, fishing village, lunch stop

After lunch and a few minutes to explore in Gallipoli we loaded onto a ferry to take us on a 30 minute ride from the European side to Asia.

Our ferry

Seagulls followed the ferry

Not too much farther and we came to the ancient city of Troy, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Known as the setting of the Trojan War and from Homer’s epic poem the Iliad.  The Trojan Horse is the most known symbol of the story.  The stories cover a mixture of fact and fiction, but the city does date back over 5000 years.  The ruins of the city are built upon each other in nine known layers which are still in the process of being excavated.

City of Troy – The Odeon

Ruins of Troy – The Sanctuary

Trojan Horse

We climbed up the steep stairs to peak out from the inside of the Trojan Horse on display.

Tim and I are so fortunate when we travel and often hit some of the best weather an area has seen lately.  This was no exception as we have had sunny warm days and the trees are starting to bloom.

Spring is in the air

Only another 10-15 minute drive brought us to our home for the evening, Canakkale.  What a charming village.  Our Hotel Akol is located right on the water.  It is badly dated and well worn, but you would be hard pressed to beat the location.

Hotel Akol

After checking in, we took a walk up and down the boardwalk to check out the fishing boats and town center with a clock tower.  Hopeful cats looked on as fishermen tried to sell their daily catch.

Fleet of small fishing boats

Hopeful kitty

Clock Tower, Canakkale

Evidently there were numerous errors in the movie “Troy”, starring Brad Pitt, so in a peace offering, the movie moguls donated the Trojan Horse to the city of Canakkale and it is on display along the waterfront as well.

Trojan Horse from the movie, “Troy”

Harbor  just before sunset

Not a bad way to spend Valentine’s Day!

Gratitude Moment:  Today I am grateful that I was encouraged to read.  Although a refresher course in both the Iliad and the Odyssey would be in order, I am glad I was introduced to both of them.  I am even more grateful to be sharing this amazing journey with my forever “Valentine”.