Belle - World Traveller!
When we decided to move to Turkey, we knew we couldn't go without our lovable golden retriever, Belle. However, when I tried to bring her overseas in November, we had some major problems with American Airlines and had to live without our pup for awhile.
We were so happy to see her when we came home for Christmas and even more excited to have her here in Turkey. Luckily it worked out for my sister to bring her AND visit for a while.
Belle and Jenny safely made it here last week (thank you Lufthansa!!!) and this weekend we decided to bring the dog along for some Turkish explorations.
Belle, Jenny and I in front of some of the ruins in Troy (yes, apparently dogs can also blink in pictures)
One of Paul's coworkers loaned us their truck for the weekend, so Paul, Jenny, Belle and I went out on a drive to the Gallipoli Peninsula. This is the area Britain, France, Australia and New Zealand tried to capture in World War I to gain control over the Dardanelles and Bosphorous Strait for easy access via sea to Russia. The attacks lasted 9 months with over 500,000 casualties on both the Turkish and allied sides. We visited the various cemeteries and monuments.
Lone Pine memorial in Gallipoli - memorial for the ANZAC soliders who died. The pine tree has an interesting story too - the brother of a solider who died sent home a pine cone to their mother; about 20 years later when the memorial was built, she sent a cone to be planted on the memorial)
We rang in 2012 with a seafood dinner (at least for Jenny and Paul), Raki (a traditional Turkish liquor, like Ouzo from Greece), cake and sparklers :)
Sunday, we drove across from Gelibolu and Eceabat to Cannakkale and Troy. All of us, including Belle, were able to walk around the ruins of Troy. It was city, built upon city, built upon city, literally! It also had a mock Trojan horse like the one the Greeks used to deceive them and burn down the city of Troy. Cannakkale even had the Trojan horse from the movie Troy at the harbor. It was a great opportunity for me to learn more about the history of my new home, and man, there is a lot to learn.
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