Without Car in Berlin

 I admit, living in the middle of Germany’s largest city makes it easier not owning a car. But the streets are packed with cars and many of our friends have cars. We don’t. Sure, I miss the thrill of racing around the hills of Northern California in my V8 Mustang, or cruising from San Jose to San Diego in my V8 Lincoln LS. But when we drive from Berlin to places in Germany, France, Netherlands or Italy, those little Peugots, Citroens or Opels are perfectly comfortable and affordable – with a gallon of gas costing almost $8.

In Berlin, we have an efficient, clean and punctual public transportation system – well, the S-Bahn, a surface train, seems to have problems with old equipment and freezing switches in the icy winters. But all we have to do to reach just about any place in Berlin is to walk to the nearest U-Bahn station, about three minutes from our door. Okay, a ride in one direction costs about $3.5, but we can also transfer to a very good bus system we use for the right destinations; for shorter distances, I pay less than $2 per ride. Compared to the huge costs of owning car here, estimated to be about $600 a month, riding trains, subways and busses is a real bargain. And don’t even think about finding a parking space here. 

Turkish Delight

All right, some bloggers don't blog everysingle day like some very busy young mothers can. So it's been a couple of weeks. But tweaking Google Chrome to NOT show websites - and blogger's pages - in Turkish took some doing.

And this is not a trip report. Did that after our trip to Cuba. If you missed that let me know and I will put it up here. So, just some impressions.

This country is almost exactly as large, in terms of population, as Germany - about 75 million. Most of them seem to be here in Istanbul, on the main drag, Istiklal Caddisi, and we only 250 meters from that great pedestrian mall that has two ancient streetcars clanking down the center, dividing the milling crowds like one of those oil tankers plying the Bosphorus nearby.

When we hear the muezzins' voices from the mosques' loudspeakers we look around to search for prayer rugs being spread. But nobody responds, all going go on about their business, even the occasional totally black, totally covered women whose only features we can detect are tiny slits revealing their dark eyes. Depending on the section of town, there are more or fewer headscarves to be seen, but by far most people wear modern western, some very modern fashions.

Istanbul's location between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara is truly spectacular. I can only think of a much, much smaller San Francisco and its Bay and Hong Kong as perhaps equally stunning sites. The spectacular Bosphorus, connecting Black Sea and Marmara, and the Golden Horn, a side arm of the Bosphorus, provide endlessly fascinating vistas, with a huge ship and boat traffic in all directions.

But don't ge me started in Turkish politics or economics. There is something to be said but I will spare you the grim - and the encouraging details. For now.

talktalktalk

franztalk, hah! so there you have it. be warned. I may not have bread recipes or girl talk to publish, but there are a number of topics on which I, well, can and want to talk.

Thank you, Leslie, for your creative example, and Sydney, for your stern admonition. Wasn't so difficult. But you know how us old folks are; we think "followers" are people stalking us on the way back from the bench in the park.

Looking forward to spreading the news, but don't just yet, please, I need to exercise my blogging muscles a bit.