3rd February Meeting - Vicki Belcher - Traveller’s Tales

Chair
Gerry

International Toast
Norm led us in a toast to RC Davos, Switzerland.  Norm couldn’t find out much about them - I found this on the internet - a bit out of date but I guess the location is still right

Visitors
Les Pontin from RC Cal Pac, Anna Overton and of course Vicki

Apologies
Ron, the Hanleys, Mark, Merv & Julianna

Makeups
Board last night

President's Report
Welcome all.
Deborah met Anna at the Australia Day BBQ.
Board last night
Gerry is on the Golf Day warpath
Looks like we will be partnering with Vicki Taylor to do a Chilli Festival in November
Need a committee for the Car Boot Sale
Looking at another Probus Club
& need a PE for Juidy

Speaker
Sue introduced Vicki - Vicki is active in Inner Wheel & Probus

Vicki started and finished with the map of Turkey, and noted the many “not so tolerant” neighbours

 

 

Of course Vicki doesn’t like shopping, but faced with 3000 shops in the Grand Bazaar, well, the rest is history.  Rumours that she had to organise a container are completely untrue.    The Belcher household is now straining under the weight of carpets, bowls, silks and the like (Turkey was on the Silk Road)

Some samples were passed around.

(some even made it back to Vicki)

Perga - the marble meat hook advertised a butcher’s shop

 

 

ANZAC Cove - 30 monuments - 250,000 died during WW1

Throughout history, the strategic location meant wars, wars, wars.  This is Troy, or at least the top level of ten cities built one on top of each other.

Turkey is a mix of myth and fact (a bit like this blog actually)
Another sample from Vicki's container

Delphi in Greece - apparently the Oracle sat above a fissure venting gasses, so her prophecies were a bit muddled.  Fortunately there were 70 priests to interpret them

- for a price of course.

Ephesus had a population of 250,000 people, a library, and specialized in headless statues, sometimes with mismatched heads added.  This one Vicki had commissioned is a good likeness don’t you think. No wonder that container was so heavy

Every town had a stadium.  There is an 80% rule - if less than 80% is left they don’t restore the missing bits (seen here in white)

There was a Roman city above these calcium terraces.

This is Cleopatra’s heated pool, & Mary and the disciples swam here too

(if you believe the tour guide)

Caravanseriai (or is that Caravanseriais) every 40km

Cappadocia (this blog has been a real test of my spelling abilities)

 

Turkey is 98% Muslim so there is a mosque on every corner
The historic background of the Sunni–Shia split lies in the schism that occurred when the Islamic prophet Muhammad died in the year 632, leading to a dispute over succession to Muhammad as a caliph of the Islamic community spread across various parts of the world, which led to the Battle of Siffin. The dispute intensified greatly after the Battle of Karbala, in which Hussein ibn Ali and his household were killed by the ruling Umayyad Caliph Yazid I, and the outcry for revenge divided the early Islamic community. Today, there are differences in religious practice, traditions, and customs, often related to jurisprudence. Although all Muslim groups consider the Quran to be divine, Sunni and Shia have different opinions on hadith.

(and who said I wasn’t listening)  Apparently Turkey is fairly tolerant.

 

Whirling dervishes

These ladies with mobile phones are from Syria, not Turkey,

or maybe even from Vicki's tour group trying to get the local prices

Gerry thanked Vicki

 

Trivia Night promoted by Les

Les reckons if we put in four teams our chances of winning would be much improved.

Pity it doesn't actually work like that - the dog in the picture looks smarter than most of our team members.

BBQ this Saturday - set up at 9:00 at the Queen St Reservoir

Gerry re Golf Day - get out there and sell, sell, sell

Sergeant Ian left reeling at being given the last word after Vicki’s talk - but we think he may pay for it later (good thing he doesn’t read the Blog or Roger might have to pay up)