If anyone is wondering...

We made it home! I'm not still sitting on a beach in Turkey....even though that would be nice.

We are in Turkiye!

We've been in Turkey for 3 full days now....and wifi is very spotty. When we have had it half the time it doesn't work. It has been so relaxing! Yesterday we finally found Bitez beach, a sand beach with chairs and umbrellas. We are back today (I'm posting from Bitez). Tonight another a turkish meal. Trina has had about enough of ethnic food, but I want to have a few good Turkish meals yet. We ate 'american' food yesterday. It's not that she doesn't like the food...she just wants something ordinary.

That's all for now, Pics later.

Gule gule!

Off to Turkey!

This morning we got up early 6:30, and headed for Liszt Ferenc Airport....Trina and I in the microbus. We arrived, dropped the rental, checked in and headed for the Wizzair gates. Wizzair is uber-cheap, and had a definite westjet feel. And the planes are pink!

We left Budapest at 9:45, and arrived at Sabiha Gokcen Airport at about noon Istanbul time.

During our layover we had lunch at the Golden Arches. As I bit into my McTurko I heard a familiar sound...and Trina alerted me that there was a lady in the booth behind me at McD's CLIPPING HER TOENAILS!!!

We had a long layover, and flew to Bodrum on AtlasJet at about 7:30pm. 

Last day in Hungary! Hortobagy Nemzeti Park

Today we got up early-ish, had breakfast and headed straight for the park. We looked around then and chose to do the horse and wagon ride out into the park to see a few of the animals there. There are breeding programs to preserve some of the ancient Hungarian breeds; the mangalica pig, grey cattle, nonius horse, water buffalo, and racka sheep. What they failed to mention is that the your was  in German only. A kind German man (married to a racist lady with very inappropriate comments) did his best to translate for us. And he did a pretty good job!

Here are a few pics:

We had a delicious lunch at the Hortobagy Csarda, and then headed for Budapest. 

On Trina and my last evening in Budapest we all stayed near the opera house. We went to Cafe Bouchon for supper....and it was soooo delicious!!! It was a Hungarian Restaurant with French style cooking. 

Siya, Magyarorszag!

Mosonmagyarovar to Debrecen

We spent Wednesday morning with Tomi. He showed us around Mosonmagyarovar, and the. We had coffee together before heading for Debrecen via the Szechenyi Castle. It was really interesting looking at the horses at the castle again. We also drove right by the Estherhaszy Castle at Fertod, but didn't have time to go through. 

It was a long drive from east to west, we finally arrived on Debrecen about 8:15. It was a long tiring day. Driving on the M1 and M3. Our Opel microbus can go! 

No pics today. 

Mosonmagyarovar and Janossomorja

On Tuesday we had our very own Hungarian tour guide - Tamas, our cousin. He is Grandma Laszlo's great, great nephew. 

We had breakfast and picked up Tomi. He showed us around cousin Gyula's farm (which was also Uncle Gyula Goncz's farm, he was Grandma Laszlo's brother). We toured Imre's farm, went to Nyul and Pannonhalma, and finished the evening with supper at Ili's. For supper we also met up with Peter, Adrienn, and Marci...Marci is the cutest little guy with huge brown eyes! Marci, Gavin and Will are 4th cousins. 

Uncle Gyula's farm:

From the Abbey at Pannonhalma:

After supper we went to visit cousin Gyula and his wife Marika. They live a few kilometres from Ili in Jannosomorja. That story is one best old in person...lets just say, at one point I asked Trina "am I breathing fire?"...I'll tell you the story some time.

And that was Tuesday!

Keszthely to Sopron

Mom and i got up early to go and see the lake before we hit the road...it was calm, there were a few local fishermen and a swans on the lake.

We left about 9:30 am for Sopron...but not before having McReggelli or breakfast! I think that loosely translates as McMorning...

En route we stopped at a Spar grocery store, a graveyard, to take pictures of the grey cattle, an at a Tesco department store. After we arrived we had a nice lunch, met up with Zsolt and Katalin again, and they showed us around the old town in Sopron. A few of us climbed the old fire tower - what a view! There are lithograph prints back to the 1000s (a time when this was part of the Roman Empire) showing this tower...it is old.