BYZANTINE MOON
The cool Cafe Marina in the Apollo Temple ruin—— This magnificent stone ruin was a monastery in Medieval times, likely built on foundations of the Temple of Apollo. I spent a lot of time there.
WORTH IT
Tonight I looked at Üstün’s pictures of me on the last day of my old life, 1000 years (3 weeks) ago. I saw a lovely woman in a garden, safe and adored. Feeling blue, I walked out into a blackout here in Side & wandered to the Temple of Apollo. I walked into a wall of darkness. Then, gradually I saw it as it looked centuries ago… It was already breath-taking, but then the lasers from the disco swept across the sky behind it and I knew why I’m here. The garden was beautiful, safe and small. This is spectacular- bizarre- beautiful with an element of terror. It’s soul-satisfying. It’s my birthright. Here, my life is elastic. I decide how big it is to be—— Words of bravado. I’ve lived by them for twenty-one years.
HANGING OUT
“Hello Lady, are you looking for me?” God, no. —- [Linwood’s autograph]
LIKE A GIFT
Ihan / Ayhan — Came out of Cafe Marina into the Temple of Apollo ruin & there was Mr Orange Kitty like a gift——
GENGIZ AT SUR
Cengiz Aygöran — Owner of Sur Restaurant & Motel — 22 June ’00——
AYHAN AT KLEOPATRA
23 June ’00—— Ayhan who worked at Hotel Kleopatra later became a supportive friend.
OXYD
Live old cypresses, hi-tech lighting, overblown Vegas architecture & the ubiquitous Marilyn, Elvis &… Yul Brenner? — The fabulously surreal Oxyd Disco in Side — 23 June ’00-——
BEACH IN THE MORNING
Mediterranean water looks like pleated air — The beach at Kleopatra in the morning — 23 June ’00—— In those times people sunbathed topless where now we see many burkinis.
NIZAM SMOKING
…As the sun goes down — 23 June ’00 — 4 nice Brits – We sat for a pleasant hour of English – Roy – Linda – Colin & wife——
SCREAM IN THE NIGHT
I had never heard screaming like this And there in the only lit window was a tableau: one woman rocking another forward in the bed wiping her brow. I realized I was witnessing a childbirth — Nizam — Murat — Rahmi — Hayri — 24 June ’00 —- The simple purchase of a telephone card is a cheery ritual involving chai drinking & 3 portraits—— All these guys dismissed my childbirth story as the ravings of an ignorant foreigner but that’s what I saw.
STREETSONG
Cool watermelon on a hot night — Singing in Kurdish — Sitting in the street with a bunch of hard cases listening to lovely oud music — He thought he was not handsome – A voice & music of angels — 24 June ’00——
MONA LISA HOUSE
With Gabriela – We drove up into the mountains with her Turkish friends & swam in the icy stream — A buddy of Gabriela’s — Gabriela: “I am happy because in 500 years they will look at this and say ‘Mona Lisa.’ — Wooden cross-pieces are to distribute stress — Very old rock Turkish house built with no mortar between the stones, smothered in grapevines, safe in the buzzing heat—— These centuries-old rural houses were mostly built by Anatolian Greeks.
NIGHT TALK
24 June ’00 — Cengiz – Yilmaz – Sad Mehmet lost his wife in the earthquake—— I love this drawing. The conversants, market & tree were drawn from life. The stars were added later on the computer, in the hospital, with a mouse on a tiny computer screen and boy, are they jagged. They don’t appear in the original. Trust me, this is much better, because it’s how it really looked.