Well, gang, I'm back from my sojourn in " Chicken " as my 2 year old granddaughter calls it...
Bereft of hundreds of US greenbacks, sicker than a trash eating dog and barely able to clear my in-box of the 2000 viagra, cheap watches and cut rate stocks offers..

I'm sipping extra-strenght Neocitran [ lemon flavoured hot drinks with Vodka seems to be a good potion ] and I'm crawling back beneath the covers until the world stops spinning so fast..

Turkey is one fascinating place but I could do without the 9 planes in 10 days thing...

later dudes and dudettes, I got to go an caress the procelain god

Welcome BACK! Sounds like you drank the water over there? Shoulda stuck to bottled beer!

Gunny:

wasn't the water.. it was Raki - local potent brew.. clear alcoholic drink that turns milky when water is added.. 48% alcohol...it was ' impolite ' to turn down an offer from the locals.

Should have stuck to apple tea, but the kebabs didn't taste ' right' without the chaser...

Raki! Thats a vile concoction they only break out for visitors. Bet they all had a good laff after you left! Knowing the Turks, they broke out the good stuff later....Dewar's, Wild Turkey and the like.

Gunny:
after you realize the 'goat piss' taste is annisette/licorice, it really was quite a buzz.. much better than the stuff they were serving in Paris on the way back.. something called Ricards which came in a little brandy-type glass and was mixed with organge juice but still had the licorice smell [ note: not aroma ]... Thankfully the hotel stocked Heineken...

let's just say a fun time was had by all and I didn't require an ' official visit' to the Gendarma..LOL

P.S. : I have enough Turkish Delight to open my onw outlet BTW...