Breaking up
Breaking up is hard to do. We've had an epic eight days together. First, we were acquaintances, assembled half way around the world by some form of fate. Then, we did everything together - ate, drank, slept (but not very much), talked, walked, flew, rode in taxis and buses, made new friends, took (lots of) pictures, bought pottery, roamed caves, climbed rocks, used our imagination, stopped to smell the roses, listened to music, played music, smoked cigars and a hookah, ... oh yes, and then there was the bra incident. But more on that later.
Now, just as fast as we bonded, it's time to go our separate ways. Parting company with good company is a part of life, but knowing that doesn't always make it easier. This isn't the first time I've had to do it, and it won't be the last. Though the end is bittersweet, the priceless memories make it all worth it.
Later, I'll tell the rest of the story of the big adventure eight of us went on during our epic eight days together. First, I have to get through organizing the pictures. We took over 1700 pictures and videos all together on a 2-day tour of Cappadocia and narrowing it down is hard work, hence the delay in posting them and writing about it all. There were just under 400 pictures in the first cut and I'm sure I can get it under 300, but I'm not sure how much more I can cut. The casual observer might only be interested in a few of them, but they tell stories so dense and rich I can't leave any out even if they're only important to me.
As a geeky side bar, there have been more technological challenges in organizing that much material than I originally anticipated. We erred in failing to synchronize the clocks in our cameras which made putting all of the pictures together harder. I finally found an 'elegant' solution to fixing all the timestamps so I could merge the good stuff all in one place.
Part of the problem was that everyone took fantastic pictures. There were at least one or two big winners from each photographer, some for their composition, some for the people or scenery, some just for capturing a magical moment. I couldn't very well just use my own pictures as I usually do, so I'm taking the extra time to sort them all out before I have them posted somewhere.
All that to say, I've had an eventful new year so far. Now, it's back to the 'ordinary' grind. I'm on my way to Bahrain for a trip to Rota and have been extended past that. I don't yet know when I'll be home... the adventure continues...
V-
Now, just as fast as we bonded, it's time to go our separate ways. Parting company with good company is a part of life, but knowing that doesn't always make it easier. This isn't the first time I've had to do it, and it won't be the last. Though the end is bittersweet, the priceless memories make it all worth it.
Later, I'll tell the rest of the story of the big adventure eight of us went on during our epic eight days together. First, I have to get through organizing the pictures. We took over 1700 pictures and videos all together on a 2-day tour of Cappadocia and narrowing it down is hard work, hence the delay in posting them and writing about it all. There were just under 400 pictures in the first cut and I'm sure I can get it under 300, but I'm not sure how much more I can cut. The casual observer might only be interested in a few of them, but they tell stories so dense and rich I can't leave any out even if they're only important to me.
As a geeky side bar, there have been more technological challenges in organizing that much material than I originally anticipated. We erred in failing to synchronize the clocks in our cameras which made putting all of the pictures together harder. I finally found an 'elegant' solution to fixing all the timestamps so I could merge the good stuff all in one place.
Part of the problem was that everyone took fantastic pictures. There were at least one or two big winners from each photographer, some for their composition, some for the people or scenery, some just for capturing a magical moment. I couldn't very well just use my own pictures as I usually do, so I'm taking the extra time to sort them all out before I have them posted somewhere.
All that to say, I've had an eventful new year so far. Now, it's back to the 'ordinary' grind. I'm on my way to Bahrain for a trip to Rota and have been extended past that. I don't yet know when I'll be home... the adventure continues...
V-