Image via Wikipedia

While I was in Istanbul two weeks ago, I was walking along a street lined by a large rock wall. Much to my delight, I saw that someone had created a series of bird houses for the pigeons that were living in the holes in the wall. Not only that, each pigeon house was inscribed with the name of the pigeon who lived inside. It was pretty much the cutest thing I saw in Istanbul!



...

Final post from London and the Globe. These shots are from the end of the performance of As You Like It. Because it was the final performance of the season, they had a special ending.

At the intermission, the audience members nearest the stage were handed pink and yellow roses. Later, at the end of the performance, the entire cast did their jig / curtain call as usual, before returning to stage with their own assortment of red and white roses.

The Artistic Director gave a speech, thanking all the pertinent people and summing up the season. Then, the actors wanted to say "thank you" to the audience by throwing roses at them.


Which then in turn, turned into a rose war with roses flying between audience members and stage actors. It was such a fun, charming way to end a season. The ending definitely made the performance memorable: As You Like It was my favorite of the three Globe productions I saw this summer.

I think this actor was excited that his rose hit the desired target!

Image by Andrew Hux via Flickr

I spent a lot of time in Shakespeare's Globe over my weekend in London. As most of you know, there is a reconstruction of Shakespeare's Globe on London's Bankside. The season runs during the summer months and ends in October (I was there the last weekend), since the theater is open-air!

Here's a shot of me at the Globe, taken during a tour of the theater. I look a little freaky, but it was the only picture I had taken of me all weekend, so I'll put it on.

I'm going to be jumping back and forth chronologically for the next few posts. I have pictures to share from my trip to that small village (with the fig ladies), my weekend in London and my time in Istanbul.

First, London. It was a great time to visit, Fall was in full season and it was a nice change from the continuing 30+ heat of Tarsus. However, I of course, didn't pack the right clothes and ended up needing to buy a new winter coat!

I spent the weekend focusing on Shakespeare. Seeing the plays, going to the museum, doing the tour, etc. London is overwhelming for me, because there are so many different aspects and parts I want to explore or revisit. One weekend is woefully inadequate.

So all my pictures from the weekend of Shakespeare-related except these two.

Fall at St. Paul's Cathedral.


And this photo, which perhaps needs an introduction. This is a man standing on top of the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square. This is a continuing art installation, called One & Other. The artist did a lottery for any individuals interested in participating. From 35,000 applicants, 2400 people were chosen. They were each given a one-hour period of time over 100 days. So the Plinth was continually occupied by a chain of 'normal' people doing whatever they wanted. It was a fascinating idea and I enjoyed reading about it.

This man was on the plinth when I passed by on the bus. Yes, he's naked. He was spraying white paint on himself and doing something with an orange balloon. What he was doing might not be considered art, but as a small part of a larger whole, it's quite incredible.