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Blog entry

An Ancient Bee Googled its way to Me

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Tue, 12/04/2012 - 9:49pm in artisan pendants, commission, metal clay, travel, Turkey | 7 comments

A Tulip by any other Name would Look as Bright

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Mon, 05/09/2011 - 11:00am in artisan necklaces, nature inspired, travel, Turkey | 4 comments

I started thinking about this necklace months ago...

Inspiration Came to Me in a Whirl

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Sat, 05/07/2011 - 10:12pm in artisan necklaces, travel, Turkey | 3 comments

Ideas for jewelry have been percolating within this ole brain of mine both consciously and unconsciously ever since we visited Turkey. There was so much visual inspiration to take in that I've allowed it to settle before sketching and designing.

Talking Turkey for the Last Time

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Fri, 02/11/2011 - 6:00pm in food, Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey

or should I add ... until next time? Kusadasi was our final Turkish port. It was where we got off to visit Ephesus, where we experienced more Turkish hospitality at the restaurant where we stopped for lunch with recommendations for beer and an unanticipated plethora of spiced dishes to sink our bread and teeth in

It's a Puzzle - Restoring the Terrace Houses of Ephesus

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Tue, 02/01/2011 - 2:00pm in inspiration, Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey | 2 comments

Returning to our tour of Ephesus...

There's an area at Ephesus that is being restored with the help of the Austrian government. It's the Terrace Houses where the wealthy Romans would've lived within the city. Ephesus was the second largest city in the Roman Empire, behind Rome, with a population of 250,000. At the time these were the largest cities in the world!

The restoration required is tremendous due to the amount of time that has passe

Ephesus! ... bless you... gesundheit...

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Fri, 01/21/2011 - 12:56am in inspiration, Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey | 5 comments

Although I always thought I'd some day arrive on the continent of Asia traveling west from the U.S., my first steps in Asia were actually from the East and maybe that's exactly how it was meant to be.

Wordless Wednesday

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Wed, 01/19/2011 - 11:37pm in Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey, Wordless Wednesday | 2 comments

Talented Turks' Treasuries

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Fri, 01/07/2011 - 10:03pm in Etsy, Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey | 1 comment

I don't know if I've had a heightened awareness of Turkey or what, but I've found over the last few months that a great percentage of new artists I favorite on Etsy are living in Istanbul and other parts of Turkey. I'm just amazed at the talent and their cool creations! Here are a couple of Treasuries I created with just artists from Turkey. What do you think?

Leaving Istanbul with a Wonderful Taste in our Mouths

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Thu, 01/06/2011 - 1:00am in food, Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey

Fresh squeezed pomegranite juice available throughout city.

For those following my fabulous journey from Istanbul to Barcelona I'm back to Istanbul with a few parting street scene shots before we board our cruise ship.

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire.

Topkapi Palace Patterns - Turkish Delight

Posted by Janet Bocciardi on Thu, 12/16/2010 - 5:58pm in inspiration, Mediterranean Cruise, travel, Turkey

Have you heard of Turkish Delights? For those in the states, they're sort of like Applets and Cotlets, but can be a whole lot better! Our hotel gave us a mini-box of them - one was pistachio, can't remember the other flavor, but it was delicious as well. The pistachio one was amazing. Soft with a dusting of sugar and such flavor! Sort of like a Jelly Belly kapow compared to a jelly bean. Wonder if there's a place to get the real ones here. Anyone?