Saracen Heart

Şerbet: Dried fruit, tea, herbs, and/or spices in any combination imaginable, concentrated into a syrup, and ideally served over shaved ...

The International Olympic Committee is in the Turkish news right now: Istanbul; 27 March 2013: The IOC Evaluation Commission concluded i...

I'm in the middle of a transition right now, so instead of my usual research, how about a clip about modern Istanbul? The short feature...

The Ottoman calligraphy across the lintel reads: "Capital City Murder Jail", but I'd pay 370 Euros to stay for a night, if...

Istanbul I love when Istanbul gets spotlighted in a film, and this fall, the city is the star in several movies. The streets have been b...

Istanbul Arts and Culture Festival Istanbul International Arts and Culture Festival is a fascinating and unique cultural experience br...

via hurriyetdailynews.com Last week's Hurriyet Daily News headlines read: Storms Paralyze Life Across Turkey . Even CNN picked up ...

Cercis Siliquastrum in Istanbul Many blogger friends of mine are taking a break this month while friends go through the A-Z blog challen...

Yarimburgaz Cave  - TAY Project As I was writing Burnt Amber , I had a cave in mind for a key location. Plenty of mythology pointed to t...

hurriyetdailynews.com As a writer, it's good practice to experience the things I write about, whenever possible. Research only takes...

wikipedia Throughout Turkey, there are beautiful Ottoman era fountains, called çeşme. Marble or mosaic tile fountains are named after p...

True to Ezio's previous adventures, there are plenty of haystacks to hide in throughout Assassin's Creed - Revelations . True to I...

Lezzetin Izinde Tis the season to roast some chestnuts on an open fire. Have you ever done it though? I had to go clear across the world...

image via wikipedia.com The other day I was reading about Executive Producer Grant Scharbo. He just finished filming an episode of  MISS...

image via evimistanbul.com I read lots of stuff about Turkey. Lots. Of. Stuff. Sometimes I come across things I don't understand. Ma...

image via hayalleme.com This past summer, I was swarmed by shiny new ideas, distracting me like fireflies. I suppose that's a goo...

Battle scenes are not something that come to me naturally, so I read. I watch. I learn. Last week, a new trailer was released for Assass...

via wowTurkey.com That's not Gulliver and this is not the land of the Lilliputians. Just thought I'd clear that up right now. ...

I've got house guests this week, so here's a clip of Istanbul while I'm entertaining.

via hurriyetdailynews.com I've heard of the Sirocco and even used the Mistral in one of my chapters. It got me to thinking about the ...