Dervish

Turning through mind and love; to the truth.

The whirling dervish show was something that I've been wanting to see for a long time. Being a fan of Hafez, Sufi-ism has always appealed to me. The dervishes believe that through spinning round, they are spinning towards the truth, to a higher state of mind, towards perfection and closer to God. All this stems from a yearning to want to be closer to God. Of course, that is just a brief summary of a very interesting philosophy and religious approach. More photos here.
Work has been good so far. I have not had to work late yet, and I am kind of getting used to going to bed early.

Pensive

Grandchild of Mehmet the Conqueror, Child of Ataturk;
Contemplates a bright but fragile future.

Snapped this little girl whilst we were wondering the back alleys of Sirince Village , being led by a little dog. More about that in another post. I think this girl is the cutest little Turk I've seen on the trip. Here is another photo of her, when she was fully aware of the camera. She has that dreamy look that only little kids have, the look that is lost the moment they become savvy to the ways of the world. I wonder what's on her mind.
Work starts tomorrow. In a way it is a good thing, at least there is some form of employment, but with it comes uncertainty. But I guess there will always be uncertainty in everything. Thus far the future seems bright, as bright as the light at the end of the tunnel. Besides, all futures are fragile. The fate of nations are no different from that of individuals. The dividing line is merely scale.

Sofya

A cat of Higher Wisdom. Most definately.

The resident cat of Aya Sofya, Istanbul. Back from my 3 weeks Turkish adventure and I have just barely scraped the surface. So much more to see, so much more to learn. Lycians, Lydians, Trojans, Romans, Greeks, Anatolians, Macedonians, Persians, Hittites, Ottoman, Mongols, Seljuks, more more more. So much more. The Turks are probably the friendliest people on earth, making it hard to believe that there have been 2 bomb blasts during my short stay in Turkey. What a shame. I'm totally exhausted after the long road home but I sampled one too many Turkish delights after dinner, which means I will be up all night. Oh well. Might be a good time to sort out the rest of the photos.

Sorted

Sorted into boxes of different sorts.

Yesterday's paper marked the end of my undergraduate life. I was expecting more of a fizz to the ending, like perhaps streamers and ballons cascading from the ceilling of the LT but alas, there were none. Not even the cursory speech by the invigilagtors wishing us all the best or setting us free. We simply trickled out of the LT, like it was just another day, not the last day. And perhaps that is how it should be, natural progression, a fuss free transition into the next stage of our lives. Dali was fascinated by drawers and for me, it is mailboxes that do the trick. A new address, shedding the old, Kent Ridge, Aarhus, BTC for Raffles Place, Sub Courts and what not. Time to relabel the boxes and oil the flap; clearing out whatever excess that has accumulated, to make way for the future excesses that we are bound to accumuate. A tinge of colour will surely taint our memories, enough to make them rosey. That is all that is required. That is how it should be.
To all those leaving for grad trips. Have a good one! Congratulations, class of 2007 on surviving law school. See you all in 3 weeks.