November | 2023 | John and Paula's Blog

We went with Leon and Julian to Boston for several days around Thanksgiving to explore history and see family. They were great travelling companions. The history included Plymouth, Lexington, Concord and the Freedom Trail in Boston. Julian is into robotics and was interested in MIT, so we spent a day there exploring the MIT Museum, Doc Edgerton’s Strobe Alley and the student activity, living and athletic facilities, joined by John’s roommate (1967-1969) Jesse and his wife Bonnie. We saw John’s nephew Scott and his sons Ryan and Alex at Dave & Busters and joined Paula’s family at Dan and Tina’s house in Shrewsbury for Thanksgiving dinner.

**At Plymouth, site of the first Thanksgiving in 1621, with Mayflower II in the background**

Click on any image below to view a slideshow of full-size images.

We travelled to Türkiye in November to participate in a global conference of 50Hz. power plant owners and operators, with attendees from 23 countries. We spent our time in the beautiful, historic city of Bursa, on the opposite side of the Sea of Marmara from Istanbul. It was the first capital of the Ottoman Empire in 1326 but does not get many international tourists — which was a good thing at that time of unsettling events not far away. We went two weeks without seeing another American.

**Maybe need to get a selfie-stick……..**

We spent the first part of our visit working with friends from many countries. Click on any image below to view a slideshow of full-size images.

And then we spent some quality time exploring the history and culture of Bursa, which had been an important city in the Greek Empire, the Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire before it became the first capital of the Ottoman Empire. It was on the ancient Silk Road from China across Central Asia to Europe, and already by the mid-6th century Bursa was known as a famous silk textile manufacturing center. Click on any image below to view a slideshow of full-size images.