6th July 2006

96. We were out walking and Ernest must have his picture taken here. Did you notice? As Sew Hong was taking a picture of Ernest, someone else was taking a picture of us!

97, 98 & 99.  Having lunch. A sampling of what we had for our meals. It usually starts with bread and salad (tomato and cucumber are the staples) then soup before the main dish. For dessert, it was usually watermelon & honeydew. It was quite delicious in the beginning until, as the saying goes, too much of a good thing is... I was already dying for a nice plate of nasi lemak by the 3rd day! Fried koay teow... Curry laksa... umm yum yum yummy...

100. Taken in front of the Cultural Office

101. This is the front of the hotel that we stayed in.

102 & 103. In the night was Duo Lisme's performance - Frank Lamm & Peter Thissen.

Here we are with sisters Galina Vale and Victoria Leteno. The Russian sisters were quite a hit with the 'audience' - well... I had a difficult time deciding if I should comment on this... I guess I should. This is only my opinion and it may not mean much but nevertheless.... Showmanship in the entertainment industry is of utmost importance, I must admit, and Galina takes us there! The first photo shows 'style' and the second, she was showing off her agility in her left-hand ligado playing (I guess she's the only person who can play with her left-hand fingers only!). The third shows aplomb - she whisked herself off her seat as soon as she finished the last chord... wow! And did you notice her mask!? She changed masks not once but twice!

Point: Is this a concert or a big top performance? Maybe a gymnastics show. Are we musicians of the highest order or not? Is art form purely entertainment? What about a sense of good taste? Mind you, this woman can play fast and I mean real fast. But...should it be at the expense of tidiness and clarity? Poor tone marks her playing - you name it and it's found in her playing - buzzes, muffled notes, rattling sounds, squeaks, and .... a blurrrr.

108 & 109.  Galina is superb on her violin and was ever willing to play for us. Tonight was the Lot Lorien's turn in the midnight concert.

110 & 111. Followed by Adam Khan who played on another Kwakel that I tested out later but... Matthew's enthusiasm to play was so great that I had to fight with him from taking the guitar away from me! But, alas! nice guy that I am, I gave in to him! He might have been a little drunk as can be seen by the can of beer beside his chair.(4.) Well, I still had a go at Adam's Kwakel later on...

7th July 2006

112. Is this a new band? They are all in black. Outside, in the garden of the Twin Houses Hotel.

113. We were to have lunch here at the Twin Houses and I was hoping for something different after having the same kind of meal every day BUT guess what!? The hotel we stayed in and this hotel are under the same management. When I looked into the kitchen, I saw the same nice English-speaking chef with the same waiters...! I am not saying the food isn't good but too much of a good thing is... I am also an organizer (of our Guitar Camps) so I do understand the restraints an organizer faces... 

114. Simon with Oner.

115. Here's a group of us having a drink in this very nice shop.

116. Oner took us to his music school after the drink. It was on the top floor and we had quite a bit of exercise climbing up 4 flights of stairs, especially for someone like me who is totally out of form. I was told that after last year's festival, there was an enrolment of 200 new guitar students! I hope that our presence here this year would help create that kind of enthusiasm and that there would be an enrolment that is twice last year's figure.

117. Finally, we come to a closing night's concert. The performers for the night were presented before their performance. There were six of them. I should like to comment on this (I hope that my comments would be taken constructively as they are not made with bad intent). I understand (I hope!) the purpose of having six performers together for the concert - which is I guess to create a climax to the festival. Well, it is a waste to have professional performers playing 20 minutes each as this does not showcase their ability. If they were to play full-length concerts, can you imagine how long that would take? If the audience isn't tired, the performers would be as they wait their turn. A good alternative would be to have two performers, one for each half. But the best arrangement, I feel, would be to hold two concerts in a day at different times - maybe, one at 4 or 5 p.m. and another at 8 p.m. It really won't do any good to have two concerts at the same time; we really wouldn't want the audience to have to make a choice as to which concert to attend especially if the turnout for the concerts would be affected. I am sure that these considerations would be taken into account for next year's festival. Masterclasses, workshops and seminars would be beneficial to the students of any festival. That would make full use of the invited performers who are ever ready to share their expertise. This in turn helps to create an environment of learning that would raise a student's ability and understanding to international standards.

118. Isabelle Heroux started off the night.

119. Matthew MacAlister followed as the next performer

120. William Simcoe ended the first half.

121. Fridrik Ludviksson started the next half. A late entry to the programme, he was rather out of place here as he wasn't a classical guitarist in the true sense of the word (no offence please as I am only stating a fact).

122. Following this, Adam Khan made his appearance.

123. The honour of closing the festival fell on Jens Bang Rasmussen. Finally, the festival ended, with the performers and the participants who were not performing exhausted and hungry. Although the organizers were game to carry on by calling on the previous nights performers to go on stage and play - it was close to midnight and we were tired and hungry...

8th July 2006

124. We were supposed to leave Ordu on the 9th but decided that if we did not see Istanbul we would probably regret it. So, even after a very late night we still managed to wake up early (5.30 a.m.) and left Ordu for a two-hour bus journey to Trabzon to catch our flight to Istanbul (another two hours).

125. Finally arriving at Istanbul (Ataturk International Airport) - Sew Hong beside the bus that took us to town.

126. This archway is taken from within the bus as we made our way to the city center.

127. KLGE II's photo taken by Jens Rasmussen  -  sight-seeing Istanbul.

There were lots of photos of these in the ancient buildings -

128 & 129.The Virgin and Child

130 & 131. Jesus Christ enthroned.

132

133

134

132. One of the many palaces (I presume) around.

133. A picture showing the Byzantine Empire.

134. This was what we were wanting to see - belly dancing! Jens, Isabelle, Ernest, Sew Hong and I paid US$35 for this show! and we got only ten minutes of it. Although she was good, we felt ripped off as the rest of the night was filled with folk singing and dancing and a play. We certainly were not pleased when a guy came on to entertain us with his Broadway style of singing and saying 'hi' in as many languages as he could think of. We walked out and complained to the management but to no avail.

9th July 2006

135

136

137

135. Our final breakfast in Turkey.

136. In Artaturk International Airport waiting for our departure. Took this photo with the shopkeeper who insisted on us holding the flags. He saw our guitars as we were not checked in yet - we didn't want to miss our flight, so we were very early. Guess what? He requested for my help to tune his guitar hanging in the shop. Obviously, ever obliging, I did.

137. With sadness that was tinged with happiness at the thought of seeing our loved ones soon,  we made our way to the boarding gate. Goodbye Turkey, Hello Malaysia... here we are, home at last...