POTD: Whirling Dervishes

"Within ancient walls
A sacred dance fills the room.
Faith in motion swirls."

— h/t ChatGPT

From 2024 05 13 Konya

Today's photo-of-the-day is from a caravanserai between Cappadocia and Konya in central Turkey. A caravanserai is an ancient roadside inn where travelers (caravaners) could rest and recover from the day's journey. This particular one is now used as a religious center that opens its doors for tourists to witness the sacred dance and prayer ritual known as the sema, performed by whirling dervishes, members of a Sufi Muslim religious order founded in the 13th century by Rumi, a Persian poet who believed that dance and music are a path to enlightenment. Accordingly, the dance and music are a religious ritual, not a "show". The audience doesn't clap. It's an altogether calming and moving experience.

Bonus photos after the jump.

POTD: Balloon Ride over Cappadocia

"Balloons in the sky,
Over rocks and valleys wide,
Soaring at sunrise."

— h/t ChatGPT

From 2024 05 11 Cappadocia

Today's photo-of-the-day is from Cappadocia, a historical region in central Turkey. It is a tourist draw for its natural wonders. A highlight of any tour is a hot air balloon ride at dawn over the other-worldly landscape. What a view. We were lucky not to miss it. We were in Cappadocia for three mornings. On the first, our scheduled balloon ascent was canceled because of wind — there wasn't enough of it. On the second morning, our rescheduled ascent was canceled because of rain. On the third morning, our departure from Cappadocia delayed to give us one final chance to ascend, everything worked out for a glorious balloon ride.

Bonus photos after the jump.

Interior Chinatown (TV 2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

Interior Chinatown (TV 2024): Play within a play. A waiter in a Chinese restaurant who is tired of always playing a background character in TV shows finds the wall between TV and real life breaking down. Great concept for satirizing how TV and society treat ethnic characters. B-

Hulu

A Man on the Inside (TV 2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

A Man on the Inside (TV 2024): Ted Danson stars as a recent widower who takes up a new hobby by going undercover in a retirement home to investigate a series of thefts. The mystery isn't the point here. Neither is the comedy. It's the relationships he forms. A sensitive treatment of aging. Seniors will like it. B+

Netflix

What Did We (Not) Learn from the Boil Water Notice

Source: 5 NBC DFW.

Richardson City Manager Don Magner read a memorandum to the City Council on December 16 titled "Boil Water Notice: Summary of Findings and Recommendations." I have three takeaways:

1. To his credit, Magner admitted that individuals on City Staff made errors in judgment on the day of the event and he disciplined four individuals.
2. Magner failed to assign blame for all of the "gaps in training and operational oversight" that contributed to the need for a BWN.
3. There is still a five hour period in the timeline that deserves more investigation.