Pergamon, Turkey

Sometimes I need a local guide to help me find my way around a new place. My tour guide was Bas, a Turkish Van Kedisi cat. Bas is typical of his clan with an all-white coat of fur and one blue eye and one light brown eye. He was full of energy and enjoyed being the center of attention. We explored the ancient city of Pergamon, which is now called Bergama, looking at all the ancient monuments which were once theaters, temples, a stadium and even a spa! There were beautiful pieces of art which had been carved on walls as well as 2, 300 year old columns which once held up the roofs of buildings. The tour had lots of hills and stairs to climb which made my poor paws sore. Bas took pity on me and we went to his cousin’s house. The Turkish people are very family oriented and love having company. Bas’s cousin made kebabs and served them with pilaf and pita bread. For dessert we had both kadayif, a sweet, crispy treat made with dough, nuts and lemon juice, and baklava, which is similar, but includes honey. I was stuffed! Purrs, Gulliver

I lost my passport!

I lost my passport! That is one of the worst things that can happen when you are traveling. I was enjoying a lovely spring break in Korea, but when I got to the airport, I couldn’t find my paperwork that shows when I arrived and that I was allowed into the country. The people were kind but firm, and made me go to the embassy to get a new passport. They took my paw prints and looked at my microchip. I was so ashamed. I didn’t have time to send any postcards, so you may see several at once. Purrs, Gulliver

Spring Break

For spring break my sister Sasha and I are going to Washington, DC. This is the capital of the United States, so we will have a tour of the White House and the Senate building. There is a lot of history here, so we are going to visit the Washington and Lincoln monuments and the Smithsonian, affectionately known as “the nation’s attic” because it has so many old treasures. There are actually 19 museums, nine research centers and the National Zoo as part of the Smithsonian. They collect everything from dinosaur bones to airplanes. Why keep a hundred year old octopus? So we can use it to compare to what an octopus looks like today and measure changes in size, diet and . It will take me more than one spring break to explore everything in the District of Columbia! Purrs, Gulliver

The Roaring Twenties

“The Roaring Twenties” was my favorite decade, reminisced my great-grandmother. She was talking about a time almost 100 years ago. “I was a Flapper with bobbed hair and short skirts who loved to party. Your namesake, Mr. G, taught me how to drive his brand new car. It had 3 gears plus reverse but no review mirror, no seatbelts, no air conditioning or heat, and certainly no radio in the car! We drove all the way to Long Beach, California to see the Pacific Southwest Exposition. We had only 3 tires blow out on the trip, and really thought we were the “Cat’s Meow”! Purrs, Gulliver

A full moon rising

Mom has “cabin fever” from being stuck inside away from her friends and usual activities. To try and cheer her up, I am going to show her the super moon on April 6^th. What is a super moon? It is a full moon which is closer to Earth than usual which makes it appear larger and more brilliant than usual. The moon’s orbit around the earth is not round, but oval, so the dates of full moons vary from month to month. There are only two super moons in 2020; one was last month on March 9^th, called a worm moon. Tuesday’s moon has a number of names – pink moon, sprouting grass moon, full fish moon and egg moon are a few of the names I found. Another moon to celebrate will be on October 31, and it is called a Blue Moon. These are rare moons, where two full moons appear in a single month, which happens every two and a half to three years. Having a full moon on Halloween is also uncommon, usually occurring every 19 years or so. Maybe I can even get mom to dance in the moonlight! Purrs, Gulliver