New Lights for Igor

I changed the light tubes on Igor's terrarium today so his pad is all nice and shiny, bathed in beneficial UV light. He only goes there to sleep of course, I usually keep him loose in my room during the hot summer.

A Fire in Cihangir

An old building in Cihangir is burning down in a horrifying blaze, as seen from the other side of the Golden Horn. Another beautiful structure, gone forever.

Protests in Athens

When I was in Athens, I saw these huge protests against the ineptitude of the local government, who watched some of the city's last forests burn for six days without taking action. I can say these were the most peaceful and tear-gas-free demonstrations I've seen in the Greek capital for a long time.

High and Homeless

Poor guy, he was delirious on drugs and possibly homeless... Behind him you can see one of the ubiquitous mini-buses native to Istanbul.

Hotels Named After Countries

Would you rather stay at Hotel Sudan, in Athens?...

...or at the glorious Hotel Libya, in Istanbul? These two fine establishments once again prove that hotels named after messed-up countries... always charge by the hour.

I saw this strange millipede the previous night on my porch. It didn't look or act at all like the blunt, thick, darker ones I see everyday, so I took it inside for a quick photo-shoot.

Here, he is walking on the biblical landscape of my bed. Notice how its body tapers like a cone towards his head, and how he holds the first 5-6 pairs of his legs off the ground when walking.

Suddenly, he stopped as if something was wrong. Then, in a moment that will haunt me as long as I live, that thing turned his head completely backwards and started licking himself. I didn't know millipedes could do that!

Here is a close up of its eerily insect-like head as it cleans itself. (This reminds me of the Arthropod head problem.)

UPDATE!

Professor Zoltan Korsos of the Hungarian Natural History Museum has identified this strange millipede as a member of the orderCallipodida . Apparently, further identificiation is only possible through a microscopic dissection of the creature's copulatory legs. Köszönöm, Mr. Korsos!

KAMON BLUMBOMEN!

Blumbomen! Blumbomen! Blumbomen! After more than a month of non-stop work, the copies of my first album are ready for distribution! Click here to hear some of the songs!

Happy customers. Who are they? Meet Nektarios and Constantinos of the Vinyl Microstore in Athens!

We made these Blumbomen plushies to market my album. If you go to the store, Green Blumbomen can show you an exciting secret thing he hides in his pants!

Remember, Vinyl Microstore is at number 34 Didotou street, near Exarcheia, Athens! Grab your copy of the fabulous "Kamon Blumbomen" before they run out! The CD's have two songs and a special-edition poster you won't see on myspace!