Beautiful Houses

Destination #8:  More Cappadocia

The village of Derinkuyu itself is underwhelming but it holds many surprises.  A name meaning deep well is a first clue.  Then a narrow tunnel 60 feet deep into the bowels of the earth is the second.  This expansive underground city – 8 levels of stables, chapels, storage rooms, wells and living spaces – is all carved into the soft “tuff” rock.  Again there was little time to linger; most of us were happy to retrace our steps up and out of that rather forbidding atmosphere.  We couldn’t imagine how life must have been (& smelled) back in the days of occupancy when 20,000 people shared these tiny spaces.  And worse, there was no electrical lighting! 

Light is a bit of an issue too, even for modern cameras

Our final stop for the day was the Disneyesque kale in Uchisar.  This tall cone-shaped rock, riddled with tunnels and steps, is topped by a Byzantine fortress, albeit rather a small one.  The view from the top however is a must do.  The sweeping views over the Cappadocian valleys made every single step up to the top worthwhile….

View of Uchisar's kale from below

View over Cappadocia Valley & Mt Erciyes (snow capped)
in background from the top of the kale in Uchisar

Our second day in Goreme was spent doing crafty things.  Firstly, we had an introduction to the mysteries of Turkish (& other) carpets.  The industry is well known for its “strong-arm selling tactics” (not only in Turkey), so our lesson from Kiwi Ruth (Tribal Collections) proved most interesting.  Mind you, it was rather hard to concentrate as lush carpet after lush carpet was swept at our feet for inspection.  The Cap’n sweated and fingered his worry beads.  Luckily GS had very little room left in her 20kg luggage allowance so he worried needlessly…almost. 

Ruth, oh so happy at work

From weaving to pottery, we bussed into Avanos to visit the workshop and gallery of world famous pottery master, Mr “Einstein” Galip.  Avanos is famous for its red clay and potters have been working the clay deposits for centuries.  Following a quick pottery making demo on traditional wooden kickwheels, we were herded into the underground gallery to view some rather stunning pieces of work, mostly in a traditional style.  Now the Cap’n really started having palpitations, not eased in the slightest by frenzied worry bead massaging. 

OK, so no pottery, but perhaps GS might sneak one of these birdhouses into our luggage

Back in Goreme, GS shopped for last minute goodies while the Cap’n, ever practical, had a haircut and Turkish massage. Too soon it was time to pack and get ready for our overnight bus trip back to Istanbul.  Yes folks, a 12 hour bus trip, with dark ages wifi connectivity and shocking seats.  But we made it!  Debussing at Harem Otogar, then running for a ferry to Eminonu (near to our hotel) made for a quick trip farewell to our friendly fellow travellers.  It had been a wonderful introduction to Turkey and some of the experiences we had were exceptional.

Spoilt for choice (carpets, not cars! )

Beautiful Horses

Destination #8: Cappadocia

Ballooning is a must do to really understand the landscape

Cappadocia is one of those “must see” places in Turkey.  We arrived in Goreme with enough daylight to agree that the surroundings (rock formations and cave dwellings) were truly amazing.  Of course, it is also the land of tourist opportunity, so after arriving at a punishing schedule (not only for us but also our guide) we set off to familiarise ourselves with the town.  It really wasn’t that difficult, the town is not that big, but as always acres of tribal carpets, glinting silver jewellery and colourful souvenirs lined every street making it difficult to get our bearings. Well, maybe not the Cap’n…. But make it back to our hotel we must; we had a hot date with a balloon pilot early next morning.

This was a big balloon to fill

Yes, even the ageing Motleys signed up for this opportunity, never having drifted noiselessly through the skies at daybreak.  The experience was amazing!  We were speechless, which is just as well.  Others in our basket held a school reunion of sorts, which let us to wonder how much of this incredible scenery they really took in.  Back on the ground we toasted our flight with Turkish champagne (lemon fizz), posed for photos with the pilot & ground crew then headed back to our hotel in time for breakfast.

Clearly, we were not alone...

Who was nervous?  Just a little chilly up there in the heavens

Back on earth, our next challenge was a walking tour of, the Goreme Open Air Museum, a large collection of rock-cut churches, chapels and monasteries now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  As always, it is best to see these places early before the serious crowd swell sets in.  We initially visited two chapels, St Basil and then Apple Church.  The 11&12 c frescoes were amazing…(have we used amazing enough?).  Monks & hermits (of the Christian variety) inhabited the area as early as the 4 c AD. 

Some of the older cave homes

We then were given some free time to explore this warren of highly decorated caves.  We chose to see the Dark Church, a fairly recent & expensive renovation has revealed some wonderful frescoes – needless to say, no photos allowed. There was time for a quick visit to the Snake Chapel before taking in a pomegranate juice to sustain us as we walked back down to see the larger Buckle Church. 

Taking photos was not allowed inside the churches.
This one of the Dark Church is sourced gratefully from Wiki

Fact File: Dragons. St George features regularly in these artworks and it seems that the snake may have also been a dragon.  Local legend has it that St George slayed the dragon on nearby Mt Erciyes (Mt Argeus – a snow-capped volcano). 

The Open Air Museum is one of those places that you just want to linger but our trusty bus awaited and off to Derinkuyu we sped. 

(By now, you will have noticed that our photos are not up to their usual standard.  Mr Canon was failing and fading fast.  Sadly we didn't realise the extent of his meltdown until we uploaded photos onto the computer (and put our reading glasses on!) at the end of our trip. Just goes to show that a cheap back-up camera is not a bad option. It seems that when digital cameras go, they go fast...  Now, can I just do that 2 week tour again? )

Felted Caps & Turbans

Destination #7: Konya

Mevlana Museum

Having survived a long day on the bus, we welcomed Konya despite it being a dry town (groan!).  The city is best known for its Seljuk connections, having once been the capital of the Sultanate of Rum (Rome) 1150 - 1300.  We at least had the morning to explore the Mevlana Museum, resting place  of the founder of the Whirling Dervish Sect, Celaleddin Rumi (d. 1273). 

The museum, also a shrine to Rumi, consists of the ceremonial hall, various tombs and graves, a lodge with rooms displaying activities of the order’s daily life and a mosque.  These magnificent buildings were added to over a period of time by Ottoman sultans and with other buildings in the area constitute a “museum” of Seljuk architecture – a mix of Persian, Byzantine & Turkish styles.  The turquoise tiling is quite beautiful.

Silvia shows us how "easy" felting is.... GS feels somewhat differently!

We were also lucky enough to have time to visit the Ikonium felting studio.  Felting is a traditional craft that has existed in Mevlana since Seljuk times.  The Sufi sect wears felt caps (sikke) and the workshop we visited belonged to the turban master.  He and his family have over generations, made the sikke we saw in the Museum.  His wife, artist Silvia Ines Garoselli (Rabia Girgic) gave us a demonstration of the finer art of felting.  She has branched out and is doing a more modern form of the art.  Needless to say, many of us left with a few packages under our arms – her work was stunning!

A sikke on the block

Once we had been rounded up and put back on that bus…we drove on across a vast grassy steppe, for our last destination, Goreme.  Not however, before taking a well-earned rest at the Sultanhani (1229), a huge, well preserved caravanserai, a camel staging post along a long-time established trade route.  With only a few tourists walking in the grounds of this delightful building, we were able to imagine how life was for travelling traders, although I think we would have preferred rather more to see their loads of silks, carpets and spices.

 

 

Three views of Sultanhani, 1229

Fact File: Amazing Digs - Çatalhöyük.  Not included in our tour, but not far from Konya, a British archaeologist discovered, in 1958, one of the world’s oldest Neolithic human communities, Çatalhöyük.  Some 150 mud-brick houses, home to a community of about 10,000 people, have been excavated along with painted murals, shrines, figurines and various other artefacts dating from 6800 BC.  The site is generally not open to visitors (unless you have an official museum guide) and the finds are mostly housed in Ankara’s Museum of Anatolian Civilisations.  

Konya was also central in the Hittite story.  Some 4000 years ago it was known to them as Kuwanna.  The Egyptians are said to have feared these fierce warriors.  A written Peace Treaty (1259 BC) between the two countries is on display in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum. 

Turtle Power

Destination #6: Kas

Scenic coastal views along the highway into Kas.  Can we live here?

After "Chilling Out" in rural Kayakoy, our next stop was the laidback seaside resort of Kas.  We were told to expect a mix of expats and local “funky” Turks so it was no surprise that some of our restaurant owners lived up to this reputation.  GS was served “magic” mushrooms – perhaps she had on her hippy era gear that day? Anyway, they were magic in name only; just the chef adding an odd touch of humour to his menu...

The village has no beach but the waters are deep and warm, so most waterside hotels and restaurants have decks.  Our pansion was further up the hill, compensating for lack of waterfront, with great views over the bay. 

View from our balcony

We were disappointed not to be doing an overnight gulet trip (the seasons had changed and there was a definite chill in the air), so after thoroughly exploring Kas and its silver shops, we embarked on a day trip by tourist boat .  How nice not to be making any responsible sailing decisions!

Anchored in the small but ancient boat harbour, Kekova Island

Our boat left from the tiny port of Ucagiz and motored over to Kekova Adasi where we anchored (with our Cap’n monitoring maritime procedures) in a small cove for a swim (no-one did) or a chance to explore the ruins.  From here we sailed over “the sunken city”, now a fiercely protected archaeological site (no scuba diving allowed, thanks) and on to stare into the gloom of a pirate’s cave (Well, it sounds good doesn’t it?).  Swell from the ocean made our stop here short and we beetled off to find a remote cove (we know there is no such thing!) for lunch and another swim. 

Pirate caves,

 

blue water, sunken cities

and someone else cooking lunch.
What else could a girl ask for?

On our way back, the boat docked in the quaint town of Kalekoy accessible by motorboat. Here we could explore ruins of ancient Simena, a Byzantine castle (1440), a small theatre and several sarcophagi & Lycian tombs, some sunken probably due to earthquake activity. GS sent the Cap'n to take photos as she was a little worse for wear - the obligatory tour flu had taken a firm hold... 

Kalekoy (ancient Simena) & Byzantine Fort (1440)

Very old and new...what scenery!

Our final stop was for a swim in waters shared with turtles (we saw at least 3 mooching about for their lunch quite near the boat - all sadly camera shy) before heading back to Kas to prepare for the bus trip ahead, our longest ride  of the tour. 

The next day we took off on a 3.5 hours by dolmus to Antalya, then a further 5.5 hours (thankfully by private bus) to Konya.  Not a good day to be suffering the worst effects of this group-shared flu, still, a stop at Aspendos to see the magnificent Roman amphitheatre (162 AD) built during the time of Marcus Aurelius, would break the day admirably. Unlike most theatres we had seen so far, this one is enclosed by a stage building.  

Our lunch hosts farmed in and around the remains of a nearby aqueduct that also dates from 100 AD.  We couldn’t resist taking photos of their turkeys in Turkey, as one must.

Large Roman theatre under renovation in Aspendos

Fact File: Father Christmas.  Our dolmus stopped briefly in the little town of Demre.  In Roman times, it was called Myra (name derived from myrrh that was grown there).  One of its famous citizens (in the 4^th c) was a bishop, later to become Saint, Nicholas.  He is said to have given gifts (anonymously) of coins to young village girls providing a dowry thus enabling them to marry.  The legend of course grew and now Noel Baba (in Turkish) is the patron saint of virgins, sailors, children, pawnbrokers, Russia, bakers, brewers and brides (& possibly lots more!).  It appears our current image of St Nick as a jolly old fellow in red is a relatively recent concept, perhaps dating from the 1930's.

The icon above is a 13th c depiction of Saint Nicholas from St Catherine's Monastery in Egypt (from Wiki)

Ghost Town

Destination #5: Kayakoy

Some of the ruined cottages in Kayakoy

Kayakoy stands as testimony to the trauma of war.  Levissi, as it was once known, was deserted by its inhabitants after WW1 and the Turkish War of Independence.  A population exchange (forced migration) was arranged in 1924 with Greece.  Now only a handful of villagers inhabit Kayakoy with many of the stone houses unoccupied; the Ministry of Culture has declared the whole area an historic monument.  We were lucky to stay with a local family who run a pansion.  It was a lovely rural setting and we used time to:

Visit Fethiye:  Having sailed here and visited most of its sites, we chose to stay in and talk to the pansion's vast selection of cats, dogs and chickens.

No!  We are not hiding and we are not eating this tree...cheeky goats

Hike the Lycian Way:  Yes, a bit of a struggle to keep up with the young (fit) ones but we did it (in 3 hours) and arrived in one piece in Oludeniz, a beautiful turquoise lagoon on the Turkish Lycian coast.  And yes, the views were fantastic!

All the while, envying the boat owners down there

Explore the Ghost Village:  We wandering amongst ruins, through neglected orchards, bypassed paddocks occupied by camels (they spit if unhappy) and watched happy goats to appreciate the extent of the upheaval caused by the enforced population exchange in 1923.  Two churches are in the process of being restored – slowly.

One of the churches in the UNESCO World Heritage site of Kayakoy

Fact File: The Lycian Way.  This would have to be the walking tour of walking tours.  The coast from Fethiye to Antalya was home to a federation of cities, settled by the Lycians.  (Homer records their attack on Troy in the Iliad, so we are talking early BC here.)  Their legacy to us is a great number of tombs; some are rock cut and others are large sarcophagus, mounted on either a stepped or pillar base.  So, if you fancy a 500km walk (a bit of a tough hike actually) around the coast to see spectacular coastal views, visit friendly local villages and come face to face with ancient Lycian monuments and more, then this is for you… We came across one young fellow who was jogging it.  I think we’ll stick to sailing ;-) 

Did we allow time for a senior's nap?

In Training

Destination #4: Pamukkale & Hierapolis

Travertine not snow

Pamukkale’s thermal springs and amazing travertine pools have been a magnet for those seeking therapeutic waters and spa treatments for thousands of years.  The Pergameme kings founded a cure centre in Hierapolis about 190BC, and the city prospered further during Roman and Byzantine times.  Even today, taking the waters for health reasons continues to be popular. (Although if you saw some of the "spa" waters we saw, you'd have second thoughts!)

It must be doing me some good?

After a morning train ride, we opted to walk from Pamukkale town, then up the travertine ridge, barefoot, passing various constructed thermal pools.  It was a little cold for bathing, but this did not stop a number of bikini-bunnies from striking calendar girl poses.  Security guards were kept busy tweeting whistles at tourists venturing carelessly onto pristine calcium ridges to take photos of themselves (selfies).  We found ourselves wondering what people did before phones, digital cameras and facebook. 

That looks like rain for sure...

After sploshing our way to the top of the ridge, we prepared for a walk of Hierapolis.  Sadly our arrival coincided with a cloud burst over the area and like everyone else we made a dash for the café and shelter.  The rains continued (and set in for the night) so eventually we had to be rescued and returned to our hotel. 

And pour it did as we reached Hierapolis...our tour sadly, was a washout
(you could say it was ruined....)

Fact File: Danger - Poisonous Gas.  The only spot we were sorry to have missed was the Temple of Apollo.  Near to it is a spring called Plutonium (dedicated to Pluto, god of the underworld) that gives off toxic vapours – even today.  The temple was once attended by an oracle and eunuch priests who it is said, were “unaffected” by the fumes.  Perhaps a little more dangerous than reading tea leaves…

Frolicking on travertine slopes 

Walking Tour (with extras)

Destination #3: Ephesus

The main focus for this region in Roman times was the port city of Ephesus.  It became the Empires’ capital of Asia Minor growing to be a hugely wealthy trading city, as many of the ruins testify.  Today, Ephesus stands as a well preserved classical city albeit awash with tourists. 

We started our walking tour early, heads already spinning with the many myths and legends that surround this city that once supported a population of 250,000.  (That count was male adults apparently, so the true count was probably triple that figure if you include women, children and slaves.)

The Odeon (meeting hall) dates from 150 AD

Gates of Hercules, entrance to Curetes Street

Temple of Hadrian built in AD 123 in honour of the
Emperor's visit

One of the many stunning mosaic floors in the Terrace Houses

Posing in front of the Library of Celsus built by Consul Gaius Julius Aquila 114 AD

The Agora (main city marketplace) off Marble Street

Great Theatre renovated by the Romans seated 25,000 people and Harbour Street

Sadly, the Museum with finds from Ephesus (in Seljuk and reputed to be Turkey's best) was closed but we cheered ourselves up with a fruit wine tasting and a dinner in nearby Sirince.  The village has been declared an historic preservation area due to its picturesque old stone & stucco houses and cobbled streets.  This is one town where local dogs give guided walking tours and chickens have right of way.

Local colour in Sirince - pomegranates & oranges

Fact File: The Library of Celsus was built in 114 AD to house some 12000 scrolls in niches around the walls.  It was clearly a place for the learned and curious to come.  The building was not free-standing however and had been constructed to interconnect with other buildings in the city.  A recently excavated tunnel just happens to connect the Library to the city brothel.  “Just catching up the local news at the Library, darling…back in an hour or two!  Don’t wait up…

If the Library was busy you could always visit the (gents only)
public toilets.  Fountains, musicians, friends....it was clearly the place to be

Olympic Sports...not yet

Destination #2: Selcuk

Having explored the delights of Bursa, it was time to move on.  Selcuk was our destination, however we managed to skirt the outer fringe of Izmir, a large and robust city, otherwise known as the Pearl of the Aegean.    

Free cat with ceramic bowl...yes please!

Selcuk is a quiet little town with a big history.  Ayasoluk Hill has seen settlers since 2000 BC, now the best “remnants” are Byzantine.  The hill itself is crested with a Byzantine citadel in remarkably good condition.  Nearby, is a Byzantine church and also the Basilica of St John, said to be the burial place of John the Evangelist. (Here we had our first introduction to religious tourism...hmmm, interesting!).  A Byzantine aqueduct sits imposingly in the midst of town.  Great nests on its high spots attest to the good taste of leylekler (large white storks) who migrate into town for summer - May to September.

Every home should have one

Sitting forlornly in a field on its own is a single “composite” column, all that remains of the once fabulous Temple of Artemis (burnt down in 356 BC), one of the ancient world’s Seven Wonders.  Nearby is the Isa Bey mosque, of Seljuk origin.  The hill is also lined with carpet shops and tourist tat, making it difficult indeed to wander serenely and contemplate so many ancient “left-overs”. 

All that's left of the Temple of Artemis

We did manage however to discover a start line for those inclined to shop.  The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is overwhelming, so it was pleasant to stroll Selcuk’s few “tourist” streets for take-home goodies.  Not that we had been neglected for choice.  Every bus stop has its own little bazaar with goodies ranging from pottery camels (with gold feet, natch), musical instruments, plastic cuckoo clocks, plaster parrots to cheap clothing. 

Crumbling Hamam (baths)

Fact File: Oil-Wrestling.  Wearing knee-length leather shorts and smeared head to toe in olive oil, contestants attempt to throw their opponents to the ground.  Each match involves lots of contemplation, an occasional grab for underpants and much side-stepping.  We watched the television (with our waiters) fascinated, until our dinner arrived.  One waiter said he enjoyed watching the sport but much preferred camel wresting.  The females are cranky he told us.  And they bite…  Now that’s reality television for you!

Oil Wrestling (From Wiki)