Europe Chapter 6: Part II Wait. Am I in Turkey or Australia?

We were in Istanbul for four days. In Sultanahmet, where the hostels are centralized near the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya, the Aussies outnumbered any other nationality, even the Turks!!! The drinking started around 2pm and lasted into the wee hours of the morning. The whole process was repeated the following day, around 2pm when everyone woke from their slumber.

You are probably wondering why the Aussies were drinking in Turkey as if it was the last place on earth to buy beer. Unless you are Australian, Kiwi, Turkish, or a world history buff, you probably have no idea what ANZAC (Australia New Zealand Army Corps) day is. Get ready for the history lesson...

It's basically the anniversary of Australia and New Zealand's first major military action. During WWI, the allies feared Turkey would join Germany's side. Because Turkey controlled the Dardanelles Straight, the sea connection to then ally Russia, it was decided the allies would attack Turkey to gain control of Constantinople, now Istanbul. This is significant for the Aussies and Kiwis because although this attempt failed, it showed their bravery and tenacity; The stalemate lasted almost 1 year! It also helped form their identity.

Over 11,000 Aussies and Kiwis died at Gallipoli, as well as over 100,000 British, French, and Turkish troops. A lot of Aussies and Kiwis make the pilgrimage to Turkey in April to commemorate the ANZAC troops. (See, you learn something new everyday!)

Ok, on to less serious matters! I know I've already said it, but Turkey is AWESOME. In the 2.5 short weeks we were there, we experienced many different landscapes such as calm beaches, lush forests, snowcapped mountains, deep valleys and canyons, cities, small towns, and almost everything in between. We sailed the Mediterranean blue on a Turkish gullet passing over ancient sunken cities, waded through white cliffside mineral hot springs, walked amongst ancient Roman and Greek ruins, sweated on hot marble slabs in a traditional Turkish bath, slept in bungalows on stilts, drank far too many apple teas (often more than half a dozen per day!), dodged more overly flirtatious Turkish boys than carpet salesmen (sometimes one in the same!), and explored underground cities and hand dug cave dwellings. We met some of the friendliest people on Earth who were genuinely interested in our experiences and thoughts. We exchanged languages and cultures, and they patiently taught us how to play Okey and Tawula (Turkish Rummikub and Backgammon, respectively). I knew within the first 24 hours of our arrival that I would have to return to Turkey. Each day thereafter, these plans were reinforced!

We took the cheapest flight we could find out of Istanbul which brought us to Budapest, Hungary where I sit happily reminiscing the good times in Turkey. Below are a few more pictures to wet your taste buds!

Celsus Library at Ephesus.

Jumping off Turkish gullet into Mediterranean.

Aya Sofya.

Inside the Blue Mosque.

Yoros Castle, Byzantine fortress just outside small fishing village of Anadolu Kavagi between Istanbul and mouth of Black Sea, and two friends I met and napped in the grass with during my visit.

Blue Mosque at night.

Europe Chapter 6: Part I WHY YOU SHOULD COME TO TURKEY!

There are no words to properly describe Turkey. Pictures and descriptions do no justice to this amazing country. All I can say is you must see it for yourself. Below is an excerpt from my journal. Following that are a few facts about the country as well as a short lesson in the Turkish language. Enjoy!

"I am on a 10 hour overnight bus from Antalya on the southern coast of Turkey to Goreme, Cappadocia, the heart of this beautiful country. My ipod is treating me to a private session with James Taylor as the world passes by. He calmly sings and strums his guitar while I lean back in my chair to stare out into the darkness and distant lights of cities and stars. The waning moon low on the horizon dances on the treetops, sometimes dipping below them in a game of peek-a-boo as the bus proceeds north. Stacey taps me on the shoulder to point out a mosque. Spotlights shine perfectly to illuminate and display its grandeur, yet makes me wonder what colorful tile mosaics are hidden in its shadows.

"Each morning at daybreak, calls to prayer are broadcasted from thousands of mosques around this Muslim nation. In my deep sleep, they are a rude awakening reminding me I am a world away from family, friends and the comforts of home. But tonight, the mosque, moon and even my cramped legs and sore butt have made me feel more privileged than I have felt in a very long time. This moment of contentment and peacefulness is one I cannot explain. It just is, and for that I am grateful."

Facts:

Population - 68 million

Size - 770,760 sq km (a bit bigger than Texas)

Countries that border Turkey - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Iran, Iraq, and Syria (They claim not to get along with any of them!)

October 29 is Turkey's Independence day! (along with *someone's* birthday...)

97% the country is in Asia, 3% in Europe (Russia is the only other country to be in two continents)

Religion - 99.8% Muslim (mostly Sunni), 0.2% Christian and Jewish

Language Lesson:

Hello - Merhaba (mare-ha-ba)

Goodbye - Gule Gule (goo-lay goo-lay)

Thank you - Tesekkur ederim (tay-shoe-car-ah-dare-em)

1 - bir (beer)

2 - iki (ee-chee)

3 - uc (oosch)

4 - dort (dirt)

5 - bes (besh)

6 - alti (alta)

7 - yedi (yedi)

The first five pictures were taken in the Cappadocia region.

Inside the cave dwellings of above picture.

Morning breakfast of Menemen and backgammon.

Calcium deposits and mineral pools of Pamukkale.

Europe Chapter 5: Which one of these does not belong?

I decided to put together a list of items and prices to give you an idea of what a typical day might cost (in euros):

• accommodation 15

• shared daily car rental 20 (10 per person)

• petrol 2.50 (per liter)

• takeaway dinner 4 (gyro or spinach pie)

• chocolate milk 1.5

• breakfast 2 (yogurt from grocery store mueseli)

• ferry ticket 20

• pint of murphy's irish beer 7

You should be doing a double take with that pint of beer! That's about $8.50 for A BEER!!! Read on to find out more.

After overloading our brains with the archaeological history of Athens, we decided we could use a little relaxation. So on the evening of March 26, Ken, Stacey and I hopped an overnight ferry to the island of Crete. We boarded the ferry an hour before scheduled departure and were surprised when the ship started leaving 15 minutes later, 45 minutes ahead of schedule. Needless to say, we were glad we showed up early.

We arrived in Iraklio, Crete at 6am with no accommodation reservations and ended up having to wake up a woman who ran a hostel. For being woke at 6am, she was far more pleasant than I would have been! We told her about the ferry leaving early and she was baffled. She said she usually shows up at the time of scheduled departure and that the ferry never leaves on time. We didn't find out until a few days later that the day we left Athens was daylight savings. We were lucky we didn't miss our ferry! A lot more things made sense after that (ie hy all the clocks we had seen the last few days were an hour off, why the museum closed an hour early and why our ferry left an hour early!)

Although we were on a break from ruins, we were told we couldn't go to Crete without seeing the ancient city of Knossos. So on our last day with Ken, we checked it out. It was interesting and set in a stunning valley, but there's only so many toppled ancient cities one can take in a certain time period before everything starts to look the same! That evening, Stacey and I said a teary goodbye to Ken (who is now in the comforts of home!) and went out with 3 Canadian boys we met earlier in the day for dinner and drinks. Sorry to disappoint, but I have no juicy stories to report. We all got along well and had a late night playing UNO with a few rounds of beer. We realized we had similar travel plans and met up with them again for a few days to island hop to Santorini.

Before leaving Crete, Stacey and I rented a car and spent 2 days exploring the island and town of Rethmyno. Santorini was gorgeous and my favorite of the islands we visited. That's probably because it was a postcard perfect picture of how I imagine the Greek islands; cliffside towns with whitewashed buildings and blue roofs, stunning natural beauty, long beaches with turquoise waters, colorful sunsets and warm weather!

We again rented a car and spent most of the day napping on a deserted black sand beach...soooo nice! It was the first time since last summer my legs have felt the warmth of actual sunlight! I am happy to report my tan lines are back but unhappy to say we had to invest 15 euros on sunblock.

After watching a gorgeous sunset in the small Santorini town of Oia, (where apparently everyone goes because I think the entire tourist population of Santorini was there!) we returned to our hotel and met up with the Canadian boys for a night on the town. We had heard good things about a local Irish pub which wasn't so Irish and charged the ridiculous amount of 7 flipping euros for a beer. I'm still fuming over that, especially since the store down the street was selling Heineken's for 1 euro each! The bartender made it up to us by offering us free shots throughout the night. Lucky for him, I really liked my beer. I can't say much for the shots.

The morning of our departure from Santorini to Naxos, we took a schooner across to the volcanic island of Nea Kameni (Google it. It's one of the largest volcanic eruptions in Earth's history.) where we hiked around for awhile and visited some luke warm springs. They were supposed to be hot but were barely bath temperature. They also failed to tell us that we had to jump from the boat into the Mediterranean and swim 50m to the springs. That doesn't sound bad, but the water temperature this time of year is barely warm enough to get your feet wet!

Naxos was equal in beauty, but its sunset was probably one of the prettiest I've seen yet.Stacey and I were feeling a bit more adventurous and rented a scooter for the day to tour the island. Again, we spent most of our time napping on a beach. The ferry ride from Naxos to Rhodes was llllooooonnnnngggg (14 hours) and filled with loud Greek students on spring break. Unfortunately, Greece has the highest smoking population in Europe and the ferries are NOT smoke free. We tried to upgrade to a cabin room, but the ferry was completely full. We spent the night in seats that barely reclined with bodies laying around us. As if the smell and clouds of cigarette smoke weren't bad enough, everyone had their shoes off and there was a strong odor of feet in the air. Lovely...

Rhodes was a little cooler than the other islands but the scenery was more unique. Rhodes has been ruled by several empires throughout history. It has been occupied by the Greeks, Romans, British and Ottoman, among others. When the Order of St. John's took over the island around 1200AD, they built a fortress and enclosed the main town with walls for protection against the Turks which still stand today. We mostly explored the medieval city in our 4 days. It attracts a good deal of tourists, especially from cruise ships. There are a lot of street vendors and shops, but it was more fun to walk through the deserted backstreets and moat.

On Friday, April 7, Stacey and I caught a ferry to Turkey, our 6th country, where we are now. We were both a little apprehensive about coming here although neither of us admitted it. Any fears or doubts I had about travelling in Turkey have been completely erased. The country is nothing like I expected and far better than I could have imagined. The people are incredibly friendly. They are genuinely interested in other cultures and go out of their way to learn more. I have had more earnest conversations with the locals in Turkey than in all of the other countries I've been to on this trip combined. And of course the natural beauty of the country is breathtaking. I've only been here three days and I'm already wondering when I'll be able to return!