Chance meetings and changing plans

The hotel we stayed at in Kusadasi (pronounced "koo sheh darzy") was on the waterfront and hosted by a cheerful Turk who goes by the name of "Mr Happy". He is a very outgoing and cheerful host who is keen to make his guests welcome - but who speaks alarmingly like the Australian comedian Akmal Saleh.

We had a room with a seafront view on the third floor. On the first evening we heard some Aussie voices outside so I went out onto our balcony and found a very friendly and relaxed Aussie couple drinking wine on the balcony next door. We got to talking and sharing their wine and found a number of similarities in our journeys through life. In the course of our conversation Jenny mentioned the fact that one could fly over to Cappidoccia from Izmir airport (which is close by).

Judith and I had been trying to work out the rest of our time in Turkey without spending 40% of it traveling, so the next day we went to a travel agent around the corner and arranged to spend the next six days in the area, and particularly to spend four days on the Greek Island of Samos (one and a half hours away by ferry). And then to fly from Izmir to Cappadiccia in just over an hour!

That evening we caught up with Mark and Jenny on the balcony again and shared the day's events over a couple of bottles of Turkish wine. We all agreed that Ephesus was indeed impressive and awe-inspiring. We then went and had dinner together along with their three teen and adult children. We had a great evening not only with great company but also with great food. Yes folks, we have finally had some very nice food (in my case a large plate of barbecued king prawns!).

As a matter of fact we had another very nice meal the night before at a seafood restaurant on the foreshore just 60 meters away from our hotel. We shared a barbecued sea bass which was deboned at our table by the waiter and came with a simple salad. It was excellent.

So the next post will be about, and from, a Greek island just off the coast of Turkey... well, SOMEONE has to do it!

Ephesus - gateway to the past

The taxi driver who drove us around Bergama to see the ruins of Pergamum offered to pick us up at our hotel the next day and drive us to Ephesus, St John's Basilica and the Virgin Mary's house, and then drive further on to Kusedasi and drop us off at our hotel. This was a trip of over 220 Kilometres. The price - 75 Euro or $95 AUD (because it is the off season). Needless to say we jumped at the chance and had a great day of it and it was the easiest move from one place to another that we so far have had.

St John's basilica was very interesting as it showed how strongly Christianity grew in these early centuries AD. There are enough surviving ruins to see that the Basilica was very large indeed, and it contains the purported grave of St John.

The Virgin Mary's house, on the other hand, is another case again. There is a great deal of evidence to suggest that Mary spent the remaining years of her life in this part of the world. However, the "evidence" for the siting of this particular house as Mary's derives from a vision that a 19th century German nun had. An expedition was sent out from Germany and the ruins that this site are built on we're claimed to have exactly matched the nun's vision... I think I will leave that one there.

The ruins at Ephesus are indeed impressive in their scale and the extent of what has survived. As they say, one is able to get quite a strong feel for how the ancient Greeks and Romans lived and of the sophistication of their civilization. The amphitheatre could hold 25,000 people and scholars of ancient civilizations, using this as a base figure, extrapolate the population as being approximately 250,000 at its height.

Judith was particularly taken by the public latrine - she can spot a toilet in a foreign land from at least a kilometre away and hence the photo. This one (for men) showed that everyone had to sit quite closely to use it, but apparently that was not a big problem as it was an important social meeting place. According to the Lonely Planet, even if you had your own bathroom you would often come here to "shoot the shit with your friends".











As I said in an earlier post, the ruins at Pergamum are regarded by many people as very much second-tier to those at Ephesus, and in a sense that's true. However, if you are in this part of the world and you miss a visit to Pergamum, you are missing a real treat. It is not as big as Ephesus but it has it's own unique features, like the amphitheatre carved into the side of the mountain with a view over the valley, the spectacular views of the countryside far below, and the Esklepion (Medical centre).

Outside the entrance to Ephesus is the usual alleyway of stalls selling all sorts of necessary and useful souvenirs (!?) This is all standard and nothing of note. However, we were taken by the signs on one or two of the stalls advertising "genuine fake watches". WTF?!!

If Pergamum is THIS good, what's Ephesus going to be like!?

Today we took a taxi around the Roman ruins at Bergama. These tend to be a little overlooked next to the ruins at Ephesus but we decided to see them, as our son recommended it and we had seen the temple that the Germans had transported from here to the Pergamum museum in Berlin. And we are very glad we did!!

The ruins of the Acropolis sit on top of a very high hill on the edge of town and are fascinating and impressive. At its height the acropolis was home to 150,000 people. It had an amphitheatre (that could seat 10,000 people) on the side of the hill to take advantage of the spectacular view and to conserve space on top.

Down on the flat section of a hill closer to town are the remains of an ancient medical centre (the Asklepion) which was also of impressive dimensions with its own amphitheatre, temple and library. Treatments included mud baths, herbs and ointments, enemas and sunbathing. Diagnosis was often by dream analysis. All in all it was a great deal ahead of its time really.

I could go on but that would just bore everyone. I'll let the photos tell the story.

Our hotel room is quite good this time although very small - there is nowhere to hang clothes or put them away, so it's literally living out of a suitcase. On the positive side it includes a Turkish breakfast which is very good (a boiled egg, slices of tomato and cucumber, cheese, sliced banana with honey, toast and tea and coffee). Also the bathroom has been newly refurbished - we know this because the bar codes are still on the window and the handbasin.

Tomorrow we go to see the ruins at Ephesus and are staying at a seaside town called Kusadasi. After that we are going to slow the sight-seeing right down and chill out for a time.

Leaving Istanbul - seeing Gallipoli

Well, we finished up in Istanbul by revisiting the Spice Bazaar because someone forgot that the Dolmabahce Palace doesn't open on Mondays! This is a real issue when you are traveling because not all sights or tours are operating when you are in a particular place and you are only there for a limited time. Anyway, we were happy to spend a bit more free time just wandering around the city.

Just revisiting the topic of a busy and traffic-congested city, if anyone was going to a wreckers to get a second-hand indicator for their car, I would suggest they look for one that's been retrieved from an Istanbul taxi - it will be in mint condition because it has never been used (the accelerator pedal, on the other hand, will be worn out).

On Tuesday we took one of the said taxis out to the Istanbul Otogar (bus station) to catch a bus to our next destination. This bus terminal is, to say the least, huge. It has 168 ticket offices and gates, its own mosque, metro station, clinic, police station, and of course shops and restaurants. Buses leave at least every 15 minutes 24 hours per day to all over Turkey, the Balkans, Greece, central Europe and the Middle East.

Fortunately we and our taxi driver managed to find the right bus line and we only had to wait 40 minutes before leaving. Taking a long distance bus in Turkey is a singular experience (that two of our children had already informed us about). They are set up just like airplanes: you have allocated seats, TV and games console in front of you, earphones provided, in-trip service (free), and on the one we went on today, free wi-fi. They serve hot drinks and snacks, water on request and lemon-scented cologne to wipe your hands with.

Our destination was a seaside resort called Cannakele which is the main stepping off point for tours of Gallipoli. We stayed at the Anzac Hotel (where else?) where every evening they show the movie Gallipoli in their lounge bar. We ended up watching the last 30 minutes and explaining what it was all about to a couple of Americans who live and work in Istanbul. Cannakele is also very near to Troy and along the picturesque waterfront is the wooden horse that they used in the Brad Pitt movie. It sounds a bit tacky but I thought it didn't look too bad.

The next day we went on a tour of the battlefield at Gallipoli guided by a very knowledgable retired academic. Unfortunately he was a little too knowledgable and was unable to cut the information down to the essentials and include a more human element. This wasn't too bad for us, but the Swiss couple that were with us were overwhelmed and ended up sitting in the bus for the last half of the tour!

It is easy to see how difficult the battle must have been for both sides - those steep cliffs and the rugged, unfriendly terrain are still quite evident today. But at the same time it is a place of beauty, and the well-kept, uniform, and light-colored graves and cemeteries belie the brutality and obscenities that caused them to exist.

The whole area is undergoing preparations for Anzac day and we were glad we were able to see it without the crowds. Thousands of red seats are being put up on many large stands and these make a statement in themselves. One point our guide made was that it was a great achievement that the Aussies got as far as they did and that it was (as we have been told over the years) largely poor British leadership that led to the failure of the campaign.

We certainly felt that it was a worthwhile visit and feel much better informed and connected to the events of that campaign, but it did not have the same deep impact on us as did our visit to Passchendaele and the Western front a few years ago. It may have been our guide, or it may have been the fact that we both had great uncles killed on the Westernn front.

We struck up an acquaintance with another couple of Americans on the Gallipoli tour and ended up having dinner with them in the evening. Their daughter has married a Turk and lives here permanently. As a consequence, this is their eleventh trip to Turkey! Once again, for us the meal was OK but still a bit disappointing as both of our dishes (hotpots) we're drenched in olive oil. We're still searching...

We took another bus today, this time to a place called Bergama. From here we will take a tour tomorrow to see the ruins at Pergamum which include the site of the asklepion, ancient Rome's per-eminent medical centre.

So take me back to Constantinople, no you can't go back to Constantinople...

Greater Istanbul has a population of 13.5 to 15 million people depending on who or what you consult. Couple that with very hilly narrow streets, a colourful history that goes back over two thousand years, a position on the coast that bridges Europe and Asia and you have a vibrant and bustling metropolis. Although I would have to say that on this Sunday morning where our apartment is situated (on the newer northern side of the Golden Horn and far away from the tourist precinct) it is very peaceful and quiet, apart from the more than occasional jet flying overhead.

We have been here four days now and we have sampled the food, seen some of the major sights and only been ripped off by a taxi driver once.

The Aya Sophia is indeed impressive just in its size alone. It is not necessarily that attractive on the outside but the interior is very impressive. It is yet another example of how the rulers of the past demonstrated their wealth and importance by constructing a bigger and more lavish palace/cathedral/mosque than their predecessors (my cathedral is bigger than your cathedral).

The Aya Sophia was the biggest cathedral in the world for many centuries. When Constantinople was conquered by Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453 he very quickly changed the Aya Sophia into a mosque. It was subsequently proclaimed a museum by Ataturk in 1934.

Just across the road is the Blue Mosque which is still very much in use today. Its interior is stunning.

We have also seen over Topkapi Palace which is also quite spectacular in its size, architecture and decoration. At its height it was a city within a city with over 4,000 inhabitants. The jewellery here is amazing - the sort you imagine exists in pirate treasure chests. It includes a lot of emeralds, some of them bigger than a matchbox.

We also explored the Grand Bazaar, which was interesting in and of itself (again just by its sheer magnitude) but which became a little "ho hum" after an hour or so.

Today we took a tour on the Bosphorous and visited the Egyptian market - better known as the spice market.

This latter market was a highlight for both of us, but Judith had to be held on a very tight leash! We bought some saffron, lemon and mint tea, dried apricots, pistachio kernels, and of course some Turkish Delight (pistachio and honey).

Another characteristic of Istanbul is that almost everyone smokes (or it seems like it) and almost everyone has a cat (or it seems like it). The outcome of all this is that when you walk the populated streets you can't avoid cigarette smoke, and when you walk the back streets all you can smell is cat's urine. Neither of us has seen so many cats in one place before - nor smelled so much cat's urine!

We haven't been overwhelmed by the food yet, so we are trying a Trip Advisor recommended restaurant tonight that is just around the corner. Stay tuned...

Singapore and Munich

We broke the long flight from Oz to Germany with three days in Singapore. We've been to Singapore before (a long time ago) so we decided to just chill out for a couple of days and try the local cuisines. We looked at "Little India" and had an excellent dinner there, and we had a great (and very cheap) lunch at the current version of the food hawkers market. We also went on a river cruise which gave us an opportunity to look at some of the new large and impressive public buildings.

A highlight for Judith was a visit to Arab Street where there are myriad shops selling a wide range of fabrics, braids, trim, and scarves

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We then flew to Frankfurt and took a train to Munich where we stayed with our friends Erica and George. Here, we had a lovely three days rediscovering the sights and museums of Munich, catching up with our friends, and helping to celebrate their daughter Ingrid's birthday.

Munich is a beautiful city about the same size as Adelaide but with a lot more art galleries and a much larger airport. Milton visited the Museum Brandhorst which has a very good collection of Andy Wharhol's work, along with a very extensive representation of Cy Twombly. All of the works in this art gallery were donated by one couple.

While Milton was doing this, Judith went on a guided walking tour of central Munich, where she walked four kilometers with a very informative guide. There were only three people in the group, so it was like having a private tour.






During our stay we enjoyed traditional Bavarian fare, but the last night we went out with our hosts to an excellent Vietnamese restaurant! The next morning we flew to Istanbul, arriving at about five in the afternoon

The only unfortunate aspect of this part of the trip was that Milton came down with a nasty cold and is still recovering three days later.

Off Again - Turkey and Spain

Well we are off again! This time we are going away for two months, three weeks of which will be in Turkey, three weeks in Spain and a week in Paris for our 40th wedding anniversary. Friends have commented that we must be getting excited in anticipation, but the reality is there is a great deal to do before we fly out and so we are focussing on that right now. We will both give a sigh of relief when the plane finally takes off.

In the meantime Milton is trying to get better acquainted with the new iPad and all it can do - which is the main reason for this preliminary blog entry! So far it is going well (including the touch typing). We are also finalizing arrangements with our house sitter who will look after our cat Emmy and the house while we are away.

Our first stop is Singapore for about three days to break the journey and so that Milton does not spend his birthday on an all-day flight. We then fly to Frankfurt and take a train to Munich to stay with friends for a couple of days. After that we fly to Istanbul.