Category Archives: Turkey

Kas – Christmas

December 25, 2014Travel, TurkeyChicken, Christmas, cookies, Kaskarenfranza

12/25 – In our family, Jesus gets to share his birthday with the lovely Emma Rose. Happy 2nd birthday, Emma! We love you!

There’s no Christmas here – we can hear the kids in the schoolyard, and the construction workers next door. No church in town either. We’ll have to make our own Christmas.

I’m feeling a bit homesick, so wonderful Jim decided to fix us a Christmas dinner, and bake some chocolate chip cookies. We walked down to the shops and bought a chicken, baking potatoes and carrots. No chocolate chips, so we bought a bittersweet candy bar to chop up.

I looked for any signs of Christmas in town, and found some festive underwear in a display window, and a Charlie Brown tree in the supermarket.

Here is our Christmas feast:

Tomorrow we will pack up and catch a bus to Olympos, for some more adventures.

Here’s one last sunset. Kas, we’ll miss you!

Happy Christmas, everyone!

Kas – Another Day on the Lycian Way

December 24, 2014Hiking, Travel, TurkeyKas, King's Tomb, Lions Tomb, Lycian Waykarenfranza

12/22 – We started our hike today at the King’s Tomb, in the middle of town. This is also called the Lions Tomb, and dates from the 4th century BCE.

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Every town we visit seems to have a statue of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the father of modern Turkey. The current government is working hard to reverse his westernization of the country by bringing back mandatory religious education, Arabic script, and censorship of the media. The NY Times ran two editorials this week about Turkey – said the EU is considering denying their application to join the European Union. I hope the unrest in the country is resolved peacefully.

Along the way, we see a helipad for the rich and famous:

We hiked west, to a deserted beach with crystal clear water. The pics can’t do justice to how beautiful the water is here on the Turquoise Coast.

We followed the trail up through a rocky area. Were these ruins, or just piles of rocks?

Off in the distance, we see another tomb, in the middle of nowhere. Of course, it was broken and looted. I wonder who it was built for? Unlike some of the other tombs, there is only room for one inside.

We’re grateful for another perfect hiking day, in the mid 60s, warm in the sun and cool in the shade.

One more sunset, please!

Kas – the Doric Tomb and the Ancient Theatre

December 21, 2014Hiking, Travel, Turkeycats, goats, Kas, Lycian Way, ruins, tombkarenfranza

12/21 – Another beautiful hiking day. Kas is on the Lycian Way, so we are continuing our day treks, wherever the trail takes us. Today we climbed up to a Doric tomb, 4th century BCE, freestanding and carved out of the bedrock, with a walkway all around. The sign said it was decorated with images of 24 dancing girls, but, try as we might, we could not see them. You can just make out some flowers carved inside.

There was room to sleep four – two slabs on each side. I tried to lie down for the full experience, but was a little too tall for the lower berth…

The trail wound down the hill to an ancient theatre, from the 2nd century BCE. It could seat 4000, and seated us while we ate our lunch.

Imagine our surprise when we were joined by a family of goats! The billy and the nanny really seemed to enjoy gamboling up and down the tiers.

The baby goat and Jim, checking each other out.

I’m still tickled to see flowers blooming in December.

On our way home, we found a sarcophagus and the ruins of a Hellanistic Temple, right in town.

A man was feeding meat to the stray cats. He told us that he fed 100 a day. He asked for money to continue his good works, then was insulted when Jim only offered him two lira (about a dollar) and refused the money.

Another beautiful day.

Kas – the Market and the Marina

December 20, 2014Hiking, Travel, Turkeyboats, Kas, Lycian rock tombs, market, Mediterraneankarenfranza

12/19 – We weren’t inclined to exert much energy today, happy to sit on our little terrace gazing at the ocean. But life demands action, so we skipped down the 131 steps to find the market and see what’s available in town. Jim’s hiking boot has developed a serious hole, so it would be nice if we could find a shoe store here.

This is a modern town with a regular supermarket, as well as produce, meat and fish shops, but on Fridays the town hosts an open air market with stalls selling food, clothing, bedding, and hardware in addition to fresh produce. We stocked up on fruit and veg, had a cup of fresh squeezed pomegranate juice, and delicious gözleme for lunch. I particularly like these little dough pancakes filled with spinach, cheese, potatoes and chopped meat. Yum!

We did find a shoe store, but the man laughed when Jim asked for a size 13 boot… We’ll have to keep looking.

Kas is all about the beach, the boats and the marina. There are many boats for hire, including glass bottomed boats that will take you out to see underwater ruins. The sea is a spectacular shade of blue.

The sea wall is a work of art.

Right down the road from our apart is a sign inviting us to climb up to see Lycian tombs carved into the rocks. How could we resist a peek? The first tombs were at the top of a staircase, then we had to climb up the rocks to see the rest. The scrabble up was harder than it looked.

The tombs were broken into and looted long ago, but you can’t help be curious about who these people were. Couldn’t find any info on the exact age of these tombs, but they are probably first or second century BCE.

Can’t end the day without showing you another sunset – if you get tired of these, let me know!

Nothing to oppose

December 20, 2014Travel, TurkeyPamukkale, St. Philip, thermal poolskarenfranza

From Jim…

Beinghere

We are in Pamukkale, Turkey, site of the ancient city of Hierapolis with healing thermal springs, Roman and Byzantine ruins, the sarcophagus of Marcus Aurelius, and the Martyrium, where St. Philip was killed.

Philip (see above -red cloak) was with Jesus when they miraculously fed a hungry multitude, starting out with only two fish and five loaves of bread. The “feeding of the 5000” is the only story, besides Jesus’ Resurrection, that is included in all four Gospels (Mathew 14:13-21; Mark 6:31-44; Luke 9:31-44; John 6:5-15).

In the 5th century, the Martyrium was an important Christian pilgrimage destination. We will take you on a similar pilgrimage and explain how you can benefit from it.

We climb the hill where the warm spring water leaves calcium carbonate deposits, making the ground hard and white. Visitors are required to walk barefoot so as not to cause ecological damage — even though the…

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Ölüdeniz to Kas

December 19, 2014Backpacking, Travel, Turkeyapartment, Ölüdeniz, hot water, Kas, Mediterranean, viewkarenfranza

12/18 – We really loved our little apartment in Ölüdeniz. It was quiet, and the mountain scenery was beautiful. Because I am not a whiner, I haven’t said too much about the fact that we’ve not had a decent hot shower since we left Istanbul (although in Istanbul we had days where the whole neighborhood had no electricity or water…), and the sinks only run cold water, so we have to heat water on the stove to wash the dishes. I try to adjust my expectation level to my surroundings. I don’t want to be one of those people who demand that the rest of the world change to suit me.

All this to say, Jim rented us a modern apartment with a view of the ocean in Kas (rhymes with Posh) for Christmas week. I am considering this my best present ever!

A 20 minute dolmus ride got us back to the Fethiye otogar, where we walked right onto a bus heading for Kas at 9:30am. A two hour ride south along the Mediterranean coast, and we were there! Pics of gorgeous mountains and clouds from the bus:

As soon as we stepped off the bus, I knew we were in heaven. Right on the ocean, with balmy breezes, citrus trees and tropical flowers blooming.

Jim picked this apartment as it got a 9.1 rating on Booking.com (that’s very good!) However, new ratings within the past few weeks complained that a new hotel was being built next door, and the construction noise and jack hammering caused some people to change hotels. Jim emailed the proprietor with his concern, and said we would reserve for only one night, so we could assess how awful the noise was.

We arrived at Kaputas Apart, and walked up the 131 steps to reception. (Yes, I counted them! You have to suffer if you want to get a view…). The proprietor walked up with us, pointing out the apartment we had booked, then taking us up to the penthouse, where he was graciously upgrading us, so we would be above the noise! Oh happy day!

So here we are, with sinks that run both hot and cold, a stove that lights itself without fiddling with a match and a propane tank, a flat screen TV (no English channels, oh well), two couches, a dining area, a modern bath and a terrace with a view that can’t be beat!

Life is good!

Ölüdeniz – Kayakoy/Karmylassos

December 18, 2014Hiking, Travel, TurkeyÖlüdeniz, Greek Christians, hillside village, Karmylassos, Kayakoy, Nice People of Turkey, ruinskarenfranza

12/16 – today we went back to the Lycian Way and walked the other direction to visit Kayakoy, a hillside village that was abandoned after World War I, when the Turks drove the Greek Christians out of the country. The Greeks called it Karmylassos. Kayakoy is now being restored as a heritage site.

As we were walking, a car pulled up and asked if we needed a ride. We weren’t sure how much farther we had to walk to get to the village, and it was all uphill, so we jumped in. The Dutch couple had retired to Turkey, and thought we looked like foreigners. Nice People of Turkey!

It was strange to see what ruins look like after less than 100 years. We have been learning about the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the nationalization of Turkey in the early 1900s. For an excellent historical novel that tells the story of this village, I highly recommend Birds Without Wings, 2004, by Louis de Bernieres.

The village was eerily quiet. Here is the St. Nicholas Church.

The remains of a mosaic on a chapel floor:

The houses had been painted pink and blue.

The houses were cut into the mountainside, so the downstairs room was cool. No hint of electricity or plumbing. Here are the remains of a kitchen hearth.

We climbed to the top of the hill.

Some of the buildings at street level have been repurposed as restaurants, as tourists are starting to travel here.

The grass still grows, and the flowers still bloom.

Such beautiful surroundings for such a sad story!

Ölüdeniz – Babadag and the Lycian Way

December 17, 2014Hiking, Travel, TurkeyÖlüdeniz, Babadag, Likya Yolu, Lycian Waykarenfranza

12/14 – One of the main reasons Jim wanted to come to this town is that it is the start of a 300 mile way-marked trail called the Lycian Way, or Likya Yolu. Without our tent and stove, we are not prepared to hike this long and challenging trail, but we would like to do some day treks to hike it part way. The man who rented us the apartment didn’t know much about it, so we are going to have to find it ourselves. There is a trail guidebook, but we haven’t figured out how to get Amazon to deliver it to Turkey!

We set out from our apartment on the road that leads up the mountain, figuring this would be the logical direction. It’s a beautiful afternoon for a brisk walk up a steep hill.

On the way, we pass the Hotel California – who knew?

Jim investigates an old water cistern.

The town where we are staying caters to Brits on holiday, and there’s lots of construction of condos and villas up in the hills.

Fortunately, the original residents haven’t all been driven out.

We see a sign and a flag at the top of the hill, and eventually reach it. It is not the Lycian Way, but the entrance to Babadag, where folks more adventurous than we come to parasail off the mountaintop over the ocean.

A lovely trek, but no Lycian Way here.

12/15 – Next day we set out in the other direction, downhill toward the sea.

We pass the group of old men downtown sipping tea. Guess every town has them.

This time we find the right road:

The trail is marked with red and white blazes.

We follow the trail to where we can see the Mediterranean Sea, and and walk the ridge until we can see the famous Blue Lagoon. The white sandy beach with clear turquoise water is where the sun worshipers flock all summer. It is a gorgeous sight.

A beautiful day in December, where butterflies still fly and roses still bloom. Life is good!

Pamukkale to Ölüdeniz

December 14, 2014Backpacking, Travel, TurkeyÖlüdeniz, Denizli, dolmus, Fethiye, gözleme, otogar, Pamukkalekarenfranza

12/13 – Our transport worked like magic this morning – as we left our pension for the bus stop in Pamukkale, a dolmus pulled up and the driver asked if we wanted a ride to Denizli. Yes! Getting out of the dolmus at the Denizli bus station (otogar) 20 minutes later, we were just asking the driver where to buy our next ticket when a man came over to say the bus to Fethiye was just leaving – did we want to jump on? Yes!

The bus had to climb some serious mountains to get to Fethiye. Here’s what we saw out the bus window:

Four hours later, we arrived in Fethiye, right in front of a cafe where we had a delicious traditional lunch of gözleme – pancakes filled with spinach and feta cheese.

We asked where to catch a dolmus to Ölüdeniz. Right on the corner! In 10 minutes we were on our way, and I turned on my GPS to see how far we would have to walk from the town center to get to our new apartment. The dolmus was going right down our street, so we yelled Dur! (Stop!) and he let us off right at our front door!

So here we are in a sunny apartment with our own kitchen, right down the road from a produce market, a butcher and a Wishy Washy. Who could ask for more?

Here’s the view from our balcony:

We’ll be spending the next month or so in southern Turkey, hiking, relaxing and hiding from winter as much as we can. Stay tuned!

Pamukkale – Travertine and the Apostle Philip

December 14, 2014Travel, TurkeyApostle Philip, Hierapolis, Martyrion, Pamukkale, thermal pools, travertinekarenfranza

12/12 – Woke up to the patter of rain on the roof, after a rocky night’s sleep (there is an honest-to-god disco next door to our hotel, and the Turkish hits just kept coming until 2am!). We contemplated changing our plans for the day, but while we were eating breakfast (olives, tomato, cucumber, feta cheese, bread and a boiled egg) the sun came out. Yay! It’s off to the thermal pools!

The thermal pools put Pamukkale on the map. Tourists come year round to take off their shoes and walk up a hill of white travertine while their toes experience pools of water ranging from icy cold to steamy hot.

Here’s where you must take your shoes off:

It was a chilly morning (55 degrees), but this is not snow – the hill is made of calcium carbonate deposited by the water from the pools.

Although the sky was turning increasingly gray, the pools were a lovely shade of blue.

The farther up we walked, the warmer the water became until steam was rising above the pools.

At the top of the travertine is the start of the ruins of Hierapolis, which means Sacred City. These ruins are not as extensive as those in Ephesus, and showed less white marble, but had many similar features. There were no crowds at all.

The sky was quickly turning dark, so we made a beeline for the top of the hill, to see the tomb of the Apostle Philip, just discovered in 2011.

Here is the tomb, made of white travertine block:

The Church of the Sepulcher was erected around the tomb in honor of Philip in the 5th century.

In addition to the church, there is a martyrion, which contained 36 little cells around the outside. Pilgrims slept in one of the cells overnight, and healing would occur while they slept. I’d never heard of this. Here is the picture from the descriptive sign at the site:

As we contemplated Philip’s resting place, the sky opened and the rain poured down. It was a cold and slippery walk back down the hill.

Taking Our Time

Seeing the World, Nice and Slow

Category Archives: Turkey

Kas – Christmas

Kas – Another Day on the Lycian Way

Kas – the Doric Tomb and the Ancient Theatre

Kas – the Market and the Marina

Nothing to oppose

Ölüdeniz to Kas

Ölüdeniz – Kayakoy/Karmylassos

Ölüdeniz – Babadag and the Lycian Way

Pamukkale to Ölüdeniz

Pamukkale – Travertine and the Apostle Philip

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