Turkey Trekkin’, Part 1
This post is WAAYYY delayed, but better late than never. Spent two and a half weeks all around Turkey and just got back last week. Travelled with my friend Kit all throughout and another friend, Sofiane, also joined us on the last leg in Istanbul. Here are 15 highlights of the trip.
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15. The Ruins of Ephesus
This old Graeco-Roman city close to the Aegean coast once contained the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Never got to see it though, because it was a bit out of the way, but we didn’t miss much because only a single pillar is left standing in a marsh.
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14. Pamukkale/Hierapolis
Pamukkale, meaning "cotton castle", is a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the main reasons why I went to Turkey. It’s in my list of Top 100 Greatest Wonders of the World which I’ve made my life mission to see. It’s a mountainside of travertine and limestone terraces formed by thermal waters springing out on top of the mountain and flowing down the slopes over thousands of years. Also at the site are the ruins of the ancient city of Hierapolis.
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13. Chimaera
A short 20-minute hike at 10pm led us to a small patch of rocky mountainside terrain close to Olimpos where small flames burn from the rocks. Scientists suspect natural gas and methane as the cause of this phenomenon, and apparently more than two thousand years ago the flames burned much bigger and brighter that sailors actually used them to navigate.
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12. Dalyan boat trip
Rode a boat with 40 or so people up Dalyan River to Lake Koycegiz to get a mud bath, then back down the river to see the rock tombs of Kaunos carved on the mountainside, ending up at the river delta at Turtle beach.
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11. Turkish Cuisine
I had never enjoyed vegetarian meals as much in my whole life! Also had my fill of baklava and apple tea many many times during the trip. My favorite dish of all though is eggplant moussaka, which I still have to experiment on one of these days.
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To be continued….
P.S. I hate layouting here in friendster, but I just can’t be bothered to do something about it!
