From East to West

June 26, 2011

This morning we were woken up at 4:45am to the sound of someone banging on the door yelling "Balloon! Balloon!" In a daze we realized that the hotel never had someone come to wake us up like we'd asked and this was the driver yelling that he was going to leave without us. We brushed our teeth and threw on the closest clothes and ran down to the van. We apologized to all the other people waiting. Another strike against this hotel.

The balloon company was called Atmosfer Balloons and the van took us to their main headquarters where we had about five minutes to gulp down some hot tea and cookies. Not their fault; we were just late getting there. We ended up in Cemal's group (pronounced like "Jamal") who was an animated young Turkish man with an endless supply of jokes. He told us he was really excited because we were the first group to go ballooning with him. We also had a lively group of passengers including two female teachers and a group of six college-age Columbians.

The balloon ascent was graceful and soft and so was the landscape as the rising sun poured into the basin of the town. Gerome was just waking up. All around us were other balloons drifting up into the air like Christmas ornaments, their different logos and colors crowding the sky. Below us stretched miles and miles of rugged desert broken by giant dusty karsts of earth. These karsts have holes and homes carved into them where the indigenous people, Romans and Ottomans lived until about 1950 when the government made them into "museums." The area was formed 60 million years ago when the three major volcanoes in the area erupted at the same time. Then over time water, wind and other elements smoothed the earth. We toured around for an hour and then landed for a celebration of cherry champagne and chocolate pound cake. Both were delicious. Then Cemal handed out diplomas for surviving the flight, but he wouldn't hand them to the girls without a kiss on the cheek. What a flirt!


We were dropped back at the hotel and decide to traipse into town to find out the best way to see the other things in the city. We ended up at Rose Tours which looked legitmate and in walks the six Columbians! There were three girls and three guys and two sets were coupled up. They were really nice. We decided to go on the Green Tour which takes you to the underground city, the Ilhara Valley for a hike, the Selime Monastery and the valley of the pigeons for 70 Lira per person.

Our guide for the trip was Mehmet, a young Turkish man who was a little quiet at first but he warmed up as we went along. It was a good thing we did a tour because each of the locations are 30-60 minutes apart. The first stop was Derinkuyu Yeralti Sehri which is the biggest of the underground cities. It has seven real floors, the eighth being mostly just a hole as if they had meant to keep expanding. The city extends for 85 meters and is about 40 meters deep at its lowest floor. Three thousand people lived in these cities any time invaders entered the area. They would then live in the city until the threat subsided. You can see large boulders under the ground that they would use to seal off different levels in case invaders located the city. It got pretty claustrophic as we went farther down because the staircases become so extremely narrow that you have to wait at one end to get back out until people are done filing into your area. It was too much for one of the men in our tour who panicked and had to be taken back up top. Overall very cool.


The next stop on the trip was the Ilhara Valley where we hiked three kilometers through lush forest along a river. The sides of the gorge stretched up around us on either side holding us in. It was like a mini Grand Canyon.


At the start of the hike was a 4th century church that had been cut into the rock with reliefs painted on the walls and ceilings. Mehmet explained that they were mistakenly called "frescoes" when really they are "sekko." The difference is that with frescoes the paint is mixed with plaster. Sekko utilizes the whites of pigeon eggs as the "plaster" on which the paint is applied. And it has lasted for centuries. Definitely gives you a new perspective on why egging cars is such a bad idea. That shit lasts forever!

On the hike I spent a lot of time talking to Juan, one of the Columbians, who was going to med school. It's so funny to see that people from a completely different continent still watch the same television. He was partial to House over Grey's Anatomy in terms of medical realism. I also got to know Diana, who gave me some great advice on bargaining. At the end of the hike we stopped for lunch at a restaurant in the gorge for chicken shish and meat pot. I think it tasted extra good because of the hiking.


At this point we were starting to get tired, but my exhaustion disappeared when we arrived at Selime Monastery. Built way up into the side of a massive hill, Selime never ends. We only saw one small part. At one point I looked up to see Diana and the other Columbians waving from way up the mountain. I had no idea how they got there but I was super jealous. Mehmet on the other hand was growing frustrated with our unruly group because we were always late back to the bus. Realistically they are lucky no one got hurt because there were definitely parts of this "tourist attraction" that were extremely unsafe. Regardless, the monastery definitely entered the top three for places I've seen so far on the trip along with the Topkapi Harem and the Dolmabache Ceremonial Hall. If only they had a toilet as I had to hold it all the way to the next gas station we could find.


The remainder of the tour was to Pigeon Valley and a demonstration of Onyx, because hey what's a tour without a stop at a local place to buy things? The only point of interest was learning that the pigeons were used to carry messages and their droppings were used to fertilize the area. Below is a picture of Uchisar Castle in the distance. We returned to the hotel exhausted.


After a nap, we headed out to dinner and ended up at Kale Terrasse. I was feeling awful thanks to my allergies (I'd spent all day blowing my poor red nose) so we sat inside. I had chicken shish again which was delicious (I love the seasoning they put on it) and my mom got meat and vegetables that came on a steaming plate with a fire underneath similar to fajitas. The waiter was super sweet and gave us a bunch of wine recommendations. He said we should visit Uchisar to try some Kochbag wines. So far Turasan has been the tastiest brand and Okuzgozu is the best grape.



Before heading back to the hotel, we stopped at the Internet cafe to attempt to get more information about our bags. While there the Columbians appeared again! Diana invited me to come out for a beer with them. We told Diana and Juan about Creepy Guy on our walk to the hotel and how I had to lock her in our room so that he couldn't get her. Then literally as Juan, Diana and I are about to walk down the stairs to exit the hotel I see Creepy Guy run to the door of our hotel! Juan offered to go see what the deal was but instead we just watched to see what he would do. Turns out it wasn't that exciting - he just asked if she'd gotten our alarm clock I'd asked for. What's shady is that he clearly waited until the three of us were almost out of sight to inquire after the clock. This time we really did leave because he saw us watching and on our way out ran into Creepy Girl from their hotel! Apparently she is some weirdo that works at their hotel and here she is climbing the stairs to my hotel?! Maybe the two of them will have creepy babies.

We then wandered down to meet the rest of the Columbians at an outdoor bar where we sat around drinking Efes talking about the next places in Europe they were headed, Game of Thrones which is their new favorite television show, and how many celebrities I ran into while living in L.A. I also finally learned all their names. Juan and Diana were the two single people and Sylvia and Martin and Valerie and Mateo were the two couples. Sylvia was pretty sleepy so she and Martin left while the rest of us wandered over to Fat Boys for some shisha. The owner explained to me that he named the place, Fat Boys, because his last name, Shishman, means Fat in Turkish. He also gave us some "raki" which is the national drink of Turkey. Once you add the water, it looks like milk but tastes licorice. This is because they use anise to make it. It tasted awful but I braved a couple swallows before returning to my beer.

Hanging out having shisha, we were having tons of fun when a strange young Turkish man walks up and asks to join us. Well "asks" probably isn't the word; he sort of sat down without waiting for an answer. Diana whispered that it was too bad I didn't speak Spanish. The guy had the look of a drug addict and words spilled out of his mouth as if he hadn't spoken to anyone in days. We all only half listened while giving each other looks. At one point he seemed to get the picture and abruptly left only to come back 20 minutes later to resume his blabbing. Either way the shisha was delicious (strawberry mint) and I enjoyed the majority of the company! Before I left to head back to my hotel Diana gave me her email. Hopefully someday I will make it to Columbia to pay her a visit!




June 27, 2011

Finally my first day to sleep in! Unfortunately, my plans to hang out by the pool and tan were abandoned when I opened the window to low-hanging clouds and a frigid breeze. My mom and I spent most of the days puttering around town.

We returned to Cafeturca because I'd been thinking about their samosas since we'd tried them on our first day in Cappadocia. The owner remembered us, gave us a 10% discount, and a small gift. It was really sweet of him. The waiter was adorable, always checking on us to make sure we had bread and blankets. He even brought napkins and spoons to cover the top of the wine glasses to keep out the bugs. Too bad the service at our hotel isn't this good!

After lazing around and checking our email we headed out for dinner. The internet guy suggested Bidek down the street. At first we were going to bail because he probably recommended it because a family member owned it but I said we should at least check out the menu. It was by far the cutest restaurant we've eaten at the entire trip. It was a 475 year old cave house that clearly still houses the family on the upper floors. The bottom floor was converted into a restaurant where you eat sitting on cushions on the floor. You also have to remove your shoes before eating at the table.

The atmosphere made us adventurous so we both ordered local dishes. My mom ordered a white bean soup and I ordered Manti which is a ravioli dish with yogurt and tomato sauce. The raviolis looked more like gnocchi and neither dish was as warm as we would've liked but we both cleaned our plates. They also had three local desserts to choose from although I couldn't make a decision. The waiter came to my aid and made me a little tasting plate of all three! One was warmed baklava that tasted like honey and flaky crust, one was roasted apricots dipped in grape molasses and the last was a local Gerome dessert that had the consistency of a paste and tasted like flour mixed with grape molasses. We washed it down with a bottle of wine which made us sleepy so we headed back to the hotel, packed and passed out.




June 28, 2011

Today we slept in again and then finished packing our bags. We spent an hour out by the pool since the weather was nice and we had some time before we had to check out. The total for three nights was 150 Euro which meant I owed 75 Euro. I only have 70 which the guy accepted. He then proceeded to ask me to pay for the shuttle from the airport to the hotel. I kindly pointed out that that shuttle didn't make it to us because he'd forgotten us. That shut him up. I also kindly pointed out that we had already booked a shuttle to the airport seeing as how we wanted to make sure we made it. He was totally cowed which made me like him even less. It's a shame because the hotel itself is great quality for the price and had our room been a little bigger I would totally stay here again. Unfortunately, the staff ensured that I will never give this place my recommendation. Stay somewhere else should you visit Gerome.

The car picked us up on time and we made it from Kayseri to Istanbul to Denizli without mishap. Luckily for us there was a shuttle taking people from the airport to downtown Denizli for 11 Lira per person. It's nice to have things work out for once!

Unfortunately, I spoke too soon. Just as we pulled over to change to the van that takes you the rest of the way to Pamukkale, the airplane water I'd taken with me crunched in the seat soaking my entire bag! I had taken everything out of the bag just as we are being yelled at to get out. We got out of the bus and were met by an old man with a van. I confirmed that the 11 Lira we had already paid would take us to Pamukkale and he vehemently said, "No 11 Lira for the bus; 11 Lira for my van!" I kindly responded saying that wasn't what we had been told. He then narrowed his eyes, pointed a finger in my face and said, "YOU ARE A LIAR!" Uh, that caught me a little off guard. It also turned my mother into an angry lioness. She glared up at the man standing her full 5 foot 3 inches and said, "Don't you call my daughter a liar!" Yeah it wasn't going anywhere good. He then retorted saying we could get a taxi because he wasn't driving lying Americans anywhere. Too bad I'd already climbed into his van and told him the only place I was getting out was at my hotel. Yelling at the top of his lungs he drove us like a crazy person to our hotel roaring about how obnoxious English-speaking people were. What a psycho!

He drove like a crazy person, screeching to a halt in front of our hotel. I slammed the money we "owed" him into his hand and started to stalk away when he pulled a 180 and apologized for yelling. I think he has been cheated in the past and it somehow came out on me. Regardless I was definitely holding back a flood of tears mostly because I was totally in shock. The people at the hotel were so sweet. The guy at the front desk clearly felt awful for me and rushed to get me some water. From what I could tell the hotel was adorable as were the staff I'd met so far. He took us to our room and gently asked if there was anything else he could do. We thanked him and said we'd be down for dinner shortly.

We ate a small dinner at the hotel restaurant which is outside and looks over the bright blue pool. I really like this place; it's too bad we are only here for one full day...We had meatballs for dinner and chatted with the guy whose name is Selami. He teaches 9-10 year olds and was super nice. Mom also got suckered by another meowing kitty who played her for two of our meatballs. What a softie! We headed to bed so that we could take full advantage of our day in Pamukkale tomorrow.

Last Days in Istanbul

June 23, 2011

Today we had very little agenda for once which was nice. We did wake up super early to visit the Basilica Cistern which was completely unnecessary since everyone sticks to a walkway so it's not like they will be in the way of your picture. Yes, I'll admit that I was excited to see it ever since Ally from the Bachelorette had a date there. I'm a loser - whatever.

It was haunting both because of the low lighting and the classical music they had playing. At the back of the Cistern are two columns with carvings of the head of Medusa at the base. We learned that the reason her head is upside down is so that she will not turn you to stone when you look at her. The Cistern was built in 527 and can hold up to 100,000 tons of water. In the Byzantine Period the Cistern met the water needs of the Sultan's palace and a good portion of the city but now it is just for display. I orginally thought that this would be my favorite attraction but the Harem still leads the pack.

After the Cistern, we began walking towards the spice market in an attempt to actually make it there today. Of course we made it about two feet before my mom dragged me into another ceramic shop. This one turned out to be pretty cool because instead of being a dealer's shop, the actual artist was selling - the store name is Firca. He told us all about his family's work including a table of cups, saucers and bowls with actual gold painted on them. One cup and saucer would be about $200 U.S. dollars. They were beautiful. My mom ended up buying a bowl with elephants and we left.


A couple stores down I found some bejeweled slippers that were light blue leather. I bought them for half the price that the slipper guy from yesterday was asking for his. Booyah. I'm sure I will wear them twice before they get a hole but I felt like a Turkish Dorothy in my sparkle shoes. Maybe ıf I click my heels together my bags wıill show up!

Finally we made it to the spice bazaar which is inside a long L-shaped building right next to the Yeni Mosque. It was extremely busy. The spice market is slightly less touristy than the Grand Bazaar but they sell many of the same things...in addition to spices obviously. At one of the spice shops we purchased dried apricots, pomegranate tea, saffron (which is hugely expensive in the U.S.), lemon-flavored pistachios, dried ginger, Turkish coffee and a bottle of Turkish Viagra (as a joke present for my aunt I promise). From there we ended up buying more scarfs of course and tried a street meat sandwich.



We decided to take the route past the Grand Bazaar to return back to the hotel because I'd seen a bag I really liked there and I wanted to get it. We accidentally found ourselves in the local market area that was packed full of Turkish people shopping. Suddenly the prices were a lot cheaper! But the fashion was terrible.

By the time we got to the Grand Bazaar we'd walked a mile up hill and stopped for a coffee. I had an iced coffee which they served in a tall glass with a metal straw. It was so icy and chocolatey! As we sat at the table we observed two Turkish women looking at necklaces at the stall nearby. One of them asked me to try on the different necklaces because they were shopping for a gift and their friend had similar coloring to me. I modeled the necklaces while we chatted. Next thing I know I find a necklace and a bracelet I really like! For those of you who don't know I always buy a bracelet in each country I travel to as a memento of the trip. And I got my necklace for cheaper than the Turkish women which made me proud. We found out later that the women bought the sugar holder from our cafe table! Apparently everything in Turkey is for sale - just name your price!

The next 30 minutes were spent trolling the Bazaar, which is enormous, ın search of the bag. It's yellow with hand-stitched designs on it. It is the only yellow bag I've seen in Istanbul which made it that much more special. We finally found the store and I snagged one.

On the way back to the hotel (we were exhausted) we ran into the owner of the restaurant, Aloran, who I'd promised we'd stop by so we ended up having drinks and Lavash bread. Lavash bread is the most popular bread in many Middle Eastern countries but it is traditionally made flat or wrapped around kebab. This Lavash was cooked so that it resembled a gigantic bread bubble with sesame seeds on top. Just imagine the air bubbles that you sometimes see in pizza crust and times the size by 1,000. I ate it with hummus and some local Efes beer which I'm a huge fan of.


We came back to the hotel, showered, admired our new stuff and then went to dinner because we didn't know what else to do. We went to the Star Cafe because they have hookah which I felt I had to do while in Turkey. My mom doesn't smoke though so it was a bit of an undertaking but the mint strawberry flavor was tasty. We then decided to order the Testi Topkapi after watching how they make it. Basically they put the meat, potato, onion and pepper in an earthenware jug and put it over a small fire at your table. Once it heats to a certain temperature they slice open the jug and pour out the steaming sauce. Then they turn the jug upside down and the bottom of the jug pops off and shatters on the ground. They bring it back to the table and pour the rest of the dish into the bowl to complete it.



We spent the next few hours chatting and then came back to the hotel to get to bed early since we are taking the Bosphorus cruise first thing in the morning.


June 24, 2011

Today we woke up early for our half-day trip with IBO Tours down the Bosphorus river. There were only a handful of people on our boat which was really nice. We didn't feel packed in. The first stop on the cruise was a small town whose name isn't important because it was a super lame town. Half of it wasn't even open. I recommend just getting a spot on the water and having some coffee during your "free time."

The next stop was far cooler - Beylerbeyi Sarayi or "Palace." This was the summer home of the Sultan of Turkey during the Ottoman Empire period. It's a little ridiculous since their regular home was just down the river. You'd think you'd pick somewhere were a change of scenery for a summer getaway. Our guide's name was Apo and he was very dynamic and extremely knowledgable. He told us that the Sultan who had the palace built (there are two other palaces) used over 16 tons of gold and silver on the decorations alone. It was this over indulgence that partially led to the revolution in the first place because eventually the army wasn't being paid because the Sultan spent so much money on parties and palaces. So they overthrew him.

Back before these palaces were built, the Sultan lived in Topkapi Palace among the people. He knew what they were saying and how they felt which made him a better ruler. But in the 18th century, sultans wanted to "modernize" and be more like western Europe causing them to build more ostentatious palaces away from the "commoners." This led to a large disconnect between ruler and the people and later led to revolution.

The palace was absolutely incredible and very opulent. Apo also explained that the purpose of this palace was to entertain so there are only waiting rooms, a reception and a few guest rooms. He pointed out that the giant cabinets in the halls held beds. The Turkish people sleep on the ground because it is better for your body and also eat on the ground with one knee pressed into their stomach to discourage overeating. It was honestly fascinating. Some of the rooms were paneled in wood because they were the rooms where the Sultan held secret gatherings. The wood prevented the echo of voices from wafting to the wrong ears.

Apo also told us that unlike medieval Europe where the eldest son ascended the throne in Ottoman Turkey the Sultan would select the best candidate from all of his sons. It didn't matter which wife, or how old, he would simply pick who he felt was most competent for the job. The crazy thing is that once that boy was chosen he either had to kill ALL of his brothers or banish them from the country. This was meant to maintain loyalty to the chosen Sultan by removing the competition. He also had to kill them by strangulation or poison because royal blood cannot be spilled.

He explained that Beylerbeyi Palace was last used by the Ataturk who led the war for Turkish independence. If the Turkish police overhear you saying anything negative about him you risk getting thrown in jail. Apo explained that the three most important things in Turkey are the system, the Ataturk, and the Republic. However, he did mention that the Ataturk had many secrets and people are starting to question his private life. He didn't have any real examples to give though.

You could definitely see the Ataturk's influence on Turkey. All the clocks in the palace are set to 9:05 because that is the time when the Ataturk died. The flag of Turkey was also changed to the current flag due to the Ataturk's 1920 revolution. The crescent and the start date back to the early tribes that practiced shamanism and prayed to the Sky God. The red backgrounf of the flag represents the blood spilled to free Turkey. Pretty crazy.

The next stop on the tour was Rumeli Fortress at the northern end of the Bosphorus were it narrows to its thinnest point before filtering into the Black Sea. Not much to tell here other than that it was built in 1452 in only four months (which is absolutely ridiculous) by a Sultan who was trying to conquer Istanbul. It was a very strategic position as it prevented boats from entering the Bosphorus. This fortress reminded me a lot of the Great Wall in China. Giant smoothed steps leading higher and higher to gorgeous views of the water. Beware the wind and the lack of railing though! Many people get vertigo on the way back down because the staircases are very narrow, built into the side of the rock walls, and provide zero in the way of a guard rail to keep you from falling. That didn't stop two idiot girls from doing jumping pictures at the top. I left before I had to watch one of them plunge to their death.

The fortress was the last stop on tour for us and there was a minibus waiting to take us back to the hotel. We decided to have the minibus drop us off at Dolmabahce Palace which was the true home of the Sultan when he wasn't kicking it at Beylerbeyi. Dolmabahce takes two and a half hours to go through, you have to go with a guided tour and it costs 20 Lira total to see the Semilik (administrative section) and the Harem (the Sultan's family quarters). If you get there after 3pm though you have to pick one or the other so we went with the Semilik. It was pretty much a bigger version of Beylerbeyi except there was way more amazing paintings of Arabian horses, war, and ships lost at sea. Also the finale of the tour was the Ceremonial Hall which in my opinion easily rivals the Sistine Chapel. It was the most awe-inspiring architecture and decoration I've ever seen complete with a 4.5 ton chandelier of silver crystal that has over 10,000 pieces and takes 3 months to clean completely.

We were extremely tired so we walked to the tram and took it back to Esans. The tram is super easy to use; you just put in 1.75 Lira and hit the button to receive your red coin. Drop the coin in the slot and enter the tramway area. Then just check what color line you need and jump on!

After showering, we decided to be picky about the restaurant for our last night in Istanbul. We ended up on a fun little street with lots of activity. The first restaurant we almost ended up at seemed shady and I'm pretty sure they tried to give us the special American menu so we bailed and walked farther down the street.

We finally went with Rumeli Cafe and sat up on the rooftop. We made friends with one of the waiters, Lufti, who told us all about being Muslim. He said that weddings are always on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and usually take place at the house of one of the family. Friday and Saturday are for partying and Sunday is the ceremony. He also explained that the reason we don't see people praying in the street every time there is a call to prayer is because the only time you really need to go to the mosque is on Fridays for the noon prayer. The other prayer times can be done wherever is most convenient. For dinner I had Ali Nazık Kebabı which is grilled mince meat with eggplant and yogurt. It was sooo good even though it didn't look super appetizing.

He ended up hanging out with us long after we paid the bill and finished our wine. We asked him where he was headed next and he said shisha around the corner. I gave my mom my best set of pleading eyes and she agreed to go. The shisha place was just up the street. We had apple shisha and played three games of backgammon before my mom insisted we go because she'd fallen asleep three times at the table. I sadly didn't win a single game. He was so fast that I couldn't even keep up with his moves. Dead tired we headed back to the hotel to pack and prepare for our flight tomorrow to Cappadocia.



June 25, 2011

We jumped in the taxi at 11:15am to make our 2:15pm flight on Turkish Airlines. The airplane was extremely comfortable and we arrived without a problem. However, our hotel, the Local Cave House, had completely forgotten to send our pickup car. The Kayseri airport is an hour driving from Gerome, the town we were staying in so we were in effect - screwed. I crumpled to the ground in exhaustion at yet another trial in the trip and told my mom she had to deal with it this time; i just didn't have it in me. She worked with this super polite tour guide who said he didn't have any room in his van but he worked it out so that we could catch a ride with a different van. Luckily, it actually took us to our hotel.

The hotel was absolutely adorable at first glance. The 7-9 rooms (I forget how many) are cut into the rock face of the mountain with a shining, clean pool at the base. There is even a little shisha lounge off to the side. We were greeted with Turkish tea and lots of tour options. The main guy was nice but seemed a little shady and his sidekick was totally creepy. Mom and I have literally started to call him, Creepy Guy. I keep expecting to open the window drapes and see his face staring in.

We ended up booking a hot air balloon ride for the next morning for 160 Euro each. We were told this was an amazing price and a very reputable company. We asked for a 4am wakeup call and then went out to find some food. We had dinner at a restaurant called Manzana that was amazing. It had a great view of "downtown" Gerome and a precious little black cat that we kept feeding steak and salmon to. She was really hungry; it's kinda of sad. My mom's steak with wine sauce was sooo good though which was very surprising!

It was getting pretty late so we headed back to the hotel so get a few hours of sleep before our hot air balloon ride tomorrow. So far my general opinion is the town is super cute but pretty sleepy. I'm already glad we are only spending a few days here.