Turkish Delights

True to my yearning to discover newer corners of the world, the destination for LFC Trip 2012 was decided as Turkey, the Eurasian country. After all, not often during our travel research, do we (‘V’&‘I’) come across regions with so many unheard of names. 

Our week long trip began with a day’s halt at Istanbul, the economic capital of the land. And what a start it turned out to be. Istanbul being a transcontinental city – you could cruise from the European side of the city to the Asian side in about half an hour – has a perfect cultural mix of both the races. Nestled between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea, it is a charming city with a rich cultural history dating back to 660 BC during the Byzantine empire. The present version of the city is a witness of the several invasions and civilisations that it has seen from the ancient Persians, Athenians, Romans to the more recent Ottomans. Some interesting attractions like the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia Museum, the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar, combined with a Mediterranean weather and food made it a perfect start for the holiday.

Next on course was Ankara, the political capital. It was a brief stay here with respects paid to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the Father of modern Turkey, at the Anitkabir Mausoleum, before proceeding on to the more interesting Cappadocia.  The drive to Cappadocia was, by itself, a feast to the eyes with some mind-boggling landscapes and vast expanses en-route.

This destination, Cappadocia, is a pre-historic natural wonder situated in the eastern Anatolian region of Turkey. It is a hilly region with several volcanic peaks containing remnants of ancient settlements dating back to the pre-Hellenistic era (Persians, Hittites, Greeks) followed by the Armenians during the Byzantine era. The place is a living example of several under-ground cities used by early Christians as hiding places before Christianity became an accepted religion. These settlements/ under-ground cities were basically houses and churches with ventilation chimneys, abbeys, water-wells, wine production places, etc., that were carved out of the several volcanic rocks of all shapes and sizes in the region.  A visit to such ancient settlements only makes us wonder the evolution of civilisations offering us all the comforts that we are blessed with in our modern societies.

Before we thought we had, perhaps, covered the most exceptional place of the tour, came Pamukkale, our next halt.

Pamukkale (“Cotton Castle” in Turkish) is a city with several hot water springs and travertines of mineral deposits, particularly lime-stone, formed by a process of precipitation of such carbonate mineral deposits. This text book definition apart, the place is akin to one huge spa with several geo-thermal springs with medicinal properties, making it look like fluffy heaps of cotton. Hence, the name ‘Cotton Castle’ or ‘Cotton Fortress’, as is known in the tourist circuit. Unarguably, our 2 day stay here was the most relaxing of the week-long holiday. This white-castle region is situated at the top of the ancient Greco-Roman city of Hierapolis which is a UNESCO World Heritage Centre by itself with several ancient ruins of the city whose other attractions include a huge amphitheatre and the Cleopatra swimming pool.

After yet another series of ‘Wows’ of the awe-struck beauty, we resumed our journey to visit the next wonder that was probably the most familiar of the names in the itinerary.

Aphrodisias is the city named after Aphrodite, the Greek god of love, with the chief attractions here being the Temple of Aphrodite (which is presently in ruins) and the Stadium. 

The Stadium, measuring approx. 890 ft. by 200 ft., is one of the best preserved and largest, ancient architectural structures in the Mediterranean and was used for athletic events and Roman style gladiatorial games, until it was destroyed by an earthquake.  

From here, we proceeded to the coastal, port-town of Kusadasi located on the sea-side Aegan coast of Turkey.  It had the perfect resort-town kind of a feel to it with a bird’s eye view of a few Greek islands en route. This was the halt town from where we visited Ephesus, the last destination of our tour.

Ephesus is, again, an ancient, classical Greco-Roman city with a history dating back to 1^st Century BC. Located in the province of Izmir, a beach coastal town, the City is most famous for the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was a structure built and dedicated to Artemis, the Greek goddess, and is in ruins now after a series of building, re-building and eventual destruction. The ruins of the Library of Celsus and the huge, open air amphitheatre which was again used for Roman style gladiatorial combats were amazing sights to behold for a life time. 

By the time we were done visiting all these unheard of places and got ready to get back to Istanbul to catch the flight back home, we were still left in a state of amazement, marvelling at the very thoughts of all those jaw-dropping places that we had been to.

In addition to the Lokum and Baklava (“Turkish Delights”/Desserts) we picked up for folks back home and the souvenirs to keep our memories of the trip evergreen, these are some of the most different experiences I was fascinated by, during the tour:-

• Experienced Hailstones for the first time in my life
• Covered two continents within a gap of half an hour
• Survived only on fresh Mediterranean fruits for days together
• Saw day-light brightness till about 8 pm
• Visited never heard of terrains like a city full of rock formations, travertines and mineral    deposits
• Visited a city in ruins (with a promise to visit Hampi, the ruined Indian city, next)
• Went to a building that has been both a church and a mosque in the past, and is neither now (Hagia Sophia).

Indeed, Turkey, is as exotic as it can get and a land of contrasts. It truly bridges the Eastern & the Western world.