Not a lot of Tourism, but a Lot of Places to Pray

---

Gaziantep, Southern Anatolia, Turkey



June 9^th 2014



“Only the truth of who you are, if realized, will set you free.”
Eckhart Tolle



I had been struggling with 'being' in Turkey after almost a year in India. This was due to a combination of many things, including the relative jump in living expenses. But I think too it was about not feeling at home with the flood of western tourists in Istanbul and Kapadokya (the places I had so far been in other than a stint on a farm). My arrogance leads me to think I can somehow be above 'tourism' and be an authentic 'traveler' and find the 'real' Turkey. Well, I should laugh at myself (and I do). But in any case, I started to travel eastwards on a quest.... to find places and people who are not so impacted upon by western tourists.

Gaziantep (known locally as Antep) may well be my first step to success on this quest. Here I found a place with very few tourists, and so there is consequently not yet a developed culture of feigning to the tourist trade. The old part of the city is beautifully restored and appears in places to be just like the colourful markets of Istanbul but...... no hustle and bustle. Throughout the city are old mosques and other buildings lovingly restored or preserved (complete with tastful explanatory notices on their historical significance in multiple languages including English), but still very much in everyday practical use. The mosques in particular all seem to serve as community focal points, with communiy toilet facilities, lazy tree-shaded courtyards, and simple local foodstalls and/or tea shops.

There is a Muslim tradition here whereby guys parade around the market offering free cold 'sherbet' drinks (don't ask me what they are made of.... a peculiar slightly bitter taste, but refreshing). The faithful donate money to these guys as a religious service so that they will provide this refreshment to passer's by in the heat of the day

The specialty of Antep is its high quality pistachio nuts. And the queen of sweets made with pistachios is the famous Antep Baclava.

I quickly found the 'feel' I had craved for.... genuine connection with people in the market who simply wanted to chat (in whatever limited way we could with our respective lack of each other's language) and to offer me a ca (local black tea which is drunk in similar volume and frequency as chai is in India). A shoemaker, a sweetshop owner, the hotel assistant, and a son of a garment store were among my 'new' friends.

New energy for travel.... and onwards east.



Scroll down for more pics

---

Comments

[Sarita Barpanda]

Loved it wonderful to travel the way you do Paul, you really meet the local people and the flavour of the city comes through, eagerly waiting for your next piece....

[D MJ Binkley]

Meeting the locals
Glad you made some connections with the locals. Happy travels.