Last night in Turkey

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Today we were in both Asia and Europe, yesterday we were mainly in Asia...Turkey certainly spans the continents in a very interesting way.

Yesterday we were up at 4am an off to the Cappodocia, or Kapadokya as it is in Turkish, region. We flew with Turkish Airways and it was brilliant - much like an Air NZ flight BUT all the seats were leather...oft, sumptuous leather and the smell was devine. The drive from the airport in Cappodocia to the main sights was quite like travelling in part of Central Otago and the McKenzie country only without the big irrigators. Then we hit the area of the mind-blowing cities below the ground that date many hundreds of years BC, the fairy towers that are basalt from a volcanic eruption 2 million years ago that were then covered by sand and pumice, then eroded by the wind to reveal towers that people then carved into to build a home. This area is a mixture or very early civilisation, Roman bridges, tombs and villages, Greek, Ottoman and early Christian settlements then Islamic and Orthodox settlements.

Yes, people do still live in some caves. In the summers like Cntral Otago these homes are cool, and in winter when thy are under 2m of snow, they remain about 14 degrees inside.. They line everything with kilims (rugs).

The ancient terraced cities underground were brilliantly designed, complete with water, waste and air circulation systems. These cities, of which 200 have so far been discovered and some are linked by between 2 and 20km tunnels, were only lived in during times of siege by early tribes.

We visited one very early building that was a place or worship shared between he Muslims and the Christians of the village; 2 doors ere for the Islamic followers, 2 for the Christians.

We saw Roman built bridges and tombs, and our guide was of special significance because after he had spent many years at University studying languages, calligraphy, history and art, he returned to his home village in Cappodocia. He went to his mosque and noticed that the pillar were o ancient marble that could only have come from a Roman temple so he set about persuading the authorities to start looking for a Roman village under the earth. They eventually found one and we went to see the excavations so far. Sure enough the pillars were in pieces around the site. To walk around a building and see the mosaic floors from before Christ's time was mind-numbing.

There are too many stories to tell here but you should get some idea of our travels here from the photos.

Today we went over to the Asian part of Istanbul. The city is absolutely ginormous and the number of high-rise apartment buildings - modern and slum-like - just can't be described.

Our in-bound tourist company, Turkey Travel Bazaar, has not let us down once, and that's an enormous feat in a country as complicated as this and with the horrifying logistics of grid-locked traffic in narrow cobbled streets of old Istanbul where our hotel is, and the many, many, many, many (get the idea!) tourist buses and taxis, not to mention dazed tourists like us.

Here are some bullet points of our Turkey trip:

Audi police cars

Dikkart - it means danger or caution

Tiny tea glasses and apple tea

Shops and restaurants that never seem to close

The high regard the Turkish people have for NZers

The Turkish bath in the 300 year old Cagaloglu Hamam

Nuts and dried fruit - loads and loads of them. Cashews, dates and so many varieties of Turkish Delight

Rural depopulation

Double articulated trams

Pedestrian just walk out into the traffic; patient drivers and tidy cars of many makes

Leather fashioned into stunning clothing designs - they are as light and fine as silk yet durable and VERY expensive

Rubbish, cats and dogs everywhere

Historic buildings under renovation are shrouded in a canvas that shows what it will look like when finished

Smokers - this must be the smoking capital of the world. Cigarettes are $3.50 for a 20 pack

Petrol dearer than NZ

Men, men, men everywhere and very little sign of Turkish women. Men are the shop keepers who are outside of their shops enticing people in to buy. They gather in parks to eat lunch; on streets to smoke and drink apple tea. They are very friendly but have no guilt when over-charging gullible tourists.

Hundreds of men fishing from every available bridge and wharf

The rich gold, mosaics, crystal, glass, cabinetry and furnishings in palaces

Su leaving not only her heart in Cappodocia but also her hat - the wind too it, then losing her new silver chain attached to her medic alert bracelet on the plane

Having to buy a bigger suitcase. We started with just a 15kg case each, now we have one of those plus a new rather larger bag

Awful Russian olives and the best grapes ever eaten.

Roasted pumpkin seeds right from the ancient clay oven

A city that is very, very expensive to be a tourist in but some how the experience of being here masks the pain

and we'll stop there because we are up in a few hours to catch the 1 hour flight to Budapest.

Enjoy the pix

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