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Published: March 10th 2007
Hi Everybody!
I apologize for an error in my last blog. We visited the home of the Virgin Mary and the Basilica of St. John the Apostle. We have not had internet access for days. We have stayed on several occasions in hotels that were on the outskirts of towns. We also have been very busy! We have seen many ruins both Greek and Roman. A few have been reconstructed using the ancient materials. They were impressive = especially at Ephesus. I have to admit that they are not my thing! I enjoy seeing the geological formations and just the land more. I loved going to the Cappadocia region. The landscape is very unusual there. Thirty million years ago, volcanoes covered this region with ash. The ash solidified into a substance called tuff, a material that erodes easily. Over time, wind and water wore away this tuff and strange formations resulted. Some are shaped like tall mushrooms and are called, fairy chimneys. Because this tuff was easy to carve out, people built living quarters, churches, stables, etc. in the sides of hills. The churches were Christian and had beautiful frescoes, arches, benches, etc. ·Today, some of dwellings have been made into hotels.
The Turks also carved out rooms underground. We visited one city in Kaymakli that had 8 underground levels. The people would go underground to get away from their enemies and also in bad weather. Large millstones would be rolled across the tunnels to block the entrances.
The people of Turkey take care of their land. Much of the land that we have seen has been farmland. We have seen several men plowing with one horse or mule. Women do a lot of the farm work. We have many times seen 5 or 6 women bent over in the fields working. The village farmers share a tractor. There are few cars in the villages. Most people are walking. Occasionally, we saw a small cart pulled by one horse. Some of the land looked like the Canadian province of Alberta with wide valleys of farmland. On one side of the valley was snow covered mountains and on the other side were smaller hills.
Once when passing through a town, we saw a large number of people gathered together watching camel wrestling. When we stop at a landmark, there are usually a few stalls selling handicraft items. 99% of the time, a man is running the stall. They are very friendly and enjoy bartering with you.
We have not seen any homeless people in the cities or countryside. I believe that the Turkey people take care of their family members. The women have been more conservative in their dress as we have gone east. I have only seen one woman completely covered except for her eyes.
Our tour group visited a carpet shop and watched the women weave. We also visited a pottery shop that was underground in carved out rooms. It had been in business for 250 years. Today, we visited the mausoleum of Attaturk, the first president of the Republic of Turkey. He is like George Washington and Abraham Lincoln rolled into one. The murals and buildings were very impressive!
We have tried many interesting foods. We have learned that they serve some foods at all 3 meals - soup, tomatoes, olives, cucumbers, cheeses, yogurt, many breads, etc. Their kebabs are delicious and taste like a grilled steak. They have hundreds of different ways to prepare eggplant and they are all tasty. Walt tried Raki, an anise flavored liquor. I thought it smelled like strong medicine. Overall, the food has been very good.
I have felt safer in Turkey than in many European or Asian countries. I would encourage anyone who likes to travel to come here. I think that you could rent a car and do it on your own. You might not want to go farther east than Cappadocia. My only disappointment with the trip is that I have lacked the opportunity to mix with the people.
One funny incident happened at our hotel in Izmir. Two of the girls in our tour group went to the indoor pool and spa. When they got ready to go into the pool, they noticed that everyone = men and women= were naked. A man told them that bathing suits were not optional. They quickly left.
Take care,
Everette
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L. Hamilton
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Hotel in Izmir
I'll bet Walt thoroughly enjoyed the activity in the pool!!