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G'day,
I am writing this blog on the verge of leaving behind the Asian continent and embarking for the European. I am in Turkey until tomorrow morning, when I fly to Greece for the weekend. Athens will be a short taste of Europe before a month long stay in Spain. So my adventurous tales for this blog update will continue with Turkish observations and experiences. My original plan (but who ever sticks to thier plan once on the road??) was to have travelled through Iran, Bulgaria, Romania, Albania and from then into Greece by this time. However a lack of a Iranian visa, lack of excitment at more border crossings and long bus trips and an aversion to the cold led me to abandon plans, stay in Turkey and immerse myself more fully in the amazing food, culture and people of this huge land.
After Istanbul I set out for one place in Turkey that to all Australians reading this needs no introduction - Gallipoli. For this trip I signed up to a tour, to fully experience the Anzac rite of passage. No surprises that all fellow travellers on the tour were Australian. We had a great Turkish tour guide, and it was interesting to hear all the legendary names (Long Neck, Lone Pine, Anzac Cover etc) and the stories behind them from him. The area of land which was fought over was so small, and the distance between the Turkish and ANZAC trenches was alarming to measure in person. Anzac Cove, where the misjudged landing occured, is a riciulously small strip of beach with a steep cliff - how thousands of soldiers fit on this small stretch gave me a clear insight into why they were nicknamed diggers - literally the only option would have been to dig in or swim out to sea. I found myself thinking I would have swum out to sea and not looked back - I don't think there is much of the Anzac spirit in me!
The gravestones are so well looked after by the Turkish authorities. The inscriptions were all along a similar theme - "For God and Country." How things have changed in Australia, especially as the Queen was often invoked. The ages on the gravestones were mostly 19 years old, over and over. Seeing a 23 year old I thought - he is older.................and then I realised; that is my age!!!!!!!!!!!
The Turkish commemorative plaques and descriptions were very similar to the images invoked with the Anzac legend....bravery, friendship etc. I could see how the exchanges between the Turkish and Anzac trenches of food/letters/mementos could easily have happened during the ceasefires - on both sides were young men feeling homesick. The nationality did not happen, they were experiencing the same emotions I reckon.
I arranged to take a midnight bus to depart from Gallipoli to my next stop - Selcuk. I was slighty apprehensive about travelling so late at night but need not have worried - this is Turkey - the place does not sleep! Whilst waiting for my bus in the middle of town I observed the teenage couples walking hand in hand along the water, and the families enjoying the (very) fresh air even though it was almost midnight and a weeknight. I wished Perth had some of the atmosphere. I was in the nightlife district of the town, down at the harbour. This was a very positive comment though - as nightlife does not include drunken yobbos!
Around the bus station were groups of people banging drums and dancing around - mainly men. I had wondered what was going on, as had seen this sight in other bus stations. I soon found out that the men with the shaved heads and Turkish flags wrapped around them who were at the centre of the groups dancing were departing for the military. This happends once every 3 months - a big call up for the compuslory military service for every Turkish man. Around the bus stations across the country this celebration of patriotism and farewell occurs. It made my bus experience a memorable one!
My destination of Selcuk was chosen to visit the nearby Roman ruins of Ephesus which were once the second biggest city in the Roman empire (after Rome itself). A tendency for earthquakes to occur at the sight meant they have been rebuilt a couple of times and eventually abandoned. I had a pleasant visit to these well preserved ruins, taking shelter in one of the buildings and sharing a picnic lunch with some stray kittens. The following day I visited St John's Basilicam where it is believed the Mother Mary spent her last days with St John - whom Jesus had entrusted to care for his Mother. The sky was perfectly blue on this day and I was the only tourist at the site - so I sat next to the altar area and did some journal writing for a couple of hours. Eventually however the security guard spotted me so my solitude ended. I was feeling annoyed at his questions (name, country, where were my parents etc???) until I realised he had the keys to the Castle which was locked to the public for restoration - a restoration which apparently had been ongoing for 20 years and was not due to finish for many more. Some innocent questions... "oh is the castel locked?" "what a pity" "have you been inside, what is it like" soon resulted in me breaking into the castle with the security guard! The view from the inside was amazing - although no sign of any restoration work being done. After flashing a smile at the security guard in thanks I hastily departed as he was in the middle of asking for my email address.
Next on the agenda - bath time. I went to Pammakale, where the unique geographical features produce hot springs. Not only are there hot springs, but the chemical blah blah reaction (science not my strong point) create a white surface from which the pools form. It looked like snow and was awesome. I had a great time splashing about in an outdoor pool in the middle of winter, although it was not so much fun to try and modestly change from wet underwear to dry warm clothes while a busload of tourists were milling about. Whilst splashing about I met a German film student holidaying with his Dad - he ditched the tour group and we hung out amongst the hot springs and nearby Roman ruins (yep more Roman ruins). Can't really tell you much about the ruins, was more fascinated by the German's story of jumping onboard Paul Allen's (yep the Microsoft billionaire) yacht and getting a lift when backpacking through southern Spain during the summer!!!! Apparently they wrote him a note saying they were film students making a documentary, the note was passed from the staff to the billionaire and Paul Allen invited them aboard. Good on you Till - best story still not sure if I believe you though!!!taking time out from being on the move.
Then from the 6th of December until today I have been hanging out in Fethiye - the town down on the Mediteranean coast. I had already visited here and wanted to return as the weather is warmer here and the people are great. Have spent the time hanging out with new Turkish friends and learning more about the tourist industry, learning more Turkish, playing backgammon, watching futbol and generally taking time out from being on the move all the time. Have now got itchy feet and am looking forward to experiencing a weekend in Athens, then Christmas in Madrid! Have lined up some volunteering in Madrid over Christmas, possibly at a kids XMas party and shelter for people experiencing homelessness. This is through the organisation I used to work at in Australia - stay tuned for how it goes.
I hope everyone reading this has a magnificent Christmas. For those in Australia please drink a cold beer in the sun for me whilst I will hopefully be having a white Christmas!!!!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Trisha xoxoxo
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