Merhaba [Hello] Turkey!

Turkey was recommended by Grace, so hence I came to Turkey without any notions of what it would be. I came with an appetite (no pun intended) to consume anything that this country offered and so far, Istanbul, Cappadocia, Olympos and Cirali have satiated my hunger. We have seen so much in a span of a week.

Istanbul was more city than city could be. It was consuming. We walked on this popular strip where cars dared not entered since the sheer number of people that retreated to this hub of eateries and shops multiple by the hour. Tucked away in the quieter cobblestone streets that wrapped the Blue Mosque, Haga Sophia, and other aged gems – we soaked in history and the gloomy weather. The little rain and clouds we encountered just added to our appreciation of Cappadocia as we reached its peaks of warmth and wonder.

Cappadocia, Mother Earth’s magical sandbox created fantastic and fun fairy chimneys. These conical rock formations of tufa and basalt from fallen volcanic ash were shaped by ten thousand years of wind and flood. Each sculpture played up our imaginations to discover shapes that reminded us of Snoopy, Casper the friendly ghost, and so much more. The Goreme Open Air Musuem where ancient civilizations carved out homes in hopes of evading religious persecution. You can see some spaces used for churches by its painted walls of Christian symbols. Then there were the underground caves; we visited Derinkuyu which went 14 levels underground. Our tour took us down eight levels and to my surprise most rooms like the meeting hall or school were open with lots of ceiling space. We also strolled through Ihlara Valley cradled in the hard-etched walls of the mountains that soared high above.

Olympus and neighboring Cirali gave us sun-filled days by the water. We ate best, hands down, Turkish home cooked food at family-owned Saban’s Pansion, caught up on endless hours of sleep, [Grace] swam in the calm clear sea, hiked to witness the Cirali flames that have been burning for two thousand years from natural gases trapped underneath the earth, not to mention toasted some marshmallows that perfect strangers offered us! All of this that recharged us for the rest of Turkey!

And now we are off to explore Kas, Fethiye, Pamukkale, and Ephesus… here’s to the wonderfully unexpected!

[Link to photos to come soon]