1. Carry your passport with you at all times. You can't board a domestic flight in a foreign country without it, especially a country that has all hostile neighbours. (or check into a hotel)
2. Don't put leaky items in overhead lockers, people sitting under them get upset when dripped upon.
3. Don't close your eyes and pray when in a Turkish or Greek taxi, you may get summarily dumped out before you reach your journeys end.
4. when you are trying to move fast to let an ill person out of a centre seat, try not to spill a glass of water down the neck of the sleeping person in front of you...
5. Don't expect N Z taxi drivers to help you with your bags getting into their taxi, they won't.
Monday, 4 May 2015
The long road home
Well after a bomb exploding just down the road from us on Saturday afternoon, we left the hotel at 2040 hrs as previously arranged, we felt we were leaving at the right time. On the way back to the airport, our transport stopped, one of the passengers had left his bag behind. Just as well we were not in a hurry.
Anyway we got to Istanbul's Atuturk airport (the one on the European side) with hours to spare as this was the last shuttle out. Knowing that Atuturk airport used a shuttle system, Lynley set about trying to get assistance for me. We had to wait until the check in counter opened for that. While we were waiting, I sat down next to the weigh station for bags, where people were busy repacking to ensure compliance with the baggage regulations. Along came an Egyptian gentleman, who became over friendly rather rapidly to the extent of him proposing to me. I was quite taken a back with this, he asked me for my phone number, so I gave him my Turkish one, I will never use again. I suspect he wanted to migrate to NZ. I didn't want to cause a scene in the airport, so we got up to wait in the queue for China southern airlines to open. I don't know if there is a sign on my forehead that says sucker, but Lynley reckons his intentions were spelt s c a m ! We got assistance, and we're wheeled away, but Istanbul's airport people reckoned they could only check us as far as Urumqi. We would have to collect our bags at Urumqi airport, clear Chinese customs, and then book in for the domestic flight to Guangzhou. (all within under 2 hrs). Eventually we boarded the flight at Atuturk(by hoist), and we were off, but I felt terrible. Half an hour later or less, I was violently I'll before the seat belt sign was even turned off. I must have picked up the gastrointestinal bug we had been trying hard to avoid, or it may have been the proximity of the Egyptian 'gentleman'. Anyway I spent much of that 7 hour flight locked in the small room.
I felt better when we landed, and had to get off the aircraft by hoist again, and the young man sent to help, smoothed the way through customs, helped with bags, filled out our arrival card in Chinese characters, and raced us through the maze that was Urumqi airport. We only just got on to the flight to Guangzhou just before it took off. But his assistance was invaluable, he checked our luggage through to Auckland. So we would not have to worry at Guangzhou airport. But he took my crutch away, said it had to go in the hold, and that I could use a wheelchair on the flight??
I guess you win some and lose some. We never would have made that connection without his help. At least we had a cool view of the Chinese mountains before it got dark Sunday night. All of China is on the same time, so between Istanbul and Urumqi we went forward 5 hours in time. On arrival at Guangzhou airport we didn'thave to worry about the bags, so we accepted the help offered, and this time we got taken to a VIP lounge to wait for transportation to the international terminal. We made good use of that time having a shower and I washed my clothes and dried them with a hairdryer enough to put back on, at least I was now presentable. They got us out of there quickly and we had to wait at the gate a one time for the flight to Auckland, again boarding by hoist. We met a nice young Irish-English man doing his O E coming to NZ and later on to Australia for a couple of years. He was most pleasant and considerate.
When we arrived I decided to get out of the aircraft under my own steam as Auckland has airport has air bridges to get off flights. However when clear of the airbridge a lovely lady appeared with a wheelchair and I got taken rapidly through the customs and immigration. Steve and Sandra were there to meet us and we were off, but of course it was now 1700 hrs in Auckland and the traffic was heavy. Going up Queenstown Rd hill the engine boiled and Stephen had to keep turning the motor off each time we stopped. We stopped in Greenlane to allow the engine to cool, and after a while we set off again. The traffic head eased a little but was still heavy. The same problem occurred when we went up the harbour bridge and we came to the end of the road in Onewa Rd. Steve called the AA, and we called a taxi for the remainder of the trip. He didn't arrive for ages and when he did, he refused to help us with the bags. Lynley told him he was lazy, and fortunately Steve helped. Eventually we got home,, and Leny came by with the TVNZ recording of Lynley planting the Girls Brigade poppies at Chunuk Bair.
Taxi drivers seem to have the same bad apples everywhere, but most are great.
I am home, but Lynley flies to Wellington this morning, takes the train to Masterton, then get picked up at the railway station there, and I guess she should make it home by 1300 hrs today. She has time off, but I will be back to work tomorrow and it will all become a memory.
Thanks to all those who have helped us, particularly Steve, and the airport worker in Urumqi, who spoke no English, but ensured we made that impossibly tight connection.
Anyway we got to Istanbul's Atuturk airport (the one on the European side) with hours to spare as this was the last shuttle out. Knowing that Atuturk airport used a shuttle system, Lynley set about trying to get assistance for me. We had to wait until the check in counter opened for that. While we were waiting, I sat down next to the weigh station for bags, where people were busy repacking to ensure compliance with the baggage regulations. Along came an Egyptian gentleman, who became over friendly rather rapidly to the extent of him proposing to me. I was quite taken a back with this, he asked me for my phone number, so I gave him my Turkish one, I will never use again. I suspect he wanted to migrate to NZ. I didn't want to cause a scene in the airport, so we got up to wait in the queue for China southern airlines to open. I don't know if there is a sign on my forehead that says sucker, but Lynley reckons his intentions were spelt s c a m ! We got assistance, and we're wheeled away, but Istanbul's airport people reckoned they could only check us as far as Urumqi. We would have to collect our bags at Urumqi airport, clear Chinese customs, and then book in for the domestic flight to Guangzhou. (all within under 2 hrs). Eventually we boarded the flight at Atuturk(by hoist), and we were off, but I felt terrible. Half an hour later or less, I was violently I'll before the seat belt sign was even turned off. I must have picked up the gastrointestinal bug we had been trying hard to avoid, or it may have been the proximity of the Egyptian 'gentleman'. Anyway I spent much of that 7 hour flight locked in the small room.
I felt better when we landed, and had to get off the aircraft by hoist again, and the young man sent to help, smoothed the way through customs, helped with bags, filled out our arrival card in Chinese characters, and raced us through the maze that was Urumqi airport. We only just got on to the flight to Guangzhou just before it took off. But his assistance was invaluable, he checked our luggage through to Auckland. So we would not have to worry at Guangzhou airport. But he took my crutch away, said it had to go in the hold, and that I could use a wheelchair on the flight??
I guess you win some and lose some. We never would have made that connection without his help. At least we had a cool view of the Chinese mountains before it got dark Sunday night. All of China is on the same time, so between Istanbul and Urumqi we went forward 5 hours in time. On arrival at Guangzhou airport we didn'thave to worry about the bags, so we accepted the help offered, and this time we got taken to a VIP lounge to wait for transportation to the international terminal. We made good use of that time having a shower and I washed my clothes and dried them with a hairdryer enough to put back on, at least I was now presentable. They got us out of there quickly and we had to wait at the gate a one time for the flight to Auckland, again boarding by hoist. We met a nice young Irish-English man doing his O E coming to NZ and later on to Australia for a couple of years. He was most pleasant and considerate.
When we arrived I decided to get out of the aircraft under my own steam as Auckland has airport has air bridges to get off flights. However when clear of the airbridge a lovely lady appeared with a wheelchair and I got taken rapidly through the customs and immigration. Steve and Sandra were there to meet us and we were off, but of course it was now 1700 hrs in Auckland and the traffic was heavy. Going up Queenstown Rd hill the engine boiled and Stephen had to keep turning the motor off each time we stopped. We stopped in Greenlane to allow the engine to cool, and after a while we set off again. The traffic head eased a little but was still heavy. The same problem occurred when we went up the harbour bridge and we came to the end of the road in Onewa Rd. Steve called the AA, and we called a taxi for the remainder of the trip. He didn't arrive for ages and when he did, he refused to help us with the bags. Lynley told him he was lazy, and fortunately Steve helped. Eventually we got home,, and Leny came by with the TVNZ recording of Lynley planting the Girls Brigade poppies at Chunuk Bair.
Taxi drivers seem to have the same bad apples everywhere, but most are great.
I am home, but Lynley flies to Wellington this morning, takes the train to Masterton, then get picked up at the railway station there, and I guess she should make it home by 1300 hrs today. She has time off, but I will be back to work tomorrow and it will all become a memory.
Thanks to all those who have helped us, particularly Steve, and the airport worker in Urumqi, who spoke no English, but ensured we made that impossibly tight connection.
Saturday, 2 May 2015
Istanbul, last day, the day after Mayday.
Well after the roads being blocked yesterday, we decided to take a bus tour this morning. We got on the red bus first, through the city and over the Bosphorus into Asia, and back., Tried to get some early mornings photos of the Bosphorus but the smog was too marked. The red bus ride wasn't too bad, we got on the first bus out, and the air appeared to clear somewhat in terms of photos. As we came back across the Bosphorus, and traveled to the city centre, the police barricades were obvious and waiting to be picked up. There was a police presence around the streets, and Taksim Sq was completely deserted. Down by the port, there was broken glass and water on the ground where the water cannons were used. The number of people up in the Hippodrome was back to its usual hordes, although there was slight congestion, the red bus was just A little late back to the Hippodrome.
We then got on the blue one, around the golden horn. This was OK to start with as The trip was ok around the golden horn waterway. we were moving ok until we came back to Fatih. It was so congested and we couldn't get anywhere we were gridlocked. This became interesting as first I saw a child moving between the rows of vehicles selling water, then a man with a tray of bread rolls balanced on his head selling them, a woman with a baby begging, and eventually a child begging. We were stuck in this for 90 minutes, it was a relief to get off the bus. We had lunch, I was going to buy some bits to take home, but I wasn't impressed with the quality, so I decided against. Wish I had got some earlier at Corinth, Ephesus, Canakkele or Cappadocia. Such is life.
Towards Taksim square.
The hippodrome relatively deserted early this morning.
From the Asian side of the Bosphorus bridge looking to the Black Sea.
The President's yacht again.
The Asian side.
The old and new.
The deserted hippodrome early this morning.
We then got on the blue one, around the golden horn. This was OK to start with as The trip was ok around the golden horn waterway. we were moving ok until we came back to Fatih. It was so congested and we couldn't get anywhere we were gridlocked. This became interesting as first I saw a child moving between the rows of vehicles selling water, then a man with a tray of bread rolls balanced on his head selling them, a woman with a baby begging, and eventually a child begging. We were stuck in this for 90 minutes, it was a relief to get off the bus. We had lunch, I was going to buy some bits to take home, but I wasn't impressed with the quality, so I decided against. Wish I had got some earlier at Corinth, Ephesus, Canakkele or Cappadocia. Such is life.
The police barricades being removed.
Towards Taksim square.
The hippodrome relatively deserted early this morning.
A very deserted Taksim square.
The Asian side.
The Bosphorus bridge from the European side.
part of the old city walls.
More of the city walls
The side of
the golden horn waterway.
The Bosphorus bridge.
The Atuturk bridge
The old and new, a motorway bridge and the old city walls.
a very narrow lane, full of shops
The hippodrome was heaving with people as we walked down after the 2 bus trips, and there was huge congestion in both the spice markets and the Hippodrome. Then came a very loud and long call to prayer around 1315 hrs, and
the crowds just seemed to vanish, presumably into the mosques.
The deserted Taksim square.
Police at Taksim square. (Mopping up?)
Many sirens and helicopters this afternoon. The English speaking newspaper today ran an article about the possibility of civil war, as 42% of the population do not believe the upcoming elections will be fair. Scare mongering or do the people really believe this? The poll concerned did have a smallish sample size although, all regions were represented.
Friday, 1 May 2015
My take on events here.
Well I feel so lucky to have visited Turkey and Greece. It may not always be possible to do this.
The history is wonderful as is the views the scenery and it is all something else. However there are some factions here that want to see all early Christian relics gone, and given that Turkey is not only part of the Islamic alliance, it is also an associate member of the European Union. It is coming up to an election in 5 weeks, there is internal strife with some of the judiciary being jailed for coming to the 'wrong' decsion about freedom of the press, The TL is falling, there are oil issues, they have some fairly hostile neighbours, The president appears to be unpopular, and somewhat autocratic, and today's riots in Taksim square, with rubber bullets and tear gas, all would not appear to be well. A recent poll of workers shows a definite discontent among workers, this does not bode well for it.s future.
Atuturk is a national hero here and rightly so.. I look at how Tito held Yugoslavia together, is the Atuturk influence waning? He clearly was good for Turkey, but fear, it may go the way of perhaps Egypt and wind up with the conditions all brewing together for a perfect storm, and wind up with another Arab spring?
One would hope not for so much has been done up till now for the good of Turkey, and towards peace. The Peace is possible signs at Canakkele need to be heeded.
The locals I speak to seem to feel the unrest.
The history is wonderful as is the views the scenery and it is all something else. However there are some factions here that want to see all early Christian relics gone, and given that Turkey is not only part of the Islamic alliance, it is also an associate member of the European Union. It is coming up to an election in 5 weeks, there is internal strife with some of the judiciary being jailed for coming to the 'wrong' decsion about freedom of the press, The TL is falling, there are oil issues, they have some fairly hostile neighbours, The president appears to be unpopular, and somewhat autocratic, and today's riots in Taksim square, with rubber bullets and tear gas, all would not appear to be well. A recent poll of workers shows a definite discontent among workers, this does not bode well for it.s future.
Atuturk is a national hero here and rightly so.. I look at how Tito held Yugoslavia together, is the Atuturk influence waning? He clearly was good for Turkey, but fear, it may go the way of perhaps Egypt and wind up with the conditions all brewing together for a perfect storm, and wind up with another Arab spring?
One would hope not for so much has been done up till now for the good of Turkey, and towards peace. The Peace is possible signs at Canakkele need to be heeded.
The locals I speak to seem to feel the unrest.
The President's yacht. It was originally Atuturk's.
Bosphorus tour Mayday
Lovely trip up towards Black Sea.
Mosque next to our hotel from the sea. We started in the Marama sea, sailed around the golden horn( old Istanbul) and off up the Bosphorus, stage there seemed to be no people out or much traffic on the bridges, for a city that is normally hugely congested.
The city old walls dating back to 500 A D.
More of the early walls
The outside walls of the palace
Lighthouse along the Bosphorus
The boys military school on the Asian side
More city walls.
The Sultans bridge, full of traffic.
The Bosphorus bridge
A military police launch, we had to wait for it before boarding
The call to prayer many people praying outside this mosque
Towards the Black Sea.
The Bosphorus bridge, no traffic!
Looking up to the Black Sea.
unusual architecture
Back index the Bosphorus bridge, this time traffic.
Looking over to the railway station that was the terminus of the Orient express.
Back in Istanbul May day 2015
We got back in lateish last night but got up early wanting to see the Hagia Sophia museum and the blue mosque, but I hadn't banked on it being not just a public holiday, but a Friday, so of course a visit to the blue mosque was out. We got up to the hippodrome and I went to the Hagia Sophia museum, while Lynley looked at the palace. We agreed to meet back at midday by the tree by the street back to our hotel. Well I went into the Hagia Sophia museum, and saw very little of the church it once was, most the Christian art had been drawn over in the last 600 yrs, of the Ottoman empire.
The baptismal area fascinated me, it was large enough for full immersion baptisms of all ages. Even new babies were fully immersed as were adults.
There was an area in the church where Roman emperors were crowned, there is what looks like a confessional and an altar.
Off to one side it is possible to see some of the original art, most particularly on the ceilings and there is one pictured in a mirror as you leave the museum.
Marcus told us the story of this area, when Constantinople became Muslim and fell to the Ottoman empire. The people knew of the impending battle, and they hid the whole city (then 20000) in the church. There was a baby crying, the first Sultan picked up the baby, settled him and handed him back to his mother. He told the people that they had nothing to fear, from then on they would be his people
The obelisk
The blue mosque
The German fountain in the hippodrome. The hippodrome area was originally a race track used by the Greeks, for horse (chariot-maybe the forerunner of trotting?)racing.
The blue mosque and the gardens of Tulips.
One of very few Christian art works left in the Sophia museum.
In the baptistry courtyard
The notice in the courtyard
The massive font, larger than a pool.
The cross on the water inlet
The mirrored art work.
Looking down the hippodrome.
When I left there, I couldn't get into the blue mosque because it was Friday, I noticed the art gallery was closed and surprisingly few people around the hippodrome. I thought I would just wait for Lynley, but of course I saw umpteen carpet sellers. Anyway eventually I saw her across the other side from our meeting place, she had also been waiting. We both noticed the riot gear for the police lying on the ground, but after the security at Gallipoli thought nothing of it. There also were a lot of sirens in the background, hardly any taxis, and when I enquired about a bus ride around the city it was suggested that half was cancelled and we could do it tomorrow, I thought that odd. There was a tour of the Bosphorus going by ferry, so we thought we would do that.
It was difficult to get a taxi there, the one we got didn't want to take us really and he grove like a mad thing to the pier.
We later found all public transport cancelled,
and a lot of roads were closed, many people were walking, although the place seemed very deserted.
The baptismal area fascinated me, it was large enough for full immersion baptisms of all ages. Even new babies were fully immersed as were adults.
There was an area in the church where Roman emperors were crowned, there is what looks like a confessional and an altar.
Off to one side it is possible to see some of the original art, most particularly on the ceilings and there is one pictured in a mirror as you leave the museum.
Marcus told us the story of this area, when Constantinople became Muslim and fell to the Ottoman empire. The people knew of the impending battle, and they hid the whole city (then 20000) in the church. There was a baby crying, the first Sultan picked up the baby, settled him and handed him back to his mother. He told the people that they had nothing to fear, from then on they would be his people
The obelisk
The obelisk given by the Egyptians
When I left there, I couldn't get into the blue mosque because it was Friday, I noticed the art gallery was closed and surprisingly few people around the hippodrome. I thought I would just wait for Lynley, but of course I saw umpteen carpet sellers. Anyway eventually I saw her across the other side from our meeting place, she had also been waiting. We both noticed the riot gear for the police lying on the ground, but after the security at Gallipoli thought nothing of it. There also were a lot of sirens in the background, hardly any taxis, and when I enquired about a bus ride around the city it was suggested that half was cancelled and we could do it tomorrow, I thought that odd. There was a tour of the Bosphorus going by ferry, so we thought we would do that.
It was difficult to get a taxi there, the one we got didn't want to take us really and he grove like a mad thing to the pier.
We later found all public transport cancelled,
and a lot of roads were closed, many people were walking, although the place seemed very deserted.
Fairy Chimneys 30 April 2015
Well we had finished our south Cappadocia tour and everyone else was heading for the airport, and I thought we were all on the same flight, but we were told we had to go there by a different shuttle. I thought this was odd, and we had our gear so no need to go back to the hotel. Anyway on arrival at our travel agency, it turned out to be authentic holidays, Fairy Chimneys, and we were welcomed by all the people organising the Azamara Journey tour. It turns out that their Turkish office is in Cappadocia! A minute later Marcus came out to talk to us, and we assured him we have had the most marvellous time, and we talked about the time ashore on ANZAC day. He told us the story of the St Sophia Church, and the Ottoman conquest in 1453. What a fitting end to our time in Cappadocia! At the airport I got assistance, so was put on the aircraft by hoist, (no airbridge) and we had 2 wait 30 mins at the other end to get off the plane. Fortunately our transfer waited for us in the terminal. Word of warning, Never travel internally in a foreign country without your passport. I had mine, and I suspect the only reason we were allowed to travel was because I was perceived as disabled.
Cappadocia South 30 April 2015
Woke up early and got really good shots of the ball on over Cappadocia. Wonderful!
Where candles were lit in the wall
A dugout for clay pots
The alter in the very early church
Balloons over Cappadocia Early morning.
Tunnels and
Early markings on the cave walls
Typical early Greek style houses
The pigeon valley
Cave houses
Graves in the village of cave dwellers
Early morning balloons from our balcony
And some more. This was taken at sunrise.
We traveled to the underground city. In the first level, it was used by cattle as stable. But this was in later times. Initially it was thought that the early Hittites first carved out the first level. It is thought this could have been around 1800 bc, but no one really knows. They used this as a place to hide from the Persians who eventually defeated them and also used this as a place to hide. It was then occupied by the early Christians, and at that time there were up to 5000 inhabitants. The walkways are steep and narrow between the levels, and to foil their enemies they built square holes that were covered during the day when olive oil lamps were burning, but uncovered at night so their enemies would fall through at night if they tried to invade. They only lived underground when they felt they were under threat. Early Christians (1st and 2nd century) used it as hiding place from the Romans who were very hostile to Christians. THIS changed in 400AD when the Romans adopted Christianity, and the Romans themselves used the caves to hide from marauding Arabs, in the 8th century. Cappadocia was largely Greek and Christian until the transfer of faiths in 1924 when the Greeks (Christians) went to Greece and the Muslims in Greece came to live in Turkey, a bit like the splitting of India and Pakistan in 1948.
Anyway the Eastern orthodox used icons and religious paintings in their churches to tell the stories of the New Testament to the illiterate who lived in the area. This was a common way of spreading Christianity 1000 years ago.
People used these caves, particularly the early Christians of the 1st and 2nd centuries. They buried down to the first 4 levels, but there are 8 levels in total, the last 4 levels being dug by the Romans during the time of the eastend Roman empire.They were hiding from the Arabs, this was later.
This area was discovered by a farmer in 1960, and is protected by UNESCO (as one of the many archeological sites in the area.
The agriculture in the area is quite interesting, to fertilise the volcanic ash soil, the farmers made little houses in the fairy chimneys for the pigeons and once a year they collect the droppings to fertilise the soil. The other interesting thing is that fruit is brought in from the Mediterranean coast and stored underground in food stores, in a town Ortarisar. Because of the constant temp fruit, lemons, oranges, pomegranates are individually wrapped and stored underground through the winter. Come spring, the rotten ones are removed and then dried out and used as fuel (burned along with coal) the following winter, and the good ones are then sold.
There are a lot of street vendors selling dried figs, apricots and other dried fruits. For thirsty tourists, vendors squeeze oranges and pomegranates. Pomegranate juice is delicious. It takes
about 4 pomegranates for a small cup and was 5 TL, about 2€.
In this town there are a number of Syrian refugees, who work with the lemons in the underground food stores. The Turks are not so happy about this, as they take work (for less) and raise the price of rents, a common theme found elsewhere.
Until 1960 a lot of Muslims and Christians lived side by side, in cave houses. They lived together, died together and were buried in the same cemeteries, a bit like the old Yugoslavia. After the collapse of caves in one of these villages, these people were resettled in modern new houses as living in caves was considered too dangerous long term. A lot of the so called cave hotels are actually built on the sides of hills, rather than the old hollowed out caves of ancient times. It is easy to see the construction of new cave hotels going on.
It is interesting to see obviously Greek villages in Turkey. The style and cuisine are those of Greece, and the similarities of the two countries are obvious. The main differences are one has monasteries and churches, the other mosques and loudspeakers. You hear the mosques from one hour before sunrise to an hour after sunset five times a day, often a mosque clashing with the next one. Apart from this, the similarities are quite marked.
!
 |
| Early cave markings. |
We traveled to the underground city. In the first level, it was used by cattle as stable. But this was in later times. Initially it was thought that the early Hittites first carved out the first level. It is thought this could have been around 1800 bc, but no one really knows. They used this as a place to hide from the Persians who eventually defeated them and also used this as a place to hide. It was then occupied by the early Christians, and at that time there were up to 5000 inhabitants. The walkways are steep and narrow between the levels, and to foil their enemies they built square holes that were covered during the day when olive oil lamps were burning, but uncovered at night so their enemies would fall through at night if they tried to invade. They only lived underground when they felt they were under threat. Early Christians (1st and 2nd century) used it as hiding place from the Romans who were very hostile to Christians. THIS changed in 400AD when the Romans adopted Christianity, and the Romans themselves used the caves to hide from marauding Arabs, in the 8th century. Cappadocia was largely Greek and Christian until the transfer of faiths in 1924 when the Greeks (Christians) went to Greece and the Muslims in Greece came to live in Turkey, a bit like the splitting of India and Pakistan in 1948.
Anyway the Eastern orthodox used icons and religious paintings in their churches to tell the stories of the New Testament to the illiterate who lived in the area. This was a common way of spreading Christianity 1000 years ago.
People used these caves, particularly the early Christians of the 1st and 2nd centuries. They buried down to the first 4 levels, but there are 8 levels in total, the last 4 levels being dug by the Romans during the time of the eastend Roman empire.They were hiding from the Arabs, this was later.
This area was discovered by a farmer in 1960, and is protected by UNESCO (as one of the many archeological sites in the area.
The agriculture in the area is quite interesting, to fertilise the volcanic ash soil, the farmers made little houses in the fairy chimneys for the pigeons and once a year they collect the droppings to fertilise the soil. The other interesting thing is that fruit is brought in from the Mediterranean coast and stored underground in food stores, in a town Ortarisar. Because of the constant temp fruit, lemons, oranges, pomegranates are individually wrapped and stored underground through the winter. Come spring, the rotten ones are removed and then dried out and used as fuel (burned along with coal) the following winter, and the good ones are then sold.
There are a lot of street vendors selling dried figs, apricots and other dried fruits. For thirsty tourists, vendors squeeze oranges and pomegranates. Pomegranate juice is delicious. It takes
about 4 pomegranates for a small cup and was 5 TL, about 2€.
In this town there are a number of Syrian refugees, who work with the lemons in the underground food stores. The Turks are not so happy about this, as they take work (for less) and raise the price of rents, a common theme found elsewhere.
Until 1960 a lot of Muslims and Christians lived side by side, in cave houses. They lived together, died together and were buried in the same cemeteries, a bit like the old Yugoslavia. After the collapse of caves in one of these villages, these people were resettled in modern new houses as living in caves was considered too dangerous long term. A lot of the so called cave hotels are actually built on the sides of hills, rather than the old hollowed out caves of ancient times. It is easy to see the construction of new cave hotels going on.
It is interesting to see obviously Greek villages in Turkey. The style and cuisine are those of Greece, and the similarities of the two countries are obvious. The main differences are one has monasteries and churches, the other mosques and loudspeakers. You hear the mosques from one hour before sunrise to an hour after sunset five times a day, often a mosque clashing with the next one. Apart from this, the similarities are quite marked.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)