Turkey Trip—Going home—1/21/2010

The 3 a.m. wake-up call seemed to ring right after I closed my eyes. The hotel had a light breakfast of breads, jellies, tea and water for us at 3:30 a.m. We boarded our bus at 4 a.m. and who should be driving but our wonderful Mustafa—who has driven us since we left Istanbul 11 days ago. We thought when he dropped us off at the Ankara airport yesterday evening we all said “good-bye” to him and his son. He drove the bus back to Istanbul while we were waiting in the airport and flying here. How nice of him to be here so early this morning to drive us one last time!

Our bags were not checked for liquids in the Ankara airport yesterday evening—I guess because it was a domestic flight. Today, we went through a security checkpoint just inside the airport, a visa stamp point and then a 2nd security checkpoint—this time we had to follow the quart bag rule—to get to our gate. We flew Lufhansa to Munich, and of course were treated to a tasty breakfast, comfortable accommodations, and gracious hosts.

Since we had a 3-hour layover between flights at Munich, we had plenty of time to go through security. And since it was still fairly early in the morning, there were very few other travelers going through security, so we had no problems with people cutting in line. We ambled through the airport, looking for last-minute souvenirs, one last Magnum ice cream bar (not for me—I experienced my bout with intestinal problems after eating a Magnum ice cream bar earlier in this trip), and a cup of real coffee!

When we heard “all travelers to the US, please go to your gates immediately,” we steeled ourselves for a major security check—which we experienced. On the other side of that security gate, though, were more cafes, water closets, and comfortable seats. We met a couple of young women from India, heading to the US. Their plane had arrived yesterday—during a security incident. It had to circle the airport about an hour. No planes were allowed to land during that time. They missed their connecting flight and had to spend the night in the airport. They will fly with us to the US. We have been very fortunate with travel. We were just ahead of a major cold front—with ice and snow—in in Germany on our way to Turkey; we just missed another major cold front—with snow—in Istanbul yesterday; we missed this security incident by one day, and as it turned out, a record-breaking cold spell hit Istanbul after we left.

Our Lufhansa flight to Charlotte, NC was very comfortable. It was about ½ full, so we (and other passengers) were able to sit every other seat if we wanted. Getting to stretch out was nice! The “not full” capacity also allowed us to walk the aisles more. The food was delicious. This time I accepted the offer to an after lunch glass of Bailey’s. I watched a movie, wrote postcards, took a fairly short nap, read my new book, and visited with my compadres.

Right before we arrived in Charlotte, we viewed a video telling us where we would go and what to expect in customs. We had been given a customs form to fill out early in the plane ride. All but one of us got through customs quickly. The “one” of us who had to go through the long line did not have to open her bags. (She was relieved because she did not think she could get her rug—which she had declared—to fit back in the bag the store had crammed it in.) We were separated from her briefly, but at least it was in the US, and we realized she wasn’t with us, so we could look for and wait for her just on the other side of security. Now that we were back in the US, I got out my phone and “reported in” to my family—that I was safely in the US.

We had another 2-3 hour layover—had a last minute gate change and a flight delay. Finally we boarded our US Airways flight back to Austin. Compared to Lufhansa, this was bare bones. My seat did not recline. The back of the plane was hot and noisy (from a broken fan). Pillows could be rented—everyone had a pillow and a blanket on the Lufhansa international flight. Alas, it is better to have the luxurious flight for 15 hours and the “bare bones” flight for 3 hours than the other way around. I napped, and we were home before I knew it.

My sweet husband had received my phone message that our original itinerary—the one he had—listed our arrival time 2 hours later, and he was waiting for me and 2 lucky riders when we arrived at Austin-Bergstrom airport. Kevin took Friday and Monday off, so we had a 4-day weekend to reunite and for me to share all of my photos, notes, and purchases with him. What a guy—to support my taking this trip! Yes, Barbara (my mother-in-law) I should get down on my knees and thank God every day for such a husband!

Turkey Trip—Ankara—our last full day in Turkey—1/20/2010

We got an early start since we had a 3 ½ hour bus ride to Ankara. We enjoyed our last 2 WC and hot tea stops along the way. When we arrived in Ankara, I was struck by how modern the city looks compared to all of the other cities we have visited. Our guide told me that parts of Istanbul look just as modern, but we had confined our stay and our sightseeing in Istanbul to the old city.

We drove to the Anıtkabir (memorial tomb) of Ataturk and the national museum which is adjacent to it. Set up on one of the highest hills of Ankara, the memorial (which has his mausoleum) looks like a stylized Roman temple.

Lined with statues representing the people of Turkey



and lions to remind one of the Greco-Roman legacy

the way from the drive to the memorial reminded me of the many main roads we walked in the ruins we visited.



The museum houses photographs, paintings, personal effects (including clothes and books) of Mustafa Kemal, the leader in the fight for Turkish independence, the founder of the modern state of Turkey, and the first president of the Republic of Turkey. No wonder everyone here refers to him as Ataturk, father of Turkey, rather than using his given name.

What I found most interesting in the visit to the museum was the various methods used to “preach” the message about how good the reforms Ataturk devised were, how everyone—peasants, women, even children—supported Ataturk and the war for independence, how caring the Turkish soldiers were—even in warfare. Subtle and not so subtle propaganda faced us in the written descriptions of Ataturk and the painted murals about the fight for the modern state of Turkey. It was easy for me to recognize the embellishments in their rendition of their history. I wondered if this experience will help me recognize our own embellishments and propaganda in our descriptions of our country and our history.

Several school groups visited the museum when we were there. No wonder—it is their national museum; it promotes Turkish pride; and it tells their story.

We had lunch at an restaurant in old Ankara where the food was more Americanized than any food we’ve had during our visit here. However, it was delicious, and the beef (or was it lamb—I rarely could taste the difference unless it was ground like hamburger) kabob was the best I have eaten.

After lunch we walked the short distance to the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations

where we saw pottery, jewelry, weapons, coins, utensils, and bas reliefs from excavations in central and eastern Anatolia. Cultures represented included Assyrian, Hittite, Phrygian, Uratian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Turk—Seljuk and Ottoman.
Here is a Hittite statue on the grounds, one of the first things we saw walking into the museum.



Leaving the museum, we headed to the airport to catch our evening flight to Istanbul. We gave our driver a standing ovation!
(He's pictured here with his son who accompanied him on this trip. He will take exams for university in a few weeks.) He was patient with us, got us safely where we needed to be on time, was always pleasant, and kept a map posted in the front of the bus, so that we would know where we had been.


The Ankara airport is a beautiful, new, and under-used facility. Our guide told us Lufhansa will soon start flying to this airport, and its international flights will help business at the airport increase. We went through one (easy) security check, perhaps because this is a domestic flight.
(Here is Lewie, now using the cane we got him and each signed, herding us in the Ankara airport.)


We arrived in Istanbul late in the evening, rode back to the hotel where we spent our first nights, and enjoyed a delicious final (very late) supper in Turkey. I won (in the “random drawing” conducted by our guide) a memoir of the Turkish writer and 2006 Nobel Prize winner in Literature, Orhan Pamuk titled Istanbul: Memories and the City. Our guide told me the English translation (which I won) is better written than the Turkish original.
We presented our guide with a special thank you card, and Lewie presented him with a bottle of wine.

Not much time for sleep tonight. We have a 3 a.m. wake-up call to make our 6:30 a.m. flight.

Here are all of this day's Turkey pictures.

Turkey Trip—Whirling Dervishes—the evening of 1/19/2010

This evening we will observe the dance of the Whirling Dervishes, so after supper, we drove to another caravanserai. (I am not sure if it is an old one that has been restored and modified with some modern conveniences or if it is a new structure built like a caravanserai.) The dance area was set up in the middle of what would have been the camelserai—at the back of the caravanserai. Raised rows of seats were built around 3 sides of a square wooden dance floor. On the fourth side were seats with some instruments on them. Four large pillars extend from the corners of the dance floor to the domed ceiling above. Although this camelserai is enclosed, with the stone walls, it was cold inside. Portable electric heaters were set up at the top of the raised seating. As we entered, we were given a pamphlet describing the dance and a postcard with a picture of the dancers in the middle of whirling. (Taking pictures is not allowed as this is a religious ceremony, and the dance is a form of worship.)

After all of the groups arrived, the lights went low, and a drum sounded. Eleven men wearing cylindrical caps, black robes, and black soft sole shoes entered the area and stood at a corner adjacent to the instruments. One at a time, they entered the dance floor, nodded at the observers, and took a place on the floor in front of one of the raised seats or at the instruments. (The first 5 men went to the seats with the musical instruments.) The ritual began with a spoken eulogy to the Prophet. Then the drum sounded. Next a musician began playing on an instrument that looks like Kevin’s tune whistle—a wooden instrument which the player blew into. The pamphlet stated that the music is supposed to represent the breath of Allah bringing life to everything. That explained why the music sounded breathy instead of clear. Another musician began to play a second “tune whistle.” Then a third musician began to play a stringed instrument held on his lap which looked like an auto harp? Finally the drum joined in. The pamphlet said the musicians improvise here. Next the dancers rose, removed their black cloaks to reveal white garments beneath, and began a greeting ceremony.


One at a time they moved opposite the musicians—facing the observers in the raised seating and then turned to wait for the next dancer to come to that same place and nod at each other. So, in pairs they “greeted” each other and than moved counter-clockwise to the 4 corners of the dance floor until all 6 of them had entered the area and had greeted the dancer in line behind him. One of the dancers had not removed his black cloak. He seemed to be the director of the ensuing dance, but I never heard him speak to the dancers, and if he nodded to them, it was imperceptible.

Next, as if the director had cued them, one at a time, the men began to whirl. On some cue, the whirler would move and the next dancer would begin to whirl. They moved counter-clockwise around the dance floor until the first was in the middle and the others were at each of the 4 corners of the floor. The director moved among them, but he did not whirl as they did. At his cue the ones in the corners would move to the next corner while the one in the middle stayed in the middle. They continued to whirl until the director (or the music?) cued them to stop. The director cued one to begin again and the whole process of one whirling, then another joining, then another and another until all 5 were whirling and had moved counter-clockwise around the dance floor occurred again.

Then the director cued the dancers to stop and one by one they returned to their places on the floor in front of one of the raised seating areas, donning their black cloaks, bowing to the floor, and sitting on their knees. Then the director, who was still standing, recited from the Koran. His recitation included Sura bakara2, verse 115 which was translated for us in the pamphlet as: “Unto God belong the East and West, and wherever you turn, there is God’s countenance. He is all-embracing, all-knowing.”

Finally, the director prayed for pace for the souls of all the prophets and believers and one by one, in reverse order of their entrance, the dancers and musicians left—nodding at the observers before leaving the dance floor area.


The whirling was graceful. The men’s faces took on a look of peace and retreat from all but the dance. Being able to refer to the pamphlet as the dance progressed was very helpful for me. I could appreciate what I was seeing and could join in the worshipful aspect through the information provided in the pamphlet. Tonight was a high point in this trip.

Turkey Trip—fairy castles and underground cities in Cappadocia—1/19/2010

Today we saw sights totally different from the rest of the trip—no Greco-Roman ruins, no museums with statues or pottery, jewelry or bottles recovered from the ruins, no temples to Greek (or Roman) gods or goddesses. Today we saw rock formations that look like fairy castles growing out of the desert-y land. Today we toured cities dug in the rocks and underground. Today we saw many churches.

Our first stop was Kaymakli Underground city. When we first entered the dark, rocky cave, it was cold. We looked at the large room with various indentations in the rock and learned it had been a stable, the indentations were the hay was laid for the
animals to eat.

Following the arrows, we made our way through various tunnels and rooms—living rooms, a winepress room, kitchens, and even a church—that made up the city.
People had lived here many years ago, safe from attack and at a relatively comfortable (68 degrees Farenheit) temperature. Some of our group did not like the sometimes steep and tight passages.

I loved it. I felt like a human Fiver or Hazelnut in our own Watership Down—finding a making an new home/warren.

We then drove into Cappadocia where we could enjoy views of the famous fairy towers. We stopped for photo ops and 2 of our group took a short camel ride.
Seeing a shepherd with his flock with the abandoned rock houses in the fairy towers as a backdrop, I had to take some pictures.


When first one and then 2 black sheep appeared with the flock, I had take another picture—especially for Adam.



We drove a little further and gazed at yet another view of the fairy castles.

We learned that due to concerns about rock slides, most of these homes chipped out of the rock are now abandoned. But we were welcomed by a couple who still live in their rock home and who invited us to tour their home.

We learned that one of the beautiful Turkish rugs on their walls was made by the woman—over 50 years ago as part of her dowry.

Since one of the couples on our trip are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this year, we got a picture of the two 50-year couples.

As we were leaving, I noticed some tatting and knitting on the couch by the door. It turns out the woman and her daughters had made these items to sell. I bought some colorful, warm hand-knit socks (with a different kind of heel) for MM to wear in cold Indiana.

We ate lunch at a new restaurant, built to resemble a caravanserai. Of course the meal was delicious. Our next stop was Zelve Avanos—an area of now uninhabited fairy tower dwellings.

People lived here in community until 1950 when the Turkish government relocated them—out of concern for rock slides. Not because the structures look the same, but because the people have done the same thing—carved homes for themselves from the rock—I thought of my favorite place in the US, Mesa Verde in southwest Colorado where native Americans built homes in the cliffs. In Zelve Avanos, we saw homes, olive presses, and a church.

Next we visited Goreme Open Air Museum. This was a monastic community built into the rocks and fairy tower castles. We visited 4 churches here (and a 5th across the highway). Each of the first 4 churches had frescoes painted on the ceilings.


In one, red was the only color used.


In the other 3, red was the predominant color, but blues and some greens were also used.

These all date back to the early 12th century—after Muslim Turks had taken over Anatolia.


The Muslims did not destroy the churches, but allowed the people to continue to worship as Christians.




The last church we saw—the one across the highway—looked different. First, blues and greens dominated the paintings.

Second, the faces were more stylized and detailed.

Third, the layout of the church was different—with a long entrance that fit with the altar area to form a visible cross space.

Fourth, instead of curves and semi-circles, there were angles and rectangles.

I was so amazed at the beautiful frescoes here that I spent most of the time just standing and staring, mouth agape. Teri pointed out various scenes and reminded me which Biblical stories they represented. She has such a good eye! My favorite fresco here had Mary looking with deep love at baby Jesus.

If only my little old camera could have done justice to this fresco with no flash.

We left Goreme and headed back to Urgup. Some of the group chose to stop and shop in downtown Urgup while others of us rode on back to the hotel to rest, re-pack (tomorrow we fly), and freshen up for our evening encounter with the mystic Rumi.

Here are all my pictures from our day touring Cappadocia.

Turkey Trip—A day of museums—1/18/2010

This morning we walked around the old part of the city of Konya where we visited 3 museums and one mosque. The air was heavy with smog. While Konya does use some natural gas, the city and its inhabitants still burn coal as well. The air here was bad enough to cause breathing problems for 2 of our group.

Our first stop was the Karatay Tile Museum. Built originally as a religious school for boys, it now houses a collection of tile from when the first Turks invaded Anatolia (the geographical name for Turkey). Colors most used in the tiles were blue, turquoise, black (for outlining), and eggplant. Since blues and greens are my favorite colors, I thoroughly enjoyed all that I saw here. Our guide pointed out the distinctive Turkish arches, with a point at the top—not rounded like the Roman arches.

He also called our attention to the drawings of people and animals on the tiles—apparently a “no no” in the Koran. At his direction, we also noted the 8-pointed stars and the crosses used with them to tessellate the tile pictures.


Next on our itinerary was the Ince Minare Museum of Stone and Wood carving. I particularly liked the intricate carvings on the wooden doors.


The Arabic script carved into many of the stones also appealed to me with its fluidity.



Next we visited a mosque—very old and recently restored. Only the pulpit remains from the original furnishings.


The walls are painted to reproduce the effect that the original (unrecovered) tiles had here.


After my musings on head coverings yesterday evening, I had an opportunity here to ponder even more. We asked a woman when we entered if we needed to cover our heads. She told us no. However, as we were putting our shoes on the shoe shelf inside, the attendant of the mosque walked over to us with scarves for our heads.
We learned that in Turkey, women are supposed to get to choose whether or not to wear a head covering. How does a foreigner show respect for the culture and the religious beliefs and at the same time stand in solidarity with her global sisters?

Our next stop and last museum for the day was the Mevlana Museum where the Muslim mystic Rumi is buried. Some people came here to view the museum while others came to pray. The atmosphere was contemplative. The walls in the area which housed Rumi’s mausoleum were decorated in blue, red, and green painted tiles with beautiful Arabic script. The last room of the museum housed a collection of Korans with gilt calligraphy lettering and brightly painted illustrations.

Today’s lunch was the best yet. (We have been treated to the very best food in Turkey these 2 weeks.) The okra soup tasted like a delicious vegetable or minestrone broth with a hint of lemon. The okra was not slimy. We had grape leaves wrapped around a beefy filling, and another dessert with water buffalo cream. Our guide said this restaurant is the only place that serves this dessert. Even knowing I would never be able to eat this again, I could not eat all of my meal—too much!

On the way from the restaurant to the bus we stopped at a shop where 2 of our group bought Turkish carpets—one a kilim and the other a wool on cotton.

We headed away from Konya and further into the interior, central part of Turkey. About halfway to our destination of Urgup, we stopped at the Sultanhani Caravanserai. It is a large, rectangular structure of outer walls and a big door.





Inside is a courtyard.

On one side is one long porch where cooking, mending, and other chores could be done.



On the other side was a series of rooms where people could spend the night.


In the middle of the courtyard was a small room that was used as a mosque—for prayers.



Directly across the courtyard from the gate was the camel serai—the huge barn for the camels.

Built at the direction of the sultans, the caravanserais were safe places for caravans to stop and stay the night as they traveled across Anatolia on the spice and silk trade routes.

Upon arriving in Urgup, we found our hotel and rooms to be the nicest yet—and that is saying a lot! In particular, the air is clear here, the rooms are cool—no opening windows because the furnace is blasting and we cannot figure out how to turn it down or off, the rooms are large, and the beds are “just right.”


Other Konya and caravanserai pictures

Turkey Trip—Our travels turn inland towards Konya—1/17/2010

We left early since we have another long road trip today. We drove into the mountains, stopping after about 2 hours at the equivalent of a Turkish 7-11. The price for using the water closet rose from .30 to .50 lira while we stood in line. (I got in for .30 lira.) Bottled water rose from 1 to 2 lira while we were there. Shane found a belly dancing costume for his wife, marked 18, but when he took it to the checkout counter, he was charged 35, so he did not get the costume. The only reasonable explanation is that the prices were really Euro, and when we began pulling out our Turkish lira, the price doubled—because 2 Turkish lira = 1 Euro. It was cold and misting rain at this stop, but as it sits on a lake, the view was beautiful. We drove 2 more hours and stopped again at a place on a lake. This lake is the 3rd largest in Turkey, and Lewie said on one of his trips to Turkey, when they stopped here, the lake was frozen solid enough for the group to walk around on it. I am glad it is not nearly that cold today.


We continued on to Yalvac, where we visited a museum which houses items excavated from the (old) Antioch of Psidia site nearby. It was colder in this museum than in any indoor place we have visited so far. We continued to add layers and/or zip our jackets and fleeces as we walked around inside. Brrrr

Once we finished looking in the museum, we walked to our restaurant for lunch—in the middle of the town. By now it was raining softly, and it was cold outside. Our guide warned us (after eating at the fancy restaurant yesterday) that today’s meal would be modest. That may be true, but it was the perfect lunch for a cold, rainy day. We had carrot/potato soup and white beans in a red sauce. It warmed me up! For lunch we had a dessert which tasted like shredded wheat, soaked in Karo syrup and topped with water buffalo cream. It was good but too sweet to eat very much.



Next we drove to the Antioch of Psidia site. By now it was raining fairly hard.
I donned my rain jacket (over my fleece) and my rain pants. (Thank you, Mary Elizabeth, for telling me to get this rainwear.) While I stayed warm and relatively dry, the rain dampened our enthusiasm for the site.

While items have been excavated (we saw them in the museum earlier today), the site has not been restored or reconstructed.


So, seeing mostly rocks on the ground also dampened our enthusiasm for the site. Too bad because this is where Paul got run out of town for stirring up the folks as he talked about Jesus and he was the Messiah!

After leaving the Antioch site, we drove to Konya, stopping once along the way. It must have been “the last chance to stop” because 3 other buses were there, too. They carried mostly Turkish people, though. We noticed that the women visited the water closet and returned immediately to the buses. The men hung around for hot tea—as we did. I wonder what they think of us American women?

I noticed more women wearing head coverings here than in the coastal cities we have previously stayed. I began to ponder the notion of head coverings: On the one hand, I appreciate, admire, and affirm people choosing ways to show respect and deference to God. (Muslims refer to God as “Allah” and require women to wear head coverings as a sign of respect to Allah.) On the other hand, I disagree with any form of forced subjugation. It is possible to consider requiring women (only) to wear head coverings as a way of subjecting them to (men’s) power, and anyone who knows me very well, knows that does not sit well with me. As a visitor in this country and this culture, I want to be respectful of my hosts’ beliefs and customs. So, I will ruminate in my journal, but I will not raise the question with our hosts.

More pictures from Antioch of Pisidia and our visit to the Yalvac museum are here.