West and Central Turkey

We woke to the tinkling of teacups from the restaurant below. Looking out from our balcony we could see the Taurus Mountains misty blue across the sea under a perfect sky...

Now our trip really started as we all got on board the bus. Our guide, Ayhan introduced himself and our driver Imdat as we set off through Antalya towards the steppe and along part of the ancient Silk Road. The Silk Road in this region runs quite straight in many sections but is still a fascinating route with various ruins along the way including old Caravanserai where the travellers of those days used to stop and rest for the night. We looked around the Sultanhani Caravanserai at Aksaray, built in 1229. Shown below.

Along the side of the road were exquisite wild flowers of Yellow, White, Blue and Red - the red were wonderful poppies, millions of them! Turkey is an incredible country for wild flowers, probably because they still don't use all the artificial pesticides and weedkillers that we do in Europe. The wildflowers were one of the real delights of the whole trip. I have never seen more beautiful or more abundant wild flowers anywhere.

Journeying on we came to Mount Hassan (3200 m) which looks very like Mount Fuji in Japan. Every now and again by the side of the road farmers sold their black olives and honey from wooden stalls. There were also large roundels of honecomb straight from the hive. It all looked delicious! We passed groves of Apricot trees along the route as well. The area is very fertile.

As we approached the Cappadoccian region we came more and more into an area of calcium rock formations worn down and rounded by thousands of years of rain.

At Cappadocia itself we saw the first mushroom rock outcrops. They looked as if they belonged on another planet entirely; as if they have been transported from the set of some science fiction movie! On the way to the hotel where we would spend the night we passed a whole town built in among these strange formations with little houses nestling alongside the strange rocks where monks, followers of St. Basil had built their tiny dwellings in the seventh century. All over the Cappadocian region the rocks are honeycombed with these tiny caves and chapels, it is a truly magical area.

Just as we arrived at our hotel a tremendous sand storm suddenly erupted. Luckily it was over in a matter of minutes. But we quickly changed our room after the window couldn't keep the whistling sand out! And the new room had a much better view. Instead of the car park we looked out to one of Cappadocias great stone 'monuments'.

We had a lovely meal and later a cool glass of Raki in the bar before retiring to the lulling sound of cicadas chirping the night away. Tomorrow the weird moon-scapes of Cappadocia. Hopefully the weather will be kind as it is seen at its best under blue skies.

We had a lovely meal and later a cool glass of Raki in the bar before retiring to the lulling sound of cicadas chirping the night away.

The morning broke crystal clear. Standing outside the hotel I could see every detail across the beautiful valley and its soft rolling hills.

This was our one full day in Central Turkey and it was fascinating to get a chance to see rural Turkish life, far different from that of the cities and tourist areas.

We made our way first to Özkonak where we visited what is described as an underground city. It was discovered in 1972 by a muezzin, Latif Acar. He was trying to discover why the water he put on his fields always disappeared into the earth so quickly. His first discovery was an underground room. In later excavations a whole "city" with ten levels of rooms up to a depth of 40 was found. We went down and visited the first four levels that are open to the public (15m deep). The first two levels were used to store food and to ferment wine and to stable livestock. There are movable stone doors which are manipulated into position using wooden levers. Above each door is a small hole through which boiling oil would have been poured on an enemy trying to break in. Whenever an enemy was sighted all the people would scurry down into the underground city and shut the doors tight until the enemy had gone.

That night Ayhan had arranged for us to attend a night of folk singing and dancing at a local night-club. There were dances from all regions of Turkey and at times we were all dragged out onto the dancefloor to take part. Later there was a belly dancer and she collared a couple of unlucky men from our group to join her. The results were pretty hilarious as they tried vainly to imitate her movements! We were also given plate upon plate of wonderful food to eat - as well as fruit, Turkish apple tea and cakes weighed down with sweet honey. But the food had been so good at the hotel just a few hours before that we couldn't truly do it justice. The drinks though, were another matter and they were all 'on-the-house', as much as you could drink. "Fortunately" the wives were also with us to stop any possible excess!

It had been a very full day and we fell into bed dog-tired that night.

We travelled back down the Silk Road towards Kolnya in great weather. We visited the great Sultanhani Caravanserai (built by the Sultan in 1229) along the way at Aksaray. It was easy to imagine the camels and luxurious silks and carpets of the traders and the exotic costumes of that time. Later we lunched within a restored Caravanserai - the Horozluhan, having another interesting and well-prepared meal within its welcome cool walls.

In Konya we visited the great mosque of this very conservative city. Turkey is a mixture of the secular and the sacred. Women need not wear the veil in Turkey, it is not mandatory, in fact most wear everyday western dress. But in a conservative city such as Kolyna the pressures are greater for the people to conform to Muslim law. (Many people in Turkey fear that there will be increasing tension over this issue).

After our visit to the mosque we went to the beautiful courtyards and halls of the Mevlana Museum. There we found fascinating exhibits depicting many aspects of Islamic life including an exhibit of Whirling Dervishes.

After dinner we took a stroll through Konyas noisy streets before retiring early to bed.

We travelled out of Konya in the direction of Afyon. Magnificent rose bushes crowded with deep red blossoms lined our route. Our first stop was to a Turkish Carpet factory and we were treated to a real epic of a display - with every type and grade of carpet described and shown, many exquisite. After lunch in the restaurant we travelled on, passing many fields of white and purple opium poppies. These are grown for use in medicines and the authorities strictly monitor the fields.

We reached an area of smooth rolling hills and then the fields were filled with showers of white daisies, scattered within the green fields like confetti. Then sprinkles of yellow, then a mixture of everything together, they seemed to be in endless colours and endless combinations. A real treat for world-weary eyes! There then followed an area of scree covered hills with patchworks of flowers scattered among them along with many varieties of huge tufted thistles.

Shortly after this region we arrived at Pammukale. As we got out of the air-conditioned bus we immediately felt the scorching heat. As with Cappadocia, Pammukale has an other-worldly quality. The cliffs are pure. To reach them we travelled through the ruins of the ancient city of Hierapolis. In ancient times the wealthy Romans came here to die. Passing through the necropolis and the great monumental tombs which were their last resting place the coach came to a halt within the ruined city. We then had time to visit the pools of Pammukale and wander around Hierapolis.

Even if you can't bathe in the pools of Pammukale any more you can still dip your toes in a constantly running stream of warm thermal waters and gaze out over the incredible view from the pool area.

What has happened to Pammukale is an environmental disaster and shows what can happen if the response to tourism is not wisely controlled. All around Pammukale you can see the darkened cliffs which have failed to receive enough water. What was a national treasure, millions of years in the making was put at risk for the short term acquisition of money. It can only be hoped that they will succeed in preserving the otherworldly beauty that still remains of this wonderful place.

Our hotel that night was the most beautiful of our whole trip - the five star Hotel Thermal Collossae. It had everything: Jacuzzi, thermal pool, Sauna, outdoor pool, beautifully landscaped grounds with wonderful plants including many beautiful oleander bushes. Everything in the hotel was 5 star, quite rare in Turkey. We immediately got into our swimming costumes and took advantage of the indoor pool and jacuzzi! And in the evening there was a sensational buffet meal on the terrace. I ate far too much but it all looked, and tasted, so delicious I couldn't help myself!

We travelled back to Antalya through the North Taurus mountains; very rugged and diverse environments. We passed Thermessos, an ancient city hidden in the forest. Part of the old city walls were visible from the road. Then on to the wonderful Kursunlu Selalesi Nature Park - a wonderful park of beautiful waterfalls and incredible turquoise water.

Later in the afternoon we visited the third best preserved amphitheatre in the world at Aspendos. It seems that the gladiators and spectators have only just left. It is so well preserved.

And so back to the place where we we started - Antalya and the Atan Park Hotel. As we arrive in the early evening we find a wedding reception in full swing and what seems like hundred of kids running about dressed up to the nines.

In the morning we only had time for a quick bite to eat before we were whisked off to Antalya airport and the pleasant flight back to Vienna. We had really enjoyed our trip, Turkey is a fascinating country with an enchanting and ever changing landscape. And always everywhere those beautiful beautiful flowers.

We'll make another trip to Turkey in the future. Probably to explore more of the central region...