Coming home

Well the trip is finished. What a trip it was! Considering I had very little planned, it was incredibly smooth with pretty good weather. Really I had no idea what I was going to do when I landed in Istanbul, aside that I wanted to check out the Mediterranean coast. I didn't think Syria would allow me to cross its border and thought that my trip would have been spent entirely in Turkey.

Out of the countries I've visited, I'd have to say Turkey was my favorite. Maybe it's because I spent the most time here. The highlight of my trip would be Petra, with Palmyra as a close second. Ephasus, Perge & Heirapolis were also incredible. In terms of cities, Istanbul was my favorite. Though some cities may have had more interesting history or better bargains, Istanbul is the best all around. Jerusalem would be second followed by Damascus. There were a number of small towns I fell in love with too, like Selcuk and Hama.

I had some reservations about going to the Middle East, but I'm so glad I did. It's not as scary of a place as most people think and it has so much to offer in history, food and culture. A lot of people I've met have made me feel so welcome and safe, after just minutes of talking with them. I've made a lot of friends along the way, many who are the reason this trip has been so smooth. This is definitely a place where I would come back to some day.

Across the Golden Horn

Today I walked east of Sultanahmet, past the main tourist area of Istanbul, across the Golden Horn. It was quite nice. I got to see streets and neighborhoods of Turkey where the shop owners didn't speak any English, didn't try to sell me carpets and most items actually had price tags.

My first stop was the Galata Tower, a 700 year old structure that provides a really beautiful view of the surrounding area. All the major attractions can be seen from its balconies. Unfortunately most of it has been turned into a restaurant.

Leaving the tower I headed toward a church -- or so I thought. I got pretty lost and ended up walking along the Bosporus, which divides Europe and Asia. It was great as I still came across many interesting sights. My favorite was the Nusretiye Camil, in photo top left. At first I wasn't sure how to get a good photo of it, from the street it's obstructed by wires and trees. Looking around I saw a little wall that I figured I could climb up and get just enough clearance. It turned out to be a perfect view, though the people walking by gave me strange looks.

I stopped by a nice little park where I paid five Turkish lira to shoot balloons with a pellet gun, when I noticed a guy taking photos of me. Turns out he's from the U.S. and he thought I was shooting a real gun. We had a laugh about it and a nice long conversation about travels and such before going different ways.

By the time I started heading back to my hotel, it was getting late in the day. I decided to visit the Grand Bazaar, to do some shopping and say goodbye to a friend. That's him to the right. His name is Erdem (or Edi) and he's a very friendly 23 year old shop owner in the bazaar. He had a girlfriend from Bosnia and knew a few words in Serbian, so right away we had a fun conversation. It's always nice to meet people like him, because as a tourist most people try to rip you off. Before I'd buy anything, I'd go to his shop to ask him what a good price for it would be.

Tomorrow I won't be doing much. I may go check out a nearby aqueduct and then probably come back to the hotel to sleep. My flight is very early (5:30 am) with a six hour wait in Frankfurt. I'll try to get rested for the journey home.

A fountain in Sultanahmet:

The Misir Carsis (spice market):

St. Anthony Church:

Istiklal Caddesi, a fun street where young Turks seem to hang out:

Pigeon feeding at the Kilic Ali Pasa Mosque:

View from the Galata Tower, Sultanahmet is in the distance:

Galata Tower:

Fishing along the Galata Koprusu:

Sultanahmet Area

It was a good day in Istanbul. I took out the city map and circled a bunch of sights I wanted to see that I didn't get to see the first time I was here. I tried to make a plan of attack, as I knew I wouldn't be able to do it all in one day. I'll be here until my flight leaves on December 7, so I should have enough time to see quite a bit.

The first place I went to today is the Basilica Cistern. It's an underground chamber built by the Romans to collect water. It's a tranquil place that still collects and contains water. A walkway is built through it and drops can be heard falling down from the ceiling. The highlight of this chamber are two columns that have Medusa's head as the base. One of the heads is turned on its side and the other upside down. Archeologists haven't been able to figure out the reason behind this. Medusa heads were often put on structures to ward off evil.

My second stop, which took up most of my day, was the Topkapi Palace. It was closed when I was here the last time. I didn't realize that it would take up so much of my time, it's a pretty big place. There's a ton of chambers and to see and most of them are set up in a museum style, showing off the many of the sultan's artifacts and the Ottoman empire's spoils of war.

Part of the palace includes the harem chambers. These are pretty exquisite. Incredible decorations on the walls, baths in every chamber, fireplaces, couches, etc. The harem was used not only by the sultan's concubines but also by the sultan mother and the eunuchs. Its chambers were by far the most decorated of the palace and a separate admission was required to go inside.

By the time I was done with the palace, I had just enough time to get something to eat and visit the Grand Bazaar to get some ideas for gifts. If anyone would like anything from Turkey, let me know in the comments below.

Basilica Cistern:

Harem chambers in the Topkapi Palace:

Sultan's chamber in the Harem:

A display of how the concubines would have dressed:

Concubine chamber:

Topkapi Palace courtyards:

Me on the palace balcony, overlooking the Bosphorus:

A sweets shop in Istanbul:

Baklava:

Same shot of the Blue Mosque as during my last visit, but in different light:

Sun setting over the Blue Mosque:

Back in Istanbul!

I just had the longest day! I went to the Tel Aviv airport to catch a flight to Istanbul and I went quite early thinking that it might take a while through security. My assumption was correct. I guess I look super suspicious because after they took out all my things and thoroughly went through my backpack, they took me to a back room where they just about strip searched me. They padded me down from head to toe. I'm guessing part of it is because my travel through Syria and the other part is because I'm traveling alone.

In addition to the long security process, my plane was delayed for an hour. The gate was changed and I spent most of the day at the Ben Gurion airport. I tried to talk to whoever spoke English to make the time pass by.

At about 10:00 pm I finally arrived to the Sultanahmet area of Istanbul, where I began my trip. I'm not sure what I'll do with the two days I have left, I may just spend them relaxing in Istanbul. Though I have no photos today, I'll be sure to get some more tomorrow. There are still sights in Istanbul I have yet to visit.

Tel Aviv and Jaffa

Ah, it's been a pretty lazy day in comparison to the rest of my vacation. I started off by buying a whole bunch of tasty pastries and eating them as I beachcombed for fancy seashells. Didn't find a lot, but how can I complain about walking along a beach in beautiful sunny weather, listening to the waves crash.

I walked over to Jaffa which is pretty much a Tel Aviv neighborhood. It has a very interesting history. It's repeatedly mentioned in the bible and it has inspired many stories and paintings. Unfortunately little remains of its ancient structures and artifacts have all been relocated to museums. The information centre is built over some housing remains and in a garden there are some excavations of Egyptian fortification walls thought to have been built by built by Pharaoh Ttutmose III.

Walking back to Tel Aviv, I passed through the Yemenite quarter. It's a nice little neighborhood with small houses and an interesting market. Spices, fruits, meats and popular brand rip offs are the main sell. I took a couple of pictures and continued on.

On the way to my hotel I got pretty lost. The maps in the guidebook are pretty tiny and often leave out names of streets. It wasn't so bad though, I got to see many of Tel Aviv's neighborhoods and finding my way back was pretty easy, I just asked people to point me to the Mediterranean.

Tel Aviv from Jaffa:

St. Peter's Monastery:

Jaffa:

Yemenite market:

Tel Aviv

I had a bit of an adventure going to Tel Aviv from Akko. I took my first train in the middle east and it wasn't as simple (or maybe it's just me) as I thought it would be. I thought the train would be a direct one, it's on the same railway, but the train I got on wasn't going to Tel Aviv. I realized that after asking some passengers, and got off in Haifa to transfer to the correct train. In my hurry to get off, I forgot my guidebook along with my train ticket on the train.

There were to issues with that. The most obvious was that I don't know my way around Israel and without the guidebook getting around is a lot more difficult. The not so obvious issue was that getting out of a train station requires a ticket. The gates open only after you put the your ticket through.

At the Tel Aviv train station, I sought out the station security and explained to them what happened. To my surprise they were extremely helpful and even arranged for someone in Haifa to get my guidebook and bring it to me in Tel Aviv, at no charge. I was blown away by the service. Within an hour I had both my ticket and my guidebook and I continued on to the city centre.

There's no historical sights in Tel Aviv. It's a very modern city right on the Mediterranean coast. The beaches are clean, the weather is great and the water looks quite inviting. Directly south of Tel Aviv is a town called Jaffa. It has some historical sights, but nothing compared to the places I've been to so far. Still, I'll make the best of my time here and explore it and Tel Aviv tomorrow.

Tel Aviv on the horizon:

Fishing near Jaffa port:

An off centre photo of me by a lady who seemed to have trouble lining up the horizon:

Jaffa from Tel Aviv:

Kite surfing on Tel Aviv's beaches at sunset:

Looking for Acre

The history here is quite impressive. This place has been an important harbour since the Roman times. Remains of old columns can be found scattered around the town. Julius Caesar made an appearance here in 48 B.C. The Crusaders made this their capital after the fall of Jerusalem. Richard the Lionheart took the city during the third crusade. Marco Polo passed through on the way to the Orient and the city walls still bare the scars of Napoleon Bonaparte's artillery, when he tried to conquer it 1799.

Unfortunately, Akko is barely hanging on to its magnificent history. It doesn't seem to be a matter of money. Funding is evident by the size and state of the art tourist information centre built right in the middle of the citadel. It seems a matter of priorities. The city seems more concerned about first impressions than it does about preservation. There seems to be ongoing restoration and excavation, but what has been restored seems to be lacking maintenance and governance. Pathways seem to disappear into weeds, signs are missing or destroyed and restaurants and souvenir shops are built right on top or around the ruins. In fact, getting out of the citadel, the main attraction, people are forced to exit out of a souvenir shop. It's a shame.

Though this put a bit of a damper on my experience in Akko, I'm still quite glad I came here. I enjoyed a beautiful sunrise and a great walk through the many tiny streets and passageways of the old city. At sunset I climbed up on the ramparts and watched the sun go down over the harbour.

Tomorrow I'll catch a train to Tel Aviv, Israel's biggest and most modern city; often confused as the capital.

Akko in the morning:

The only camel in the city, strangely wandering around a church yard:

Coastal walls:

Al Jazzar Mosque:

Crusader halls, recently excavated:

Templar tunnels under the city:

Old Turkish bathhouse (hammam) now a tourist sight:

Sunset over Akko:

Last photo in Akko:

Akko (Acre)

Finally I got to see the Dome of the Rock. I'm happy that I made the effort to, it's quite stunning. Even with tourists about, the mosque is quite big and people are but specs in the background. I made my way around it looking for the best light and took a number of photos. Satisfied, I returned to the hotel, packed my things and boarded the bus to Akko.

Getting to Akko wasn't as simple as most of my destinations have been. Most places on my list have been fairly popular and the bus routes have been direct. Akko it seems is visited less frequently. I had to take a bus to Haifa's southern bus station, transfer to a local bus which took me to the northern bus station and finally board a bus for Akko.

The experience was rewarding. On the way to Haifa I met Daniel, who was born in Montreal but moved to Israel as a child. We had a great conversation regarding Jewish beliefs, religions, the conflict in the area, etc. I said goodbye to him at the first bus station and on my way to the second I met a guy from Ethiopia. He told me his name but I couldn't say it, let alone write it out. He was also nice to talk with and helped me find the bus to Akko. On the way to Akko I met a German girl, Sara, who has been volunteering in Jerusalem for ten months. She told me about her experiences and it was interesting to hear how she felt about Germany's past and the Holocaust. This is one of the benefits of traveling alone, it's easy to talk to and meet people.

I didn't get a lot of time to explore Akko. It's a pretty small place and it reminds me a lot of Daman, a place I visited in India. I walked around the harbour and took some photos as the sun was going down, then I spent quite a while walking about trying to find an internet cafe. As this place is not that touristy, it was quite the task. Everyone I asked told me there isn't one in this area, but I found a coffee place that lets you use their computers if you buy a drink.

Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem:

Akko harbour:

Akko lighthouse:

Last Day in Jerusalem

It seems I'm here at the worst time, with religious Jewish, Islamic and Christian days between Friday - Sunday, everything is closed down. It's a good thing I chose to stay here for a few days. Though I still haven't seen the Dome of the Rock. It's supposed to open tomorrow.

It's been pretty relaxing today. I was in no hurry as I walked around the old city. I made my way to the Western Wall, where I was disappointed to find out that photos weren't allowed. I guess it's a recent rule, even note taking is not allowed. I asked the security where I could take a photo of the wall and they pointed me to a high spot just above the grounds.

Security is everywhere here. I suppose it's needed with so many religious groups butting heads. High security is present at every entrance in the old city and seeing 20 year olds totting rifles is quite common. There were five or six on the bus that I took here. Yesterday a street was closed off because the security thought there was a bomb. It turned out to be nothing.

I left the old city for a bit, hoping to check out some restaurants, only to find everything closed. On my way back I stopped by the Dormition Church, which is known as the place where the Virgin Mary died and where the Last Supper was held. The church is pretty interesting from the outside. On the inside it's pretty modern looking and lacks the atmosphere and art contained within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Around noon I decided to rest for a bit. I find the light the worst for photos around noon, so I took care of some necessities, like getting my laundry done and putting some food in my belly. I also checked out of the hotel I was in for one that's a little cleaner and has free internet.

My last sight seeing for the day involved touring the old city citadel, which is now known as the David's Tower Museum, and I also walked along the ramparts of the western and southern walls. The museum was more interesting than I thought it would be. Rooms are broken into different time periods of Jerusalem, such as the Crusader, Islamic, Mamluk and Ottoman periods.

Tomorrow I'll make one more attempt to see the Dome of the Rock before boarding a bus to Haifa where I'll transfer to Akko (once known as Acre).

Western Wall with the Dome of the Rock in the background:

Damascus gate with shops set-up around it:

Dormition Church:

Old Jerusalem's David Street:

View of the Citadel from the Tower of David, the minaret in the centre is often confused for the Tower of David:

Streets of Old Jerusalem :

Security at Jaffa Gate:

Ethopian priest near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre:

Jerusalem - Day 2

I'm loving it here. It's a diverse place in terms of religion, people, buildings, food, etc. Walking through Old Jerusalem, I've heard all sorts of languages and seen people from all over the world. Today a man from Congo helped me and a guy from Belgium our way around a blocked street through a monastery. While looking around a shop I heard a group speaking Croatian. There's lots of Russian and Polish people too. It's really amazing. Most seem to be here for religious purposes, but a lot of tourists too. The most tourists I've seen in one place during my whole trip.

The day was pretty rainy. I was up early as usual, trying to beat the crowds, but this time it didn't help. There's just no avoiding tourists here. I immediately walked over to the Dome of the Rock, only to find it closed again. I was told it would open on Sunday to non-muslims, and I'm wondering if I'll get a chance to see it.


My second stop and the highlight of my day was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This is where many believe Jesus was crucified and buried. It's a really beautiful church. Inside are so many incredible paintings and the atmosphere is pretty amazing. It was quite relaxing walking through it. There were three giant tour groups already inside when I got there and this was around 7:30 am. Some people seemed really touched to be here and seemed to be in tears.

After the church visit, I made my way to the Mount of Olives, hoping to get a good view of the city. The view from the top was terrific, but I wasn't able to get very good photos as my telephoto lens seems to be malfunctioning. Good thing there's a five year warranty on it. On the way down I stopped by the Dominus Flevit Church, where Jesus is said to have wept over the desctruction of the Second Temple and the dispora of the Jewish people. I left the old city for a bit, walking through new Jerusalem, which is quite modern. Often it reminded me of walking along Stephen Avenue in Calgary.

Coming back through Jaffa Gate, I stopped by the Church of the Redeemer. It looks like a fairly new church compared to most of the other ones in the neighborhood, but what it offers is access to one of it's towers and the best view of the old city. I climbed up and took a few photos just as the rain was easing up and the clouds were starting to clear. As I climbed down, the church was closing and they actually locked me inside the tower. I started knocking on the door and was thinking of who I could call on my cell to get out, but after a few minutes my knocks were heard and they let me out. It seemed like they were just about to leave too. I guess I took a while up on the tower and they forgot about me.

Tomorrow I'll check out more of what this place has to offer, hopefully without rain.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre:

Dominus Flevit Church (shapred like a tear):

View from the Mount of Olives:

A musician in front of the Jaffa Gate:

Damascus Gate:

Church of the Redeemer:

Shalom from Jerusalem!

I am in Israel. I got to the border this morning at 6:00 am, only to find that it didn't open until 7:00. This is on the Jordan side. When I finally got through, I went through some heavy interrogation and I started to wonder if they would let me in. They let me go through, after making me sit a while "for an answer." I crossed the border to Eilat, where I booked a bus to Jerusalem. That's where I'm writing from now.

The ride to Jerusalem was about four hours. I had a window seat and enjoyed the scenery. On the way here, the bus passed next to the Dead Sea, which was quite the sight. The water was quite still and the reflections were amazing. I was hoping the bus would pull over for a break, but it didn't. I took a photo from the window.

When I finally got to Jerusalem, it was late in the afternoon. I got some food (a "corn pizza") and then made my way to the old city section where I looked for a hotel room. By the time I found one and settled in, the sun was already setting. I walked around for a bit, but really didn't see much. There seems to be a lot to see here so I may stay for a couple of days. We'll see how much I get to tomorrow.

Passing by the Dead Sea:

Dome of the Rock (was closed when I got there, this was as close as I could get):

Lion's Gate:

Mary's Tomb:

Gethsemane Basilica of Agony:

Zakharias Tomb:

Below the Mt. of Olives:

Streets of the Old City:

From the desert to the sea

The Red Sea that is! I'm now in Aqaba, located at the tip of the Red Sea, where Egypt, Israel and Jordan meet. Aqaba is not a place I'd stay very long and if I had known better I probably would have just passed through here.

Reading the guidebook I thought that there would be some interesting ruins and beaches here. The ruins are in very poor shape. Mostly they're just holes in the ground. There is also a small Malmuk fort (originally built by the Crusaders). It's not a sight worth going out of the way for, 95% of it seems recently reconstructed.

The beaches were a bit of a let down too. This is Jordan's only coastline. It used to be smaller too, until they gave the Saudis 6,000 sq meters of desert for 12 kms of coast line. The problem with such a tiny coast line is that everything is crammed together, Navy docks, Commercial docks, Recreational docks, etc. There really isn't much of a beach and what is accessible to the public is pretty dirty. Broken glass covers the sand, among other things.

On the positive side, the weather is amazing and it's quite a laid back place. The lack of sights is probably a good thing, as I wouldn't take much rest otherwise. It's a little cheaper too and I took the opportunity to pig out a little. Aqaba is also 10 km from Israel. Tomorrow I will see about going across the border and taking a bus to Jerusalem.

Streets of Aqaba:

Mamluk fort:

Remains of Mamluk fort:

Beaches:

Sunset over the Red Sea:

Petra - Day 2

Even if these ruins were taken away, the landscape itself is on par if not better than places like Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce Canyon, etc. This place has been the highlight of my trip. I decided today I would do a lot of hiking and I'm pretty sure I walked more than I did yesterday. My legs are killing me! It's a good pain though.

Once again I was the first one to the Treasury, where I took some more photos and then hurried to do my first hike (to the top of the mountain that overlooks the Treasury). I was in a hurry because I wanted to catch the light at just the right angle. I followed the guidebook instructions, made my way to the top of the mountain and got terribly lost.

The top of the mountain is a large flat area which is dotted with dome like rocks. It's hard to get your bearings without getting really high up on one of them or finding the edge. I couldn't find the right spot to look down on the Treasury and was getting pretty frustrated. I decided to retrace my steps and start again. When I got back to the beginning I noticed a very obvious and well used trail and felt quite sheepish that I missed it. I also missed the light. Ah well, it was quite an adventure with some really good scrambling. On the downside I came across a few dead donkeys which was a disturbing sight. The smell was just awful!

Coming back down into the valley, I did a giant circle, exploring the Royal Tombs, the Christian Tombs (identified as such for bearing a cross), and some tombs at the base of Jabal Madbah. On the outside they have some slight differences, on the inside they're pretty much the same. There's thousands of tombs in this place and archeologists originally thought it was simply a necropolis.

By this time the sun was starting to feel quite hot and I was running out of water. I found that whenever I walk past the Bedouin, they offer tea. So I started seeking them out in order to quench my thirst and spend some time with the locals. While sitting down with one of them, I asked them about the dead donkeys and was told that they just died of old age. I wasn't entirely convinced. I was wearing my keffiyeh and while I was trying to make conversation with the Bedouin, a couple of tourists took photos of me. This happened a couple of other times since I bought it, it's quite funny. Sometimes when I approach other tourists to find out where they from, they respond harshly and walk away, thinking that I'm a local trying to sell them something.

The second hike I did was to the High Place of Sacrifice (another peak). At the top are some interesting channel carvings, thought to be for channeling the flow of blood following animal sacrifices. I didn't quite figure out where the blood was being channeled or why. The peak offered some more amazing views of the area.

I didn't take that many photos today, the places I went to weren't the most picturesque in comparison to the Treasury and Monastery, but they were quite interesting and it was great exercise doing all the walking/hiking. At sunset, I did the hike that I attempted in the morning and this time I got the photo I wanted. By the time I was half way down the peak, the sun had set and I was walking back to town in the dark. That was quite an experience in itself, being along among these great ruins.

Me on Jabal Madbah:

Theatre:

Bedouin woman, note the tea cup on the left:

Jabal Madbah:

Street of Facades:

Inside one of the many tombs. Most are just plain, this one had some columns:

Tomb of the soldier:

Natural arch with stairs that seem to lead to nowhere:

One of the Royal Tombs:

Ancient wardrobe malfunction depicted in a mosaic:

Petra - Day 1

A good day for burning calories! I walked almost 40 km and still didn't see that much of Petra. I got up super early (4:30am) and was at the ruins at 6:00am. I wanted to be there before any tourists to get photos of the jewels of Petra, The Treasury and Monastery, without any people. I was surprised to find six other people walking to these sights ahead of me. It's a bit of a walk to the main sights so I booked it, passed them and was the first one there.

A lot of these ruins were carved out of the soft rock by the Nabataeans. There is Greek, Roman and Egyptian influence in the architecture. The Nabataeans had a big sphere of influence, but not through might. They repelled armies by paying them off and they earned much of their money by controlling trade routes.

The Treasury is the most intact and best preserved among these ruins. It's mid-way through a canyon that leads to Petra's city centre. Walking through the canyon is incredible. The colours of the surrounding rock are beautiful and there are a few tombs to see on the way, but I decided to leave those for later. I got to the Treasury first and took photos like mad then made my way to the Monastery. It's about three kilometers away and it involved some elevation gain. I got some photos without people there too, then I took it easy and started to enjoy the area.

The place is huge and there's lots of opportunity for exploration and hiking. I checked out the city center ruins and then Petra Church, which has the best intact mosaics I've seen so far. Two giant floor panels that are covered in all sorts of depictions. Then decided to climb up a 1,000+ meter peak to get a birds eye view of the area. Considering I go to the Rockies every weekend, I didn't think I would tire out. But with the desert sun, I quickly ran out of water and was soon feeling quite dehydrated. At the top of the peak, I was treated to amazing views of the area. Then I searched out some shade and sat for a while, waiting for the sun to ease up and regaining my energy. It's really neat how cold it gets in the shade. The temperature changed by 15 degrees or more.

Back down I was invited for some tea by the Bedouin. They offered me the tea for free but then tried to sell me some of their wares. It was good to quench my thirst and enjoy some local hospitality. I told them that I wasn't interested in buying anything and gave them some money for the tea. They refused at first but I insisted and they accepted. I asked them for a photo, but they refused.

The sun was setting as I made my way back to town. I had a whole bunch of water and ate some schwarmas and tomorrow I will explore Petra some more.

Treasury:

City centre ruins:

Tenemos Gateway:

Monastery:

View near the Monastery:

Lion's Tomb:

Bedouin Camels:

Silk Tomb:

More tombs:

Air-conditioned taxi:

In Jordan

I left Damascus this morning and crossed the border to Jordan. Right away I have to say that Jordan did not meet my expectations. Reading about it I noticed it had a more moderate government and it seemed to be more modernized. It was more expensive and I figured that would mean better service. Really Jordans buses are terrible compared to Syria and I believe Syria has more to offer.

In Syria I've found the people friendlier too. Here I have yet to meet someone who hasn't tried to rip me off. It happened in Syria too, but there they'd take you for a dollar or two max, here they try to take you for a lot more. Perhaps it's because there's more tourists here.

Crossing the border I went to Amman, Jordan. I've been hearing that it's not a place worth spending time in so right away I transfered to a bus to Petra. On the way to Petra the bus driver tried to ask for $10 more for the ticket. The person beside me pretended to pay the same price to make it seem like I wasn't being tricked. This seemed to get some objections from the people behind me and I got some of my money back. I wasn't in a mood to argue. However the objections didn't stop from the people in the back and pretty soon the bus driver was in a heated argument, waving hands, turning the bus around threatening to go back to Amman and swearing on the Quran that he wasn't ripping anyone off. Pretty crazy for my first day.

Things worked out though and I arrived in Petra. Unfortunately I arrived too late in the day to see much. I'm in a village next to the Petra ruins called Wadi Musa (Valley of Moses). Indiana Jones - The Last Crusade was filmed here, and you can buy an Indiana Jones whip and hat at almost every store. I think the ruins are vast and there seem to be some hiking possibilities. I may stay three days here then figure out what to do next.

Wadi Musa:

A gloomy day in Damascus

I have to take a paragraph out of todays post to wish Jenn (my girlfriend) a happy birthday! The photo is not from Damascus, but I was thinking ahead. Hope you're having a good time! Now back to the regularly scheduled blog...

Feeling gross today. I'm pretty sure that it's something I ate, perhaps I've been too adventurous trying food on the street. It's hard to resist trying stuff, there's so many things I've never seen before. There's a 1000 versions of baklava. But it came back to haunt me. It was really difficult to explore Damascus with the same vigor that I've had since the beginning of my trip. To top it off, it rained all day! It made photography really difficult and the temperature uncomfortably chilly.

I was afraid of coming to Damascus. It's the biggest city in Syria and I dread big cities. Surprisingly, it doesn't feel that big. Out of all the places I've been, here I've felt most comfortable with the orientation of the place. It's the first place I've gone out and walked for quite a while without a map or GPS.

Damascus is one of the oldest (if not the oldest) places still inhabited. That was quite apparent when I walked through the "Old Damascus" area. There's ruins on top of ruins on top of ruins with modern buildings built next to them. Some ruins are still being used as modern structures. The biggest mosque here, the Umayyad Mosque, is thought to have been built on a place of worship since 3,000 BC. It's a magnificent mosque, considered the third most important after Mecca and Medina.

The mosque is surrounded by a market or "souq" that makes West Edmonton Mall look tiny. Whoever said it was the biggest mall in the world has never been to the middle east. The market in Damascus has been my favorite so far, more so than Istanbul's. I think part of that is that it's easier to navigate. It's surrounded by fortifications.

The old city is interesting in terms of religion too. Long ago it was split into quarters; Christian, Muslim, Jewish. It used to have walls dividing each quarter and the gates used to close at sunset. There's quite a difference in the architecture as you walk among the different quarters. Orthodox churches with towers bearing the cross and Islamic minarets decorated with the crescent moon; it's quite the sight. The fourth quarter is the Citadel (which is closed for restoration) and a palace.

I really wish I could have seen more of Damascus. I just really lacked the energy today. Tomorrow my plan is to get a bus to Amman, Jordan. I may stay longer in Damascus if I don't feel better tomorrow.

Walking towards the marketplace:

Statue of Saladin on a horse, note the placement of King Richard "the Lionheart":

Inside the souq:

Roman ruins next to the marketplace, Umayyad Mosque in the background:

Umayyad Mosque:

Umayyad Mosque:

Azem Palace:

Azem Palace:

Roman ruins in the old Damascus area:

Palmyra's desert

Today I spent most of the time exploring the desert sights around Palmyra. Specifically the Valley of the Tombs, where the rich and royal were buried, and the Qala'at ibn Maan (an Arab built castle), a more recent addition to the area.

I woke up very early and tried to get to the ruins before the sunrise, but was a little late. It seems the sun rises much earlier here than it does in Turkey. I still managed to get good light and some good photos.

The main ruins are very close to the town site, at most a five minute walk. The rest are a little further but still walkable. I spent a good portion of the day walking and got some pretty good exercise. The first on my list was exploring the Valley of the Tombs. Most of the tombs are in pretty poor condition and the decoration and loot has been either sold or put in museums. The tombs are generally free standing towers with multiple levels, but there were also some cave like tombs. The best tomb contained amazing frescoes including one portraying a scene with Achilles and Ulysses. Unfortunately photography was not allowed.

Overlooking the Valley of the Tombs and the main ruins is the Qala'at ibn Maan. The hike to it was steep and I was really starting to feel the desert sun. I decided to keffiyeh from the many Bedouin selling wares near the ruins. It really helped and it made me look more Arabic which made for less hassle during my exploration. The castle was nice, but it paled in comparison to the castles I've seen up to this point. The best thing about it was the view of the surrounding area.

When I returned to the town, I sat down in the hotel lobby to look through photos, when a man who was driving a couple from France around Syria asked me if I'm going to Damascus. I told him I was and he told me I could join them for free if I packed now. I quickly packed my stuff and jumped in the car. To my surprise he recruited another person and there were five of us in the vehicle. Another surprise was that the French couple were looking to split the cost of the trip. It was more money than I was planning to spend, but they could have asked for more too. The couple was extremely nice and it was a pleasant way of getting to Damascus. Tomorrow I'll explore the capital of Syria.

Early morning light over the ruins:

Light creating depth over the ruins:

Bedouin woman:

Valley of the Tombs:

Castle overlooking the tombs:

Inside the castle:

Overlooking the main ruins:

Friendly locals met on the way up to the castle:

Palmyra locals:

Driving to Damascus:

Palmyra

The name Palmyra means city of palm trees. It's an ancient place built around an oasis and fought over by many ancient super powers, as it was a key stop for caravans going through the desert. It was the throne of Queen Zenobia, who defied the Roman empire and conquered the surrounding area.

I didn't know what to expect from Palmyra. I really didn't read familiarize myself with the sights of Syria as I didn't expect to cross the border. I've come to realize that this is the place to see if traveling through this country. It rivals everything I've seen on my trip, including Turkey.

I got off the bus around lunch time, found a hotel and immediately left to explore the ruins. Right off the bat I noticed that it's a vast area. Most of it one can explore for free, it's just too big to build a wall around it and charge admission. Though the best sights among the ruins are closed off and a ticket is required.

Like with previous tourists sights, there were locals patrolling the area trying to sell you junk. In addition there were also camel owners offering tourists a ride for $2-$20 dollars. The price kept getting smaller as I walked away. :) My experience riding camels in India left me quite sore and I didn't have any desire to do it again.

I spent the entire afternoon walking around and taking photos and was surprised to see very few tourists. The sun started to go down and it was pretty cloudy so I thought there wouldn't be much of a sunset. But just as I started heading back to town, the colours in the clouds started turning red, orange and purple and I broke out the camera. Unfortunately I was far from the really good silhouettes, but I managed to capture some of the colour.

In an entire afternoon I think I only managed to see a third of the interesting sights. In addition to the ruins there is a citadel that overlooks the oasis and some tomb towers in the nearby hills. This will be my agenda for tomorrow.

Temple of Ba'al Shamin:

The Tetrapylon, the centre of the ancient city:

The Great Colonnade:

A camel ridden down The Great Colonnade:

The Monumental Arch:

The camel owners:

The Temple of Bel:

Funerary Temple:

Funerary Temple:

Apamea, Masyaf & Krak des Chevaliers

I can not complain enough about the lack of decent internet cafes, government website restrictions and decent connections in Syria. I just lost two hours of work because the internet cafe owner decided to reboot all the computers without warning. Ahh! That said, most of my day was quite enjoyable. I went to the Apamea ruins, the Masyaf Fortress and the Krak des Chevaliers crusader castle.

Through my hotel I arranged a tour of the sights I menioned above. Normally others would join in but no one in the hotel seemed to want to do this tour, so I was on my own. The benefit was having no one in my photos. On the downside, I had to pay a lot more for the tour. It was all worth it when I got to Apamea and was the only person there, just as the sun was rising. It was a beautiful sight and very picturesque. Apamea is most popular because of it's long column lined roads. The site has passed through many hands, including the Crusaders, but went through its golden age during the Roman period.

Masyaf fortress was my second stop for today. This is the castle that was once occupied by "THE" Assassins and part of the inspiration behind me traveling through the middle east. It was part of my inspiration to see the middle east, as it was featured in a video game called "Assassin's Creed." The game story line was based on actual places and characters during the Crusader period.

My third stop of the day was the Krak des Chevaliers. I didn't know much about it, aside from it being a major Crusader stronghold. It was easily the highlight of the day. The castle is huge, boasting two defensive walls. It was easy to get lost among its many corridors. In fact, I did get lost. I had a great time imagining battles it must have seen as I traced my way along the exterior fortifications.

During the sightseeing I met Aaron from Australia and Mariee from Quebec. I met them at Masyaf and ran into them again at Krak des Chevaliers. They were incredibly friendly and when they found out I was staying in Hama they invited me out for dinner. It was great to have some company. We ate, played backgammon and shared travel stories. Walking around Hama we also met a number of locals who were happy to tell us of Syrian customs and instruct us in the way of the Arabic language. The friendliest of all was Hassan, in the middle of the photo on the left flanked by Mariee and Aaron.

Apamea ruins:

Masyaf fortress:

Entering Masyaf fortress:

Krad des Chevaliers:

Krad des Chevaliers interior fortification with moat. Mariee and Aaron are the figures on the wall:

Me at the highest point of the castle:

View from the highest point of the castle:

Walking around the castle:

Aleppo and Hama

Ahh, I haven't had much luck with the internet connections. I don't know if it's the whole country or just the cafes I've been to, but the connections are equivalent to dial-up. Coupled with the government bans on blogging websites and facebook, and dirty/sticky keyboards, it's been a frustrating experience using the internet here.

To make matters worse, I'm pretty much illiterate here. In Turkey I could at least read signs, maps, etc. Here the Arabic script is unique and I've had a greater amount of difficulty finding places. Even the numbering is different, though I learned it fairly quickly. There are signs in the latin alphabet, but few and far between.

Aleppo was not as fun as I thought it would be. Part of that was because it's Tuesday. It's a holiday and most of the sights were closed. The one I was looking forward to most, the citadel, was also closed. The Great Mosque was open, but it was a bit of a let down for photos. All I did really was walk around Aleppo's souq (market place), which was pretty fun. It's much more interesting than Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, though the guidebook says otherwise.

In all honestly, I couldn't wait to get out of Aleppo. To me it seemed overpriced, dirty and overrated. I decided my next destination would be Hama. That's where I'm writing from now. It's so much better. The first hotel I went to was very clean and I wasted no time booking a room for almost half the price I paid in Aleppo. I then made my way around the town, getting oriented with the neighborhoods and taking some photos. I met a handful of locals, all were very friendly and I saw a very welcoming and clean town. I'll probably spend a couple of days here. Tomorrow I'll visit a couple of nearby castles and some Roman ruins.

Aleppo:

My breakfast:

Aleppo Citadel:

A man fights with a sheep:

Aleppo Souq (marketplace):

Carpet shops:

All natural soap:

Nut shop:

Aleppo's Great Mosque:

A Beautiful Hama Mosque with Norias (water wheels):

Insha'Allah I am in Aleppo, Syria

This morning I decided to skip visiting the Harran ruins, I heard that much of them have been destroyed as the locals create a more modern town. So I decided to try crossing the border into Syria. From the beginning of my trip, this was my biggest concern. Most foreigners, especially from North America, must have a visa ahead of time. I didn't get mine, but I read on the internet that sometimes they let you through, issuing a 15 day visa at the border. I also heard that people have waited 12 hours only to be turned around. Needless to say, I was a little apprehensive.

From the Urfa bus station I hoped on a mini bus and got to the border in about an hour. As I walked to the border line I was invited for tea by some Turkish Arabs. I got my first taste of Arabic, which is sooo much harder than Turkish. I sat down with them for half an hour trying to communicate using English, Turkish, Arabic and whole lot of hand gestures. It was a pleasant experience.

After some tea, I decided to brave the border guards. It wasn't nearly as bad as I imagined. Immediately the Turkish border guards noticed I didn't have a visa. They called the Syrian border guards who decided to be generous and issue me a visa at the border. Both sides spoke pretty good English. During this experience I met three tourists from China, one who was also trying to get a visa at the border. We decided to stick together until we reached the closest Syrian city; Rakka. Together we got to the border bus station and crammed into a mini bus with a bunch of Syrian people.

I sat in the back between two, both were extremely friendly and tried to teach me some Arabic. The friendliest one was Ahmed, the one I'm sitting next to in the photo above. His English was also the best. The rest of them were not so keen on photos.

The bus got to Rakka where we transferred to a bus to Aleppo, the second biggest city in Syria. That is where I write from now. It seems to be a city that has a lot to offer in sight seeing, tomorrow I will explore. There is definitely a lot of difference from Turkey. Cleanliness is the most noticeable, in terms of hotels and internet cafes. At this cafe cockroaches are crawling around the computer desks. Also, my hotel smells funky and it's the one I settled on after seeing rooms at four others. On the bright side, the people seem to be extremely friendly and there seem to be a lot more tourists here than the places I visited in Turkey. I should be able to make some friends.

On a side note, the Syrian government has banned access to Facebook and blogging seems to be somewhat restricted too. Strange.

Urfa instead of Antep

The bus driver stopped at Gaziantep and I asked him if the bus was going to Sanliurfa, he nodded and I gave him twelve Turkish lira to stay on the bus. A last minute change. Reading the guide, I thought this would be a better place. It's smaller, the bus station is closer to the town centre and it's close to the Syria border.

The name of the city on the map is Şanlıurfa, which means Glorious Urfa. Locals just call it Urfa. In the ancient times it was known as Edessa, a town of northern Mesopotamia. The Turks associate it with Ur, the birthplace of Abraham. Many of the places in the town are linked to this story, like the two pools near the bazaar that are filled with sacred fish. It's said that touching the fish will make one blind.

At first glance, the guide led me to believe that there were a lot of sights to see here, there aren't. I was pretty disappointed when I got to the castle, there's really nothing left of it. It provides a view of the city, which looks much like the surrounding landscape; arid and dry. A huge change from the coastal towns I was very much getting used to.

My first impression of Urfa was a little disappointing, but as I made my way through the town and the local bazaar, that quickly changed. There is a lot more culture here and the people are so interesting and friendly. The town is more rooted in the past. I spent much of my time today browsing the bazaar, taking photos of shops and shop owners. The people seemed happy to be in the photos. The food here is excellent too and there seems to be many choices.

At the hotel I'm staying at I met a student who's learning English. He seemed eager to try speaking to me and offered me some tea and a sit down. I was happy to have someone to chat with. We sat in the lobby and talked for what seemed like an hour or so, often referencing the English-Turkish dictionary. I imagine our conversation would have been shorter had either one of us been fluent in each other's language. Still, it was a pleasant experience.

The guide mentions a touring company in the town, with an owner that speaks very good English. I eagerly made my way to the location and found it closed. Hopefully it'll be open tomorrow. I'd like to see what my possibilities are in terms of visiting the nearby Harran ruins and transportation for crossing the border into Syria.

View of the city from the castle ruins:

Halil-ur-Rahman Mosque:

Children looking at the sacred fish:

Street food; shish kabobs, mmm:

Bronze shop:

Women a the spice shop:

Spices:

More spices:

Wood shop:

Anamur: Mamure Castle & Anamurium

Anamur is a tiny town directly north of Cyprus. It has nothing to offer in terms of sight seeing. However, just a few kilometers away are some beautiful sites that don't seem to get many visitors; Mamure Castle and the ancient city of Anamurium.

There was a rooster outside of my hotel that started crowing at 4:00 am. I kept waking up and going back to sleep until finally getting up at 5:30. The sun was just rising as I started biking to the nearby Mamure Castle.

The castle was originally Roman, but has been reconstructed over the centuries; used by Byzantines and the Crusaders. I got there before the ticket booth opened. There is no gate so I walked around taking photos and had the whole place to myself. It was quite peaceful, right on the coast. I climbed up to the highest point of the castle, sat down and listened to the waves crashing below.

Following the castle visit, I made my way to Anamurium. It was a long bike ride and I wasn't quite sure if I was headed in the right direction so a few times I stopped and asked the locals. They seemed to find me funny. All the same, they helped me find my way.

Anamurium is a huge site. An ancient city dating back to 4th century B.C. It's also right on the coast and many of its houses are still in good condition. I went into a few and was surprised to see that many still had frescos decorating the walls, though most were barely visible. I saw other tourists at the sight, but they seemed take off quickly and again I had the place to myself. I spent most of the day here, exploring just about structure that still had a doorway (and there were many). I also saw a lot of wild life at this sight. Giant lizards, a giant snake and ton of tortoises. The tortoises were everywhere!

I also saw some wild life I really didn't want to see; mosquitos. This is the first time I've seen them on my trip and I really didn't expect to considering it's winter season here. I got bitten pretty badly.

On the way back to town, the Turkish road workers decided to redo two sections of the road, and there were no ways around it. I had to ride my bike through whatever kind of oil they use to prime the roads before they lay the pavement. My bike, shoes, pants and pack got covered in oil. I don't think there's any way to take it out. I tried soap and detergent, but it seems I'll have some permanent stains as remainders of my trip in Turkey.

I've decided to change my plans a little. Tonight I will catch an overnight bus to Gaziantep instead of Antioch. Gaziantep has an airport and if I can't get into Syria, as I originally intended, I can fly to Istanbul and fly somewhere else in the area. I really want to get down to Jordan to see Petra.

Mamure Castle:

Mamure Castle with the Mediterranean Sea:

A level of the main tower at Mamure Castle:

My transportation for today:

Dwellings at Anamurium:

Frescos of Anamurium houses:

Public bath ruins at Anamurium:

Tortoise at Anamurium:

A long day on the bus

My plan today was to get to Anamur, another city on the Mediterranean coast about five hours from Antalya. The difference in today's trip would be me doing everything versus a touring agency. Up to this point I've been using small touring companies who would book buses and sight seeing trips on my behalf, for a price. It's a very lazy way of doing things and really doing it on my own didn't seem like it would be that difficult. It wasn't. I easily found the bus that took me to the bus depot and quickly made a reservation for a bus leaving for Anamur. I saved about half the money that I would have spent doing it through a touring company.

I booked a bus that would allow me to get to Anamur in the daylight, which would make looking for a hotel a lot easier. Unfortunately this meant that I couldn't see the Antalya museum. It was a difficult decision to make, as I hear the exhibits are excellent. Ah well, maybe one day I will return. It's a beautiful city and well worth another visit.


The bus ride to Anamur was so scenic! The road winds around the mountain side with a view of the Mediterranean sea. Sea as far as the eye could see. I was imagining how it would have looked like during the Crusades, with hundreds of ships in the horizon. I took a few photos from the bus, but it was simply impossible to capture the beauty of it, especially with a very bumpy ride.

The bus broke down half way and I arrived to Anamur a little late, just an hour before sunset. I didn't have a chance to do much or take many photos. I took a photo of the main mosque, which happens to be right in front of the hotel I'm staying at. I've rented a bicycle for tomorrow to see a castle that is about seven kilometers from here.

Kekova, Myra & Santa Claus

Today I went for a boat ride over the Mediteranean Sea to the island of Kekova. It's known for sunken city ruins. An earth quake in the second century brought the ancient city down into the water, though ruins are still visible along the coast. This would be a nice place to dive. The ruins weren't that much to look at, what was nice was just being on the boat on a very sunny day. It was very relaxing.

What I found out on this trip that I wasn't aware of was that St. Nicholas (Santa Claus) is from Turkey. At least that's where he lived and died; in Myra, an ancient city of Lycia. I thought it would be nice to visit the Church of St. Nicholas, which once housed his remains. I read that it had amazing frescos, and I wasn't disappointed, they were all over the church walls. St. Nicholas is well known for giving to the poor, hence why Santa Claus brings presents at Christmas. His way of helping the people also involved converting them to Christianity, which meant destroying a lot of ancient temples in order to stomp out paganism in the area.

The day concluded with a visit to the Myra ruins, within walking distance of the church. Impressive tombs are carved right into the mountain side, and they are the highlight. Unfortunately it is not possible to get very close to them. Viewing them is only possible from below. The site also has an intact theatre. The theatre was open to the public, but compared to the other theatre ruins I've seen so far on this trip, this one was nothing special.

Today I met some other visitors to Turkey. Ursula and Karen (mother and daughter) from Germany and Heather from the Isle of Man. They accompanied me for much of the day. It was so nice to have some company and share stories of travel. It's a great way to learn and pass the time on the bus.

Tomorrow should be interesting. I will be leaving Antalya for Anamur. I'll make my way to the local bus station and attempt to book a trip on my own. So far touring companies have been doing that for me, because I've been lazy. The bus stations here are insanely busy! In the bigger cities they're like giant malls with a dozen bus companies competing against each other. Though that makes it easier to get good prices, it makes it a lot more confusing for the foreigner.

Fearless Turkish captain of the boat to Kekova Island:

The sunken city of Kekova Island:

Kale, near Kekova island:

The Santa Clause worksh... err church:

Ceiling frescos in the Church of St. Nicholas:

Myra tombs in the mountain side:

Myra theatre with tombs in the background:

Turkish O Cristo Redentor -- actually it's just me with the Meditteranean Sea in the background:

Perge, Aspendos, Side and Kursulnu Waterfall

The title of this posts lists three ruin sites, but really it's all about Perge. Side used to have great ruins, but people taking advantage of the tourist location have set up shops, destroying the ruins in the process. All that's left now are remains of the Temple of Apollo, five rebuilt columns that you see in the photo on the left.

Aspendos seems to be a large site but it is either not fully escavated or it's mostly destroyed. What it's famous for is it's theatre. It's one of the largest in the area, capable of holding 30,000 people. It's also still in use today. Plays are quite frequent in the summer.

On my way into the Aspendos theatre I noticed some camels on the side. I went to take photos and was approached by a guy who put a fancy hat on my head and insisted I sit on the camel while he takes my photo. I knew he would ask for money after, so I declined. I took a photo and then he wanted money for the photo. I told him I'd rather delete it and he seemed to leave me alone. He wanted 10 Euros if I sat on the camel and 1 Euro for taking a photo of the camel. Ha!

At all the ruins there are locals trying to make a buck off the tourists. My favorite one is where they come up to you with ancient coins that they claim their family member discovered in at the site. They offer to sell them to you for real cheap and assure you that you can get thousands of dollars for them back home. The cute little old lady in the photo to the right tried to pull that one on me.

Perge was the real jewel of this sight seeing trip. Walking through its ruined streets you really get a sense of what it was like to have been there in its glory days. The place would have been covered in marble, awesome statues and carvings and shops of all sorts. One of the shop ruins still had a sign indicating it was a butcher shop. The bath ruins show an advanced underground draining system. The streets of Perge are marked with grooves from the weight of the Roman chariots. Just amazing! Many of the statues that lined the streets have been moved to the Antalya museum, which I'll make a point to see before I leave this place.

I have to mention, on my trip today I met an Argentinean guy by the name Oskar Delrosal. He's quite amazing. At 77 he's on his own traveling through Turkey and Greece with less baggage than I have. If I understood correctly, he's a retired University professor. When I was just a 1 year old, he was making his way around Europe. He seemed to share the same passion for history and ruins that I have. It was a real pleasure talking with him. Hope I can do the same at that age. To the left is a photo of Oskar at a beautiful park we stopped by known for the Kursulnu Waterfall. A peaceful park and quite beautiful with the autumn colours and leaves floating around in the ponds.

The photos I've been taking may give a sense that Turkey is still in the dark ages. It's quite the opposite. Turkey is quite modernized. Most people here drive better cars then I do. I just happen to avoid framing anything modern in my photos. Antalya is unique in that there's an "old town" area where modernization of the structures is forbidden. Though some of the villages that I've passed through on the way to these ruin sites do seem like they're a few years behind the times.

Perge ruins:

Columns along the main street of Perge:

Perge's main street:

Perge's bath house and draining system:

Marko at Perge stadium:

Cat at Aspendos theatre:

Camels at Aspendos:

Antalya, view from my hotel room:

Antalya at night. My Hotel is on that hill:

Pamukkale and Hierapolis

It feels like I've been in Turkey for over a week, yet this is only my fourth day! I left Selcuk for the village of Pamukkale via tour bus. On the bus I was happy to find some familiar faces. Hardy and Tejal, the couple from Chicago that I had met while exploring Ephesus. It was great having them on the bus as we had a two hour bus ride to Pamukkale.

Like with the bus to Ephesus, we started off the morning with a sales pitch. This time it was marble. We were shown how they make things out of marble, different types of marble found in the local quarries and the local marble shop. It was pretty interesting, but again the prices of the items were quite high. The marble shop was followed up by a stop for food, all you can eat Turkish buffet, then we were off to sight see.

Pamukkale literally means "white castle" and is named such because of the giant calcium deposits overlooking the village. It's a popular place to bathe in, as the people now and in the ancient times believed the water had healing properties. I mention the ancient times because above the springs are ruins of Hierapolis, an old Roman city. The Romans used these springs in much the same way the locals do today.

Approaching Hierapolis, we passed through its necropolis. It is littered with tombs and sarcophagi, many which are very much intact. The Hierapolis baths are still in use, though they are covered and extra admission fees are required to go in. Above the baths are remnants of the Temple of Apollo and a theatre that is said to have sat 15,000 people in its day.

Unfortunately I couldn't explore the site longer, I had to hurry to catch a bus from the village to Antalya, where I just arrived a little over two hours ago.

The white castle, Pamukkale:

Calcium formations, pools:

Locals and tourists dip their feet in the pools:

Tejal with the Pamukkale village in the background:

A tractor passes through the Hierapolis necropolis:

Tomb at the necropolis:

Decorated ruins at Hierapolis theatre:

Hierapolis gate:

Selcuk & Ephesus, wow!

I'm loving Selcuk! It's a beautiful little town, very friendly people and so much to see! I did so much in the last 24 hours, I'm not sure where to start.

Last night, while looking for an internet cafe, a carpet shop owner let me use his computer. I told him that I wasn't interested in buying carpets and he didn't try to sell me any. While chatting I told him that I was Serbian by background and once I was finished using his computer, he took me to meet his Serbian friend. Coincidentally, she happend to be married to the owner of the hotel I'm staying at. We talked for a bit and now I seem to be getting pretty good treatment there.

In the morning I decided to walk around Selcuk. This town is built on top of ruins! There's an old aqueduct running straight through the city, and a castle and St. John Basilica on a nearby hill. The basilica is where St. John the Apostle is said to be buired. Also, within the town border, are the ruins of Temple of Artemis, one of the seven ancient wonders. There's nothing but a column left standing, but still it is quite a feeling to be on the ancient site.

I walked up to the castle and then explored the basilica. A lot of the material that was used to build the two came from the ancient city of Ephesus, which is within walking distance of Selcuk. I went there with a bus though, part of the tour package I purchased in Istanbul. The bus picked me up at 9:30 along with six others doing the same tour. A couple from the U.S., another from the Czech Republic and a mother and daughter from Australia. I didn't get to talk to them much during the tour as I was running around the ruins of Ephesus like mad, taking lots of photos. But we did talk lots later, as the tour was finishing up.

Ephesus was just incredible. A lot of the ruins are still very much intact. It was like going back in time. There are streets, two theatres, a library (which is said to be the third biggest in antiquity), temples and tombs. I took over 300 photos at this site. We had a guide as part of the tour, but I'm afriad I didn't listen to very much, I was just in awe of the site. At the exit the locals put on a play of ancient times for free.

Just like in India, no tour is complete without some marketing. Our tour guide took us to a carpet shop where they shed some interesting information on carpet making followed by a bit of a sales pitch. It was interesting to see them spinning silk from the slikworm cacoons, but I wasn't sold and neither were my touring friends.

We then went to the top of a nearby hill which is believed to be the site where the Virgin Mary was taken by John the Apostle and where she lived out the rest of her life. The site is very beautiful, surrounded by lots of trees and very isolated. It was a refreshing stop after the busy ruins of Ephesus.

After that it was another sales pitch, this time it was interactive. We were taken to a "fashion show" where models displayed the latest in Turkish leather goods. Half way through the show I was asked to participate. Wearing a stylish leather jacket I made my way down the runway to the laughs of my touring friends and "I'm too sexy" by Right Said Fred playing in my head. There are some photos and if I get them, I will post them. We were then taken to a leather shop where they tried to sell us jackets at 600-900 dollars. Right!

Now I'm back in town. I spent a little bit of time watching locals play backgammon and then made my way to this internet cafe. So far this is my favorite place in Turkey.

The patio in my hotel:

Tomb of St. John the Apostle:

Temple of Artemis ruins:

One of the theatres of Ephesus:

Statues at Ephesus:

Mosiacs at Ephesus:

Silk from the silkworm cacoons:

House of the Virgin Mary:

Troy

I got to the bus station in Istanbul and no one spoke English. I wasn't sure if I was at the right stop or if I was getting on the right bus. I just kept showing people my ticket to ensure they pointed at the same bus.

It was a rough bus ride during the night, tough to get any sleep. I got to Eceabat where I got a couple of hours of sleep, boarded a ferry to Çanakkale where I met Uran, my guide to Troy.

There isn't much to see in terms of ruins, but Uran had much to say about the story. There are ruins of nine towns on top of each other. They believe Troy VI is the one that is referenced in Homer's Illiad.
Leaving Troy for Selçuk was quite a journey. I waited for a bus that I was told would stop for me at the side of the highway. It was about 40 minutes late and I was starting to get pretty nervous. But patience prevailed and the bus came. I took it to Izmir, which was a 6 hour bus ride and then transfered to a public bus that finally brought me to Selçuk.

Photos from the Troy ruins:

Istanbul Day 2

I thought I'd wake up early and walk around old Istanbul, but I slept for a good 12 hours. My hotel is near a few mosques and some people might be bothered by the evening and morning call to prayer but I can sleep right through it.

First thing this morning I decided to try and find the Spice Bazaar and the Grand Bazaar. I took off with only the map in the guidebook (which is not a good map) and quickly got very lost. Luckily old Istanbul is a peninsula and 3/4 directions will lead you to the coast. I got to the coast line, regained my bearings and was soon at the spice market. A neat place.

A few streets from the spice market I found the Grand Bazaar. This place beats the West Edmonton Mall. It's pretty much a hundred tiny streets with kiosks with a roof. I'm at the start of my trip so I wasn't looking to buy anything, just scoping it out. Though it's pretty interesting, it wasn't all that picturesque.

I then made my way back to the area I'm staying in, Sultanahmet, and went to see the Hagia Sophia. From the outside it pales in comparison to the Sultanahmet Mosque, but on the inside it's quite amazing. It has layers upon layers of history, literally. Many christian frescos have been covered by Islamic designs. Restorations are ungoing and a big part of it was closed.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. I went to the Sultanahmet Mosque, but did not go inside. It seemed really crowded and peeking inside it looked like there wasn't much for photos. I got a nice shot from the courtyard. Stopped by the Hippodrome (what's left of it), then I just walked around, followed the city walls and walked around the tiny streets. Had my fortune read by a rabbit. Stopped for burek a couple of times and had a wicked chicken shwarma. In a few hours I leave for Troy.

Spice Market (Note the Turkish Viagra):

Grand Bazaar:

Hagia Sophia:

Inside the Hagia Sophia:

Frescos inside the Hagia Sophia:

Frescos inside the Hagia Sophia:

The beautiful Sultanahmet Mosque:

Streets of old Istanbul:

Istanbul is expensive!

It's Friday evening here. I got off the plane around 1:00pm and by the time I got out of the airport it was 2:00pm. I decided to take the Istanbul Metro and then transfer over to a light rail train. It went pretty smoothly and I got to the heart of Istanbul for only 3.20 Turkish Lira (vs 20 Euro taking a cab). The man sitting next to me seemed to have a 9mm tucked in the back of his pants. That made me a little nervous, as he wasn't wearing a uniform of any kind.

I don't seem to be getting much hassle here. I'm guessing that it's because I look like I might be Turkish. I'll walk down a street and see shop owners urging tourists into their shops, but they seem to be leaving me alone.

The hotels are pretty pricey in Istanbul. The first place I went to was a bit of a dive and they wanted 35 Euros/night. That's 53 Canadian dollars. I continued walking around and looking for places. Two others were about twice that price and finally found one for about 30 Euros. I left my backpack and went walking around.

I didn't get a lot of time before the sun started setting. It started getting dark about 5:00pm. I managed to get some photos of the Sultanahmet Mosque (more commonly known as the Blue Mosque)and that's about it. Tomorrow should be a more fruitful day.

Landing in Istanbul:

Sultanahmet Mosque:

Vendors near Sultanahmet:

In Frankfurt

It´s so freaking expensive for internet here!! If you can believe it, it´s like 40 bucks an hour. Cant afford too type for long! I´ll be in Istanbul in about four hours.

Last day of work (for a month)

I'm almost ready to go. The backpack is half packed. I have to run a couple of more errands but I think I have everything. This time tomorrow I'll be airborne for Istanbul! Well Frankfurt first -- then Istanbul. :)

P.S. I've set the blog time to the current time in Turkey, that's why this post is dated November 6.

Counting in Turkish

I have altı (six) days left to go and I'll be in Istanbul, Turkey. I'm getting pretty excited and trying to learn some Turkish in the meantime. Today's lesson is counting in Turkish. It's kind of fun. Counting from 11 to 19 sounds like Santa readying his Turkish reindeer.

1 - bir 2 - iki 3 - üç 4 - dört 5 - beş 6 - altı 7 - yedi 8 - sekiz 9 - dokuz 10 - on

11 - on bir 12 - on iki 13 - on üç 14 - on dört 15 - on beş 16 - on altı 17 - on yedi 18 - on sekiz 19 - on dokuz 20 - yirmi