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: