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Meandering through the River Dalyan
Loggerhead Turtle at Dalyan
A View from the Top of Cuanos
Lycian Tombs in Cuanos
Thermal Mud Baths at Dalyan
Ruins at Aga Limani
Swimming at
Butterfly Valley
Leaving Butterfly
Valley
Para Sailing in Olu Deniz
Gemiler - St. Nicholas Island
Kayakoy, Greek Ghost Town near Gemiler
The Port at Kalkan
Letoon
Resting under the Fig Tree at Xanthos
Relaxing at Patara Beach
Chilling out at Saklikent
Restaurant at Saklikent
Cruising the Underwater City of Kekova
The Harbor at Kas
Local Folk Dancers
Relaxing with an Efes
Internet Cafe at Ucugiz (it's a slow connection)
Buying Scarves in Kekova
Kale
View from the Castle at Kale
Hiking the Lycian Trail from Kale
Myra Lycian Tombs
Ruins at Olympos
Beach at Olympos
The Eternal Fires of Chimera
Frisbee Golf Hole 12 at Phaselis
Dogan, Captain Hasan, Chef Mehmet, Haso
Kaleici Marina in Antalya
The Crew of the Gundogan |
Day 1
Our destination was the Blue Voyage from Dalyan to Antalya.
We made the magical journey of Homers Odyssey last year, but had
not quenched our thirst for the history and beauty of the turquoise
coast. This year we decided
to begin at Dalyan, where we left off last year, and sail on to Antalya.
Our group of 11 was met at the
Dalaman Airport by our Captain Hasan who transported us in an air
conditioned bus to our yacht. As
we approached the small dock at Ikincik, we saw our 90 foot
Gulet, the Gundogan (The Dawn). She was larger than we had remembered -
huge in fact. We knew right then that we were in for an outstandingly
good time. We were greeted with big smiles and handshakes by our
Chef Mehmet and Crew Dogan and Haso. We boarded our yacht and made
ourselves at home.
Day 2
Dalyan was the favorite stop on our voyage last year. A lush green
valley hidden in the Mediterranean landscape that surprisingly reminds
you of Vietnam. To get to the
village Dalyan you hire a water taxi which picks you up at your yacht
and meanders (meander is actually a
Turkish word that derives from the River Meander) in
through 9 miles of bamboo reeds filled with exotic birds, Loggerhead
turtles, Bamboo reeds towering above your head and glimpses of 4th
Century BC Lycian tombs as a backdrop. This was our lucky day as we spotted 5 loggerhead turtles on
our journey.
Cuanos was the first stop on our water taxi ride.
Presumably of Darian or Carian origin these ruins are currently
being excavated, but are worth a visit.
Our favorite part of Caunos is the hike (or climb) up the Hellenistic
fortifications that extend upward from the last east side of the Amphitheater.
The climb is challenging; a good pair of shoes, some climbing
experience, water, and 2 free hands is required to complete it.
Several members of party were unable to finish the climb and
chose to tour the many ruins in the area.
But the climb is well worth it.
Standing at the top of the mountain overlooking the valley of
Dalyan you can certainly see why this city has been inhabited for over
2,400 years. The tapestry
of orange and tangerine groves and fields of agricultural products
separated by a meandering Dalyan river and framed by the Lycian tombs is
truly breathtaking. The
climb down can be a bit intimidating, so try to find the path on the
right side which is a relatively easy way down.
Continuing on our
journey through the river to the village of Dalyan we passed through
Turtle Beach which is one of the only breeding grounds on the
Mediterranean for loggerhead turtle. It was daytime so there were no
turtles around, but it was pretty.
After a light lunch of
fish at a local riverside restaurant named "Melodi". We
negotiated robustly for $4.50 per person which included salad, a variety
of appetizers and a fresh fruit, local fish "Kefal" and
"Green Mullet". By
this time we had been meandering along the river to
the south end of the Koycegiz lake for
4 hours, 12-minutes later we arrived at the thermal mud baths.
We slopped ourselves with mineral muds until we were fully
covered from head to toe. We
baked in the sun 45 minutes until we were completely petrified and we
removed the mud by crumbling it and rubbing it of which had a wonderful
effect of exfoliating and leaving our skin baby soft.
After a dip in the thermal pool we were off again on our water
taxi back to the yacht, where cocktail hour was officially commenced.
Day 3
We left Dalyan and the Captain found a beautiful cove
with clear, turquoise blue water.
We woke up and took a swim. By that time breakfast of white and kasar
cheese, fresh Turkish bread, assorted green and kalamata olives,
perfectly ripened peaches, and honey and jams, eggs with socuk (Turkish
spicy sausage), and tea was served. We
took a hike and hung out in the water for a few hours.
At cocktail hour the captain set sail southward and we watched as the
sun was setting over the mountains and a purple glow covered the
dramatic mountainous landscape. Sailing
along the sea we could not help but think that we were in heaven sailing
on the lake of tranquility.
We arrived to
Fethiye, a city with
lots of people, lots of lights, and great gelato ice cream.
We docked up next to 10 other yachts and readied for supper. Fish
(freshly caught by our captain and his trusty spear gun that afternoon),
tomato salad, tasty pasta and okra with tomato and olive oil.
For desert fresh local melon (best we have ever had) and
watermelon. The fruit and
vegetables in Turkey are so delicious.
The tomatoes are red and aromatic, the melons so sweet and tasty
- they taste the way they should – the way they did when we were kids.
Vine ripened, fresh picked out of the garden.
After a delicious
dinner aboard the Gundogan we wandered around Fethiye, the ancient city
of Telmessus which dates back to 5th
Century B.C. [A
Lycian legend explains the source of the name Telmessos as follows:
"God Apollon falls in love with the youngest daughter of the King
of Finike (Phoenike), Agenor. He disguises himself as a small dog and
thus gains love for the shy, withdrawn daughter. After he reappears as a
handsome man, they name their son 'Telmessos' (the land of lights).]
We walked around the
city and soon we found a small bazaar. We picked up some olive oil soap, which we love for keeping our
skin soft, we bargained until we got 12 bars for 50 cents each plus 3
free bars. That took about
1 hour and our husbands were patiently waiting as we moved along the
spice shop. Now there are
many spice shops in turkey selling all kinds of Turkish grown curries,
saffron, peppers, and oreganos, but this spice shop was different.
This man really knew his spices!
He even made up his own special mixtures of spices for meats,
salads, and pastas – all were very aromatic and fresh – we could not
help become enveloped in his enthusiasm and love for the spices.
He knew which city they were grown in, what climate, what food
they were used in, what medicinal purposes they had – everything.
Turkish curry, Indian curry, ginseng, cumin, mint, rosemary,
black cumin, oregano, thyme, saffron, cardamom in seed or powder, and
the list goes on. By the time we had decided on our purchases and spice
lesson another hour had passed and our men were gone.
It was about 11pm (although we didn’t know exactly because we
had surrendered our watches when we got on the boat) - some of the shops
were just starting to close. So
we headed back to the boat passing a leather shop here and a disco
there, a Lokum (Turkish delight) shop here and a carpet shop there.
We managed to slip in a
gelato (I won’t call it ice cream because it was way too delicious and
full of fruit) before we got back to the yacht.
We finished the evening off with our pre drink watching the local
folks admiring the yachts on the evening stroll.
Our bed time in port was a bit later because Turks are late night
folks and don’t usually rest until 1am.
We had finally dozed off when at 2am we were awakened by a
piccolo player that was fishing out on the pier.
It was magical – until he decided to play until 3am.
The grand Lycian city of Telmessus can be seen only in glimpses
throughout the city because of earthquakes that leveled the city in 1950
and 1957. Some incredible rock
Lycian tombs can be seen on the cliff on the eastern side of the city.
Day 4
We woke up bright and early to take off to Butterfly Valley, but some of
our group decided to take an early morning walk, making us late, so we
had to breakfast at Fethiye. We arrived in Butterfly Valley at noon.
The cove was beautiful. The
water around the boat was a deep sapphire blue, the edges along the
cliffs that surrounded the cove was a bright turquoise blue.
We frolicked in the crystal water, jumped off the cliffs and relaxed
until we were sufficiently cooled off to make our hike up to the
waterfall.
By the time we were
ready for our hike, 3 ferryboats, full of Turkish tourists had pulled in
to do the same. We quickly darted up the trail, looking for butterflies along
the way. (It is a nice hike
but we suggest an early morning hike to avoid the crowds) flocks of
butterflies pass through the semi-tropical environment made lush by the
waterfalls. We reached the waterfall and cooled off in the ice cold
water. On the way down we chatted with a young Australian
couple resting in a huge tiki hut surrounded by 20 mattresses
with backpacks strewn about. The
hut roof was made of grapevines with fresh green grapes hanging from the
ceiling. The couple told us that
they had found the place from the website
www.butterflyvalley.com.
They took the ferry out from Fethiye, found a vacant mattress, paid
their 1.5 million lira ($2.25) and were "chilling out" with other young
people from all over the world strewn around in the dozen Tiki huts in
the valley of the butterflies.
Meanwhile those who
couldn’t be convinced to take the hike stayed frolicking in the water
while the captain and crew caught octopus and tenderized them by beating
them for hours on the rocks.
We
left our turquoise cove for "Oludeniz" or the Dead Sea.
Our captain told us the story of why it was called the Dead Sea.
'A fisherman and his son
had been out fishing when the weather turned fierce.
The son told the father to enter the unknown harbor which he had
heard other sailors tell of, but the father refused. The father and son argued boisterously until the son fell
into the sea and drown. Subsequently
the father went into the area and found that the son was right – it
was a harbor. Thus they
named the harbor the “Dead Sea” '.
Our captain then advised us that “if the fisherman who told me
this story was lying, I don’t know.”
The Dead Sea area is a
very popular Turkish vacation spot and almost every inch of sand is
covered by either an umbrella or a beach chair.
Needless to say, we left after only 1 hour for more unpopulated
seas. We sailed onto
Gemiler but decided that we had too many neighbors and took off for a
quiet, private cove. It took only
5 minutes to find a beautiful spot where we were all alone in our
paradise. We watched the sunset reflect off the mountains and jetties
that jutted out into the sea in silence.
It was so quiet you could only hear the waves splashing against
the rocks and the cacophony of locusts in the pine trees along the
shore. To speak would have ruined
the moment.
We were wined and dined
and our meal was topped off with a sculpture of fruit topped with
sparklers. Most of us
preferred to sleep out on deck this evening because we were so alone and
the sky was so full of stars – and of course the Persoid meteor shower
was making its display. Unfortunately
we only had time to see one shooting star before the rocking of the boat
lulled us to sleep.
Day 5
We woke in the morning to a sea that was as smooth as glass.
It’s hard to imagine the Mediterranean so calm and peaceful, a
sea that carried sailors for over 4,000 years to their underwater
deaths. In fact, not very far from Kas the oldest shipwreck ever
known, Uluburun, has been excavated by the Institute of Nautical
Archaeology. They’ve found beautiful
glass vessels with octopus decorations.
Many of the artifacts can be seen at the Bodrum Museum.
We took our first
morning swim, had breakfast and rested while the Gundogan took off for
Kalkan. As we sailed along
on our voyage we saw a beautiful cove and could not resist stopping for
a swim. We stayed and
floated in the water for hours until we were called for lunch.
After lunch and another swim and another nap, we pushed off
again, this time more seriously, for Kalkan.
Entering the harbor we
all knew we were going to like it here. A
small fishing village that had been destroyed in the 1950's by an
earthquake. The government
decided not to rebuild it, but some private investors could not let this
picturesque spot remain abandoned. A few hotels and according to all reports 127 restaurants are
scattered along the San Francisco-like vertical streets.
Restaurants and carpet shops made of white stucco and wood, one
right next to the other, going up the hillside.
At the top of the village we found "Terrace" bar that
had a fabulous view of the entire harbor.
We sat for a few beers and headed back down the hill.
We didn’t get very far before a few of our group got happy feet
and stopped to dance at a miniature disco.
They finally showed up back at the yacht about 3am, which is when
the music blasting in the harbor finally quieted down so that we could
sleep.
Day 6
An excursion to Patara, Xanthos and Letoon was on our schedule for the
day but the heat of the sun convinced most of our group to remain on the
sea. Only 4 of us went on the journey driven by a local driver. We came
first to Letoon, a small ancient Lycian city which dates back to 532 BC.
An offspring of the city of Xanthos, Letoon has a large
Amphitheater, a large Nymphaeum, a Temple of Apollo with an unusual
mosaic of a lyre, the sun and a bow and arrow.
One of the only Lycian mosaic existing today – and it’s in
perfect shape.
We drove through small
villages with greenhouses that covered almost every inch of the local
farmer’s 10-acre plots of farmland. They grew tomatoes in the winter
for the entire country, and cotton and tobacco in the summer. After 20
minutes we reached Xanthos. Xanthos
rests on top of a hill overlooking the Xanthos river which provides
crystal clear water to the 20,000 inhabitants, only miles from its
source in the mountains. Xanthos
was the capital of Lycia and mentioned in the "Iliad" for its
fine meats, wines and bountiful vegetables.
The inscribed pillar at the NE corner of the agora is actually a
tomb erected in 50 BC and is inscribed in Greek and Lycian script and is
the longest Lycian inscription known. Many of the friezes and sculptures in Xanthos were taken by
Sir Charles Fellows and the British Navy, and can be seen at the Xanthos
room of the British Museum.
One of the most interesting stories of Xanthos relates to the two tragic
mass suicides. The first in 546
BC when the Persians with their superior army advanced to attack the
city of Xanthos. Herodotus tells
us “when Harpogus advanced into the plain of Xanthos, they met him in
battle, though greatly outnumbered, and fought with much gallantry: at
length however, they were defeated and forced to retire within their
walls, whereupon they collected their women, children, slaves, and other
property and shut them up in the citadel, set fire to it and burnt it to
the ground. Then having sworn to do or die, they marched out to meet the
enemy and were killed to the last man.”
Five
hundred years later the same thing happened when Brutus attached Xanthos
in 42 BC.
We managed to find the
caretaker who, after feeding us figs from a tree that grew next to the
agora, explained to us that Xanthos has three layers - Lycian, Roman and
Byzantine. Its easy to tell
the difference in the walls – the Lycian made with huge boulders
strategically placed on top and along side each other to ensure
stability. The Roman walls
are smaller rocks cut in rectangles and placed on top and next to one
another, and the Byzantine walls made of small rocks held together by
mortar. He explained the
different water systems of carrying the water to Xanthos – from
cisterns and paddlewheels to Roman aqueducts.
We walked up to the church to see beautiful mosaics, which our
friend uncovered by moving away the sand.
He guided is to the top of the hill where we saw a large Roman swimming
pool complete with both an adult pool and kiddy pool.
We thanked our new friend and gave him a few dollars to show our
appreciation for his time. On
our drive out of the city we viewed the Necropolis on the hillside
alongside local picnic areas. I
wondered if the picnickers realized how lucky they were to perhaps be
descendents of such a great people and brave warriors.
We had one more city to
see – Patara - the Mythological birthplace of Apollo and a principal
harbor of ancient Lycia. The ruins are numerous and fascinating. Its
twenty-two kilometers of pure white sand stretch as far as the eye can
see, making it a natural choice for all types of beach sports.
But it was 100 degrees and we were very hot.
Our driver suggested we go to Saklikent to see a gorge and to
Kadikoy to see a carpet making cooperative.
Saklikent
was a great
place. We
hiked up from the river along a reinforced walkway to the mouth of the
gorge where we could walk along the shore. The ice cold snowmelt
escapes from the mountains and flows down through this gorge to make the
Xanthos River. We plunged into
the water, which stopped our breath but felt so invigorating.
Back down along the river, restaurants were set up along the
banks in a very unusual way. Platforms were anchored into the water by
braces and the platforms rested only a few inches above the swiftly
running headwaters. Carpets
and big pillows covered the platforms and after removing our shoes, we
sat on the carpet and rested against the pillows - very comfy!
The idea was to have your lunch and take a nap afterward while
being cooled by the flowing water that is running underneath you –
Turkish air conditioning! We
had a small lunch of local borek with white cheese and parsley and
rested. Once in a while we'd dip our feet or heads into the water to
cool off. The only drawback to the experience was that one of our
party lost his shoe when it was apparently accidentally dropped into the
rushing river never to be seen again.
After lunch we were off
to our next adventure to learn the fine art of rug making in Turkey in
Kadikoy. This village has a
carpet cooperative. The
ladies of the village make the rugs but share in the profits.
They maintain the area’s designs, natural dyes and wool &
silk quality. We watched as
the ladies turned lambs wool into thread and silk cocoons into thread.
They mixed and colored the threads with natural dyes made from
onionskins, sage, flowers, and roots. Then
the threads are turned into carpets. Turkish carpets are unique in that they are double knotted so that
the threads never slip. It
takes about 3 ½ months for a woman to make a normal wool carpet with 5
knots per inch – the carpet would sell for about $600.
We couldn’t help but think that it was an incredibly time
consuming process from shaving the sheep, making the thread, dying the
thread, tying the knots to selling the carpet - how many hours were
spent? Our estimate was 700 hours for one carpet.
It was then that I felt a sudden pang of guilt for bargaining so
relentlessly with the carpet dealers in Istanbul.
We learned so much in
those few hours that my head was reeling.
The evolution of the carpet, modern carpets, making the carpets,
the carpet regions and villages, designs, symbols, and colors.
Like studying the great masters of Goya, Picasso, and Rodin, the
carpet is a form of art to be held in high respect and admired. By
the time we left Kadiboy it was 6PM and we had to head straight back to
the Gundogan who was waiting patiently in the harbor to take off for Kos.
Our mini bus driver was
Idris Coban and Captain Hasan set him up for us.
He charged us $100 total for the ten-hour jaunt.
If you need a driver he can help
you in Kas, Kalkan and Antalya.
You can reach him at his mobile
number 0533 335 6553 or work 0242 844 3295 or at home 0242 844 2109 -
his English is very limited.
Kas was a lush and tropical town. Star jasmine, gardenia, bougainvillea,
palms, figs and pomegranate trees growing in every garden and climbing
up as high as four stories up the pensions that line the streets.
We pulled into the harbor with music blaring from the discos,
wondering if we were going to be able to sleep that evening.
We didn’t hear the music cut off at 2 AM as we slept like
hardened sailors.
Kas lies wedged between mountains and
sea. Kas, once ancient Antiphellus, still exhibits a few remains of the
old settlement. An ancient theatre on the peninsula is within walking
distance of the town.
Day 7
After breakfast and a short beer run (we were on our 15th
case of the local Efes beer - which was obviously very tasty) we left
the harbor to find another quiet cove. A
swim and a nap and a delicious lunch of green beans with tomatoes and
bulgur - and we were ready for another swim and another nap.
We played a challenging 9 holes
of frisbee golf amongst the wild goats and pine trees, but kept thinking
about a carpet we had seen in the Kas carpet shop.
The
slow tourist season
because of the earthquake, and lack of British and German tourists and
the end of the tourist season was inducing an atmosphere of panic
amongst the carpet sellers and we were getting caught up in the frenzy.
We returned to Kas harbor for the evening.
To detail our evening
carpet buying adventure would be far too long so I will relay the
abridged version. It all started
before dinner when we all entered a large and well-stocked carpet shop
and met Ismail. Ismail did not
lack energy and as one of our members pointed out was in great need of Prozac.
He bounced off the walls from one carpet to another yelling to
his helpers, insulting our group members for not purchasing or for being
ignorant in our knowledge of carpets. After
seeing a few carpets that we really did like, he spit out one too
many insults for my group and we walked out. Then another group walked
out and so on until there was only one group left.
By this time Ismail was insanely angry that he had lost his five
customers. So angry that he
told the last group that they could have their signed Hereke silk carpet
for $500.
By the time we got back
to the boat, after visiting another carpet shop with a much more mellow
salesman, we were told that Ismail had returned to the yacht, demanding
the return of the carpet he had sold. Eventually he was lured into promising that
if we all return to his shop, we could have any carpet in his shop for $500.
We reviewed our options at dinner and after much debate our
unanimous decision was to go back to Ismail, and if he kept his word we
would buy. We went back - most of
us hid behind some bushes until we confirmed that he was unarmed and not
dangerous. With a big smile
and open arms Ismail welcomed us into his shop and kept his promise.
We purchased 6 carpets that evening –all for $500 each.
We had a great time, laughing, joking and watching Ismail bounce
from one group to another praising the virtues of each carpet and the
maiden who wove it. One by
one we chose our carpets. By the
time we finished and all the carpets were folded and wrapped - it was
midnight.
So what did we learn?
We learned that carpeting buying in Turkey is a totally unique
transaction - more similar to a courtship than a purchase. It is a
romantic quiet courtship for some and a wild and exciting courtship for
another. Regardless of which experience you have - it is very satisfying
and entertaining. Just relax and enjoy the ride.
If you want a unique antique kilim or carpet and can handle a very
intense and relentlessly persuasive salesman, then visit Ismail at the Attila
Carpet Shop in Kas. Don’t be
intimidated by him, he won't hurt you.
He has unusual kilims that you will not find anywhere else.
If you prefer a more
peaceful experience, visit Hakan at Magic Orient in Kas.
They have a good selection of both new and old carpets and kilims
at good prices.
Day 8
Our next destination was Kale and Kekova.
We found a lovely cove in the morning to breakfast in and had a
swim. We sailed to the area
called Kekova and sailed along about 20 feet from the coast viewing
ruins of ancient Lycia. Steps
emerge from the sea, wharfs, churches, houses, bath houses all from the
cities of Aperlae, Termlussa and the ancient city of Simena
founded in 5 BC and is located in today’s Kale.
Kekova, "the home of the
sun" for some, "the island of the partridges" for others,
is an island, as well as the name of a whole ensemble of picturesque
islands, numerous bays and ancient cities. These bays provide natural
harbors in all seasons, and yachtsmen particularly enjoy exploring the
unspoiled landscapes. Along the northern shore of Kekova Island,
earthquakes have disturbed the land causing some of the ancient houses
to sink under the clear water, creating a sunken city. Kalekoy Castle
(ancient Simena) offers a bird's-eye view of the bays, inlets, islands
and colorful yachts, sailing peacefully on the glassy water. Kekova
provides an incredible setting with blue skies, orange sunsets, starry
nights, playful dolphins, mythological mysteries, and the sparkling sea,
all set in peace and tranquility.
We moved to another cove where we
could lunch and swim again in the crystal turquoise water. Upon
anchoring we were swarmed by hordes of young villagers in motor boats
selling hand embroidered scarves. These
scarves used to be all over Turkey when I was here 20 years ago and each
trip back I look for them unsuccessfully so I was thrilled that I had
found them! We asked the 4
girls to board and they immediately began showing their wares – beaded
scarves, crochet scarves, scarves with shells, scarves with beads.
All handmade and unique. The
girls tried to vie for our attention by showing us their favorites.
They were beautiful girl’s - dark hair, almond shaped eyes of
green and blue, smart as a whip and huge smiles.
We chose our favorites equally amongst the 4 so that one was not
favored over another. We readied to pay when we realized we were
dealing with young girls with calculator brains.
We tried to trick them paying half with dollars and half with
Turkish Lira, but alas our prank did not work and we paid their asking
price - no discount!
An hour or so later we were greeted
by another boat, this time a rowboat, powered by a mother and her two
young daughters. We met Daria and
Hulya. Daria was a beautiful 9-year-old girl with green eyes and the biggest
smile in the world. She
took out her scarves and began adorning our hair, wastes and necks –
we were her Barbie dolls for the day.
She’d dress us, step back and giggle with a sound that was
music to our ears, adjust the scarves again and smile. We were under her spell. No
wonder the stories of nymphs, sirens and mermaids originated here, Daria
was surely a descendant. We
bought more scarves. Hulya joined her mother in the rowboat while Daria made
her rounds kissing us all on both cheeks to thank us.
I knew I would miss her – I missed her already. As her mother
paddled off, Daria blew us kisses from afar.
Kale is a very small
village, very Turkish and isolated. The
school has only 10 children and the streets are footpaths that wind up
the hillside past houses where you can peek in and see the ladies
preparing food, while kneeling on the carpet covered floors.
On the top of the hillside is a medieval castle that is thought
to be Genoese. Surrounding
the castle there are Lycian rock tombs.
We were led up to the
castle by a young boy, Suleman, 10 years who was joined by his little
sister and mother. He told us what he knew of the castle and the area.
At the end of the tour our young Suleman expected our group to
purchase on of the bracelets he was selling and when we bought from his
sister he was very upset and ran away crying.
We later found Suleman and groveled apologetically and tried to
give him some money for the tour. He refused for several minutes, but
finally accepted. He was a
very proud boy, he didn’t want a handout – he wanted us to purchase
his merchandise as a token of our gratitude.
A lesson we learned and pass onto you.
We anchored out in the
harbor, tied to the ancient remnants of 2500 year old Lycian building,
for the evening. We slept on deck enjoying the cool breeze and shooting stars.
Day 9
The next day we went off to the village to buy a Saint Nicholas wall
hangings we had eyed the day before.
We went back to one of the only 2 carpet shops in the village –
Gordes carpet. We found the
owner, Kadriye, who told us that the St. Nicholas carpet was her
exclusive design and that she was the
only female carpet dealer in Turkey. So
we bought 6 of the hangings for gifts and ourselves and swam back to the
boat. On
our way back to the Gundogan, we saw Dania again running to her boat to
sell more scarves to the newly arriving tourists – more smiles and
more kisses and she was gone with another piece of my heart. We
went off to a quiet cove, had a swim and a nap, went on to a cove and
explored for awhile.
We planned a short
excursion to Myra, a 20-minute drive, where the Lycian tombs are the
only remnants of the once great city of 5th Century BC.
Today there is an amphitheater from 400 AD where the Gladiators
fought. It is in good
condition and you can see the covered passageway and storage rooms where
vendors sold their wares.
Close to Myra, whose name originates from the Myre trees, is the church
and resting place of St. Nicholas, a lovely church, currently being
restored to uncover and repair the frescos and mosaics.
St Nicholas’ crypt can be seen with a large opening where
thieves from Bari stole his bones and cut off the head of his marble
likeness that rested on top of the lid.
Back at the boat we had
lunch and pushed off for a quiet cove to swim the afternoon away.
Then we sailed off for Finike where we were to spend the night.
Music greeted us at the harbor in and we knew this was our
opportunity to practice our Turkish dancing.
A few short lessons by our crew and one of our group and a few
glasses of Raki (the Turkish Anise liquor that we mixed with water and
ice) put us in the mood to dance the night away.
So we had dinner and off we went to an outdoor café with a live
Turkish band. We
danced he night away and had a great time – needless to say the locals
had some good laughs.
Since we had hook ups
at the dock we were able to sleep in our rooms with AC we had a good
sleep, but missed our bedroom under the stars.
Day 10
We took off from Finike
and found a beautiful cove with pine trees covering the hills.
We went ashore to have a quick 9-hole game of frisbee golf. The shore was made of perfectly round stones of every color
imaginable. We returned to the
boat and had lunch and took off for Olympus, birthplace of Hercules, and
one of the most unusual settings for ruins that we have seen.
A long round pebbled beach greets you as you pull in the cove.
The water temperature is slightly cooler here because of a fresh
water river that flows from Olympus to the sea.
We swam to shore and investigated the ruins in the shade of
pines, oaks and an unusual tree that had no bark.
Small foot paths lead through a dense forest filled with ruins of
the Roman amphitheater, basilica, bath house and necropolis, and the
medieval castle that can be seen off the left side of the cove from the
yacht.
After
our expedition we returned to the boat, found a quiet cove to sleep in
and danced the night away.
Day 11
The following morning we returned to Olympus and played 18 holes of
frisbee golf using each one of the buildings ruins as a hole.
It was great fun. We did not have time to see Chimera, the place where the first
Olympic torch was lit from eternal flames that rise from the earth here.
We stopped on the beach to admire the view and watched a mountain
goat raising havoc amongst the beach goers.
The goat shuffled through the bags and belongings until it found
their lunches and proceeded to munch away while the locals were
screaming and laughing.
After lunch we headed
off to Phaselis. Phaselis was founded in the 7C BC by Rhodian colonists
and is currently a Turkish National Park.
Three bays surround the peninsula, which makes Phaselis
particularly beautiful and a perfect setting for 18 holes of frisbee
golf! A well preserved
aqueduct, two Roman baths with substantial mosaics, 3 small agoras also
with mosaics, a colonnade 22 meters wide flanked by an acropolis and an
amphitheater where wild beasts challenged each other in a fight to the
death, and a large necropolis were just a few of our designated frisbee
greens.
Our next port of call
was Kemer, a large resort town that has been built up to the point where
it looked just like Miami Beach. Not
our favorite port, but we walked the streets as music blasted, shop
owners cajoled us and the breeze from the sea reminded us that we were
in the heart of history. I couldn’t help but wonder, as I looked at the faces of the
Turks: Which one was the descendent of a Lycian, or a Roman, or a Greek,
a pirate, a Mongol, a king, or even the first man.
What a history this country has.
For twenty years I have been reading and studying the
civilizations that have for a short time, occupied the landscape, but I
know nothing; it’s far too rich a history to learn in one lifetime.
I wonder if the Turks know how special they really are.
Day 11
We moved out of Kemer on the last leg of our voyage.
No one was smiling today as our journey was coming to an end.
It was Sunday at 2pm and it was hot and humid when we arrived to
Kaleici Marina in Antalya.
We didn't want to go. We really didn't want to go. It had been a magical
journey. But we gathered our things and
sadly gave our goodbyes and thank yous to Captain
Hassan, Mehmet, Dogan, Haso, and the Gundogan.
"Our
entire 3 week tour of Turkey was arranged using the discount coupons on
www.DestinationCoupons.com.
Our group saved over $3,500 USD whilst patronizing Turkey's best
restaurants, hotels, tours and of course the Blue Voyage cruise.
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