Turkey ---What A Ride

New York City

Slowly, ever so slowly, I am coming out of that awful haze called "jet lag".

Tomorrow, I'll give you my top ten picks for the entire country of Turkey. Today, though, a look at the itinerary that took me over about 4000 Km. in eight days through beautiful, rugged countryside.
Basically, if you draw a line from the Black Sea parallel to Ankara south to the Mediterranean, the western half of Turkey, that's what I covered in eight days.( click on map if you want to see a version easier on tired eyes. )

So, here goes the overview. [ Editor's note: Feel free to skim--part of my agenda in this posting is to be sure I actually remember where I've been in my current state!]

Day One
Istanbul to Adana by plane. ( Oh, by the way, the Turkish system of check in to ALL domestic flights regardless of destination is as follows: form two lines; one for baggage, another for no baggage. Use your imagination.)

The rest of the trip was by bus, a great big, manual-shift Mercedes with maybe 4 cylinders masterfully driven (for endless hours) by Mehmet, a 50ish turk, who ruled the mountain roads.

Day Two.
Adana along the coast toward Syria to Antakya. ( Note: Antioch, and important early C.E. Roman town --10 miles from the Syrian border and much closer to Jerusalem than you might think. Check your map of the Middle East. )

Day Three.
North, across the Taurus mountains ( elev. approx. 2500 ) to Konya ( home of Rumi, mystic and poet, who started the Whirling Dervishes ).

Day Four.
Back across the Taurus mountains south along the coastline to (the other ) Antioch--very important Roman city and head of the Roman Empire in the East; on to Attalia, a Turkish Mediterraean resort town ( but not likely to be Portofino any time soon ).

Day Five.
Across the Taurus mountains again to Pamukkale and Myra ( home of St. Nicholas and his legend--who knew he was a Turk?)

Day Six.
West to Izmir with a visit to ancient Ephesus--the jackpot of ruins; the most incredible, complete ruins in Turkey vis-a-vis understanding ancient history in my view. Simply astonishing in their majesty.
( FYI: Letter to the Ephesians was written by Paul to these folks sometime around 60 C.E.--and he wasn't happy with some of their conduct since he'd left.)


Day Seven.
North along the Aegean to Pergamon ( famous Roman theatre built right into the hillside ), then Troy ( no Brad Pitt, not much to see, but the story lives when you stand on the banks of the Aegean and imagine Helen and her beaus ) and on to Canakkale. ( Gallipoli for those of you who remember its part in WWI. )

Day Eight.
Finally, crossing the Sea of Marmara via ferry at a port near Cannakale to Kipou in northwest Turkey ( south of Edirne ); then through the border and customs into Greece.

...More Turkey on the later flight from Istanbul into Kayseri to see Cappadocia, an other-worldly place. I'll write about it later.

Have I put you to sleep?
M.C.