Turkey, continued: May 2014

Our next stop in Turkey was Selçuk, from where we would visit the Greek ruins on Ephesus, or Efes in Turkish.

After the hustle and bustle of Istanbul, Selçuk seemed decidedly tranquil. It's nestled in a valley, with blue hills rising up all around. Strolling along the streets, there were oranges hanging from the trees, and the smell of jasmine on the breeze. An impressive fortress looks down upon the town, and we enjoyed views of this and all around the valley from the rooftop restaurant at our hotel.

Efes is just a short drive from Selçuk, so we went on the afternoon we arrived. I don't think either of were expecting something so vast. With a main path running alongside the ruins of former buildings, you can imagine how the city must have once looked. and many parts of the ruins themselves are quite intact, such as the library and a huge amphitheatre. It's nice that you also have the possibility of walking right up to everything.

It was in Efes that we started to notice the abundance of cats in Turkey. They were lounging about all throughout Efes, and all seemed to be in relatively good condition.

We soon hit the road again, and en route we managed to stop off in Pamukkale, the town famed for its travertines - naturally formed terraces formed by minerals in the flowing water, and its hot springs. Provided you take your shoes off, you can walk right on a path to the terraces, wading through the milky blue coloured pools of water, and enjoying the stunning view from the top. I couldn't help thinking that the pink and white terraces in New Zealand must have once looked something like this.

Later that day we arrived into Fethiye, on the Aegean coast. From Fethiye itself, one of the main attractions is Öludeniz: picture postcard Turkey, with deep blue sea and long strip of beach stretching to a headland. As it turns out, this area is quite the destination for British holidaymakers and retirees. It was very strange wandering down the street and seeing sandwich boards advertising things like 'British bacon' 'PG Tips.' The area is also well known for paragliding, and from down on the beach you can see the brightly coloured gliders circling and landing one after the other. So we thought we'd give it a try ourselves.

We were picked up early the next morning for our adventure. I started to get quite nervous when our rickety van kept climbing and climbing at quite a speed up a narrow and not too stable road, but by this stage, no possibility of backing out! As newbies, we were paired up with instructors and were suddenly standing on an extraordinarily steep hillside, and being told to run towards the edge. The wind picked us up and away we were. After the initial adrenaline of running off the side of the cliff, the ride down itself was actually quite peaceful, although I still clung nervously to the handles/straps all the way down - which is actually quite a long time. We were also lucky enough to have some a beautiful sunny day, so the views really were breathtaking.

Our next stop was Kaş, a small coastal town further south. The afternoon we arrived the weather was stunning and we enjoyed a beer in the sun, looking forward to the next few days of scuba diving. Unfortunately a big storm blew in that night and the weather for the rest of our stay was pretty off and on. The diving was also quite disappointing, as there just didn't seem to be many fish, or much of anything to see there, despite us having read it was a good spot for diving. The bad weather didn't help our enjoyment of it either. So after our first day, we ended up cancelling our second day. 

Kaş is a really cute wee town, hills curving around a harbour and rocky outcrops to swim from, and winding stone streets, where you're actually not pestered in the slightest by shop owners trying to sell their wares. In bad weather however, we quickly exhausted most things to see. I would recommend going back, but not in May, when the weather is quite unpredictable - the locals recommended September is a good time to visit.

We tried another couple of delicious dishes in Kaş. One was manti - a pasta, similar in size and shape to ravioli, however it wasn't filled, and it came served with a garlicky yoghurt sauce with a bit of rich tomato sauce on top. Delicious, but gave you terrible breath! The other was lahmucan: similar to a pizza, but with mince on top. It doesn't sound appetising, but it was perfectly seasoned and super tasty.

Manti

From Kaş, we just had one last stop before flying back to London - this time in Antalya. Antalya is a bit of a resort town, with casinos aplenty. We even saw tourist cruises around the harbour, in ships fully decked out in pirate regalia. It's quite a big city and did quite a few interesting things to see, but didn't particularly appeal as a holiday destination.

In Antalya we again noticed an abundance of cats roaming around, apparently strays, but in very good condition. We then came across a cat house in a park. It seems the stray cats are really taken care of here. 

Local cat house :) 

Our time in Turkey had come to an end. It was an enjoyable trip, although would have been more so with better weather. We also had some great food, although at the end, it felt like we had subsisted on meat and bread, and were glad to get back some normalcy at home.

Turkey: Istanbul, May 2014

Looking back over the photos, it's hard to believe how much we saw in Turkey, and how many different places we visited, so I'm going to split this into a couple of posts

We started off in Istanbul. Here we of course visited the must-see sights of the Blue Mosque (although it took several attempts until we managed to time it right and actually be able to go inside), and the Hagia Sophia, both of which were stunning. The scale of the blue mosque is particularly impressive, while the history of the Hagia Sophia, which began life as a Christian basilica, before becoming a mosque and nowadays a museum, was very interesting.

Perhaps slightly less known is the Basilica Cistern, a cistern underneath the city dating from the sixth century, built as a water filtration system for the palace. It is surprisingly vast, and the way the colonnades are lit up from below means you get the eerie feeling of being in a sunken city.

We took a ferry across to the Eastern (or 'Asian') side of the city. The ferry provided us with fantastic views all around the city, and made us realise its vastness, and just how many mosques were dotted around the place. We were hunting for a market we'd read about but Trip Advisor led us astray and we never did find it, but it was nice to see a different (quieter) part of the city.

Other sites we visited included the Galata tower, which gave us nice views across the city. I don't think of myself as afraid of heights, but the unstable railing and thin and unstable stone viewing platform, which sloped distinctly away from the building, had me flattened against the tower itself and unable to move very far. Nice views, and not actually that high, but not recommended for those unsure of heights!

One of our first nights here, while walking around the centre of the city, in the Taksim square area, we stumbled across a huge parade of excitable football fans: the local Fenerbahçe team had won the Turkish league, and fans were out celebrating. I'm not sure if these things normally turn rowdy, but there was certainly a huge police presence, waiting and watching in full riot gear. There were even trucks with water cannons to the side, although we didn't see any of it used.

Fenerbahçe fans

During our time in Istanbul we didn't have the best of weather, with quite a bit of rain, meaning we had to hole in up in a number of cafes from time to time. This was the perfect excuse to have yet another cup of Turkish tea or coffee. Tea was served strong and black in dainty class cups, and you were provided with several sugar cubes to add at your leisure. The coffee was also strong and served in small cups, with a distinctively grainy texture at the bottom which is a little difficult to avoid. 

We also tried some great food. On our first evening here, we visited a great little restaurant right near our airbnb apartment. We were sat right next to the huge grill and enjoyed many delicious grilled meats and vegetables, and tasty bread. 

Another night we sought out a fantastic little hole in the wall place Kylie had heard about on Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations for a super tasty kebab. Other grilled meaty delights included kokoreç and cağ. We also tried a 'wet burger,' whose soggy buns don't look particularly appealing, but in reality, the tasty, saucy, garlicky, tomato-ey meatiness was just delectable.

cağ

Traditional Turkish breakfasts are a lavish affair, with mountains of fresh bread, boiled eggs, olives, cucumber, tomatoes, creamy yoghurt, honey, and white cheeses. A great way to start the day.

All in all we had an enjoyable time in Istanbul, but I think I had heard such amazing things, that it would have been virtually impossible to live up to those expectations. 

On we travelled, next stop Ephesus.

Hannah's visit to the land of the long white cloud: January - February 2014

At the end of January I began the mammoth journey back to NZ for a visit. My flight from Heathrow was delayed which meant a rush to transfer in Singapore. Although I made it, sadly my bag did not until later the following day. I now appreciate the wisdom in packing a change of clothes in your carry-on. 

Auckland welcomed me home with stunning weather

It had been two years since we left the country so it was nice to be seeing friends and family again. I spent time in Wellington, Palmerston North, New Plymouth and a brief stop in Auckland. I really enjoyed catching up with friends and family, and making the most of all the things I miss about NZ while living in London.

You can't beat Wellington on a good day - looking out over Oriental Parade

View from my sister's house, Titahi Bay

Titahi Bay

Titahi Bay

Fantastic strong flat white and date scone

mmm delicious sushi from Sushi Bi (Wellington), and feijoa juice

View from my old uni (and work) back to the city

Oriental Bay, the beach in the city (Wellington)

Oriental Bay

Wellington harbour

Wellington harbour

Market on Wellington waterfront

On the track up to Mt Kaukau, looking back towards Wellington

I'm sure anyone who has spent a long time living away from their 'home' country and returns for a visit can relate to the slightly surreal feeling I experienced. Although Wellington still sort of felt like 'home,' I have a different life in such a different place now. Some things are the same but many have changed. So it was with mixed feelings that I jumped back on the first of my three flights and 26+ hour journey back to my second 'home.'

Only in New Zealand...the departure board telling me to relax