Hey Folks,
Since it's late on a Sunday night and we've been swamping the blog lately with lengthy, monotonous posts, this post will be breath of fresh air.
We'd been feeling the homesick dings, dents, and doldrums of daily life in a foreign country. We decided we needed another overt travel experience - to take advantage of the opportunities we have before us. One of the prominent reasons we left the comforts and pleasures of our home in Minnesota.
On Saturday (after some delicious apple cinnamon pancakes Hilary made from scratch) we hopped on a bus to the neighboring town of Ceyhan and stopped the bus 10 minutes before the city limits at the road to Snake Castle. The castle was 3 km away at the top of a big old rocky hill.
We spent the next few hours exploring the ruins and eating a picnic lunch of granola bars, corn nuts, dried apricots, and apples. Here are the pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/102414639040665306959/SnakeCastle?authkey=Gv1sRgCKDKtseM1YnWaA We walked back to the road, flagged down a bus, and rode back into town. We felt invigorated and revived - our appetite for adventure satiated for the time being.
Arriving home, we discovered our power was still shut off from before we left for reasons unknown. It was finally fixed this evening. All told the power was out for about 32 hours. That adventure was unwarranted and less invigorating, but I suppose we must take the good with the bad.
Hilary's birthday and Thanksgiving are on the horizon this week, so we look forward to both. They will surely be bittersweet without so many loved ones nearby.
We miss you and love you all,
Hilary and Mike
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Antakya/Antioch/Hatay
After returning home from our backpacking trip at 8:30 on Friday night, we scrambled to unpack, repack, freshen up, and try to rest for our whirlwind trip to Antakya early the following morning. We were instructed to be at the bus station (a 20 minute walk from our place) at 6 or 6:30 am.
Perhaps we were running on fumes, but we felt pretty refreshed and invigorated walking Adana's empty streets to the station. The city had not yet woken up and the familiar streets and storefronts adorned new character. We were excited to see Antakya and we were traveling about 70 pounds lighter than the prior three days.
At the station we bought our tickets and were shuttled to the Otogar - a bigger bus station on the outskirts of the city. We were both too energized by the prospects of Antakya to sleep on the ensuing three hour bus ride. Hilary read a few different Antakya travel guides while I was sucked into a Turkish-dubbed action movie on the seatback screen in front of me. Complimentary, delicious coffee was served at some point.
Two hours into the journey we were riding on the edge of some foothills overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. With the Nur Mountains on our left and beautiful, sprawling port of Iskenderun below us to the right we were struck with wonder. It was amazing.
We arrived in Antakya around 10 am and took another shuttle to a random intersection where our friend Can was waiting for us. He brought us to his childhood home where we had coffee and treats with Laura and the rest of his family. Rest assured it was delightful.
Then we set off to experience the city. With Can as our guide we received an insider's tour better than we could've found at any price. A student of history, literature, religion, and Turkish culture - he shared the stories, secrets, and rich history that the truly enchanted city is swelling with.
First we went to the catholic church where we were staying the night to drop off our bag and tour the grounds. The church was like a cross between a castle and a convent. Its courtyard was really cool and we went up to the roof to take our version of the apparently iconic photograph featuring the church's bell tower with the nearby mosque's minaret in the background. The city is a landmark of religious tolerance with prominent bases of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism on display throughout.
Walking through the streets again it seemed like we would turn down one winding alley only to turn again into a smaller, more winding alley and eventually end up in some quaint street filled with sidewalk cafes, artisans and gift shops. We stopped at Can's cousin's store where we ate homemade hummus and bakla (a lightly-spiced, garlicky version of refried beans (sans garlic)). Then we walked further to another restaurant to eat some doners for lunch where we met up with Can's nephew as well.
Next up was the Hatay Archeology Museum featuring one of the world's foremost mosaic collections. I'm sure our photographs won't do it justice. To spare some length I'll zip along for a little while. After the museum we got some milkshakes in a remarkable courtyard cafe.
We then headed out to St. Peter's Church - reportedly the place where the term "Christian" originated. The story is that Luke donated the cave on his property to Peter, Paul and others to congregate. Sadly the church was closed for maintenance - until August 2013! We climbed around the rocks and saw a few figures of Greek mythology carved into the rock's face.
Next we explored the endless web of the covered bazaar. People, shops, clothes, toys, foods, and knick knacks everywhere. We stopped and ate some hot kunefe - a dessert comprised of crispy shredded wheat, mild melted cheese, crushed pistachios and some type of syrup.
Then we headed back to attend mass at the catholic church. It was my first mass so I may have been lost even if the whole thing was in English - not Turkish. It culminated all of us linking pinkies and doing the Dance of David around the Eucharist table.
For supper we had some local fare at a traditional-style restaurant. We let Can choose the dishes and we ended up with a table full of unique dishes to share. We ate until we couldn't anymore, parted ways with Can and Laura, and went to bed.
The following morning Hilary and I ambled around in search of some coffee and a bite to eat. We found a nice little patisserie and restfully welcomed the morning. We walked around some of the streets we'd been on the prior day and eventually ended up at Can's mother's house for a fantastic home-cooked lunch. Shortly after we headed home to Adana. We were lucky enough to catch a ride with Laura, Can and his mother.
Our trip to Antakya filled us with gratitude, memories and amazing food. The city's buildings, streets, and rich history are more ancient than either of us have yet to encounter. Steeped back in the mundane details of daily life for a few weeks now, we cherish the joyful experience and look forward hopefully to whatever future journeys await.
Here are the pictures. https://picasaweb.google.com/102414639040665306959/AntakyaTripFall2012?authkey=Gv1sRgCK7qhcjeqoLcVw
Perhaps we were running on fumes, but we felt pretty refreshed and invigorated walking Adana's empty streets to the station. The city had not yet woken up and the familiar streets and storefronts adorned new character. We were excited to see Antakya and we were traveling about 70 pounds lighter than the prior three days.
At the station we bought our tickets and were shuttled to the Otogar - a bigger bus station on the outskirts of the city. We were both too energized by the prospects of Antakya to sleep on the ensuing three hour bus ride. Hilary read a few different Antakya travel guides while I was sucked into a Turkish-dubbed action movie on the seatback screen in front of me. Complimentary, delicious coffee was served at some point.
Two hours into the journey we were riding on the edge of some foothills overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. With the Nur Mountains on our left and beautiful, sprawling port of Iskenderun below us to the right we were struck with wonder. It was amazing.
We arrived in Antakya around 10 am and took another shuttle to a random intersection where our friend Can was waiting for us. He brought us to his childhood home where we had coffee and treats with Laura and the rest of his family. Rest assured it was delightful.
Then we set off to experience the city. With Can as our guide we received an insider's tour better than we could've found at any price. A student of history, literature, religion, and Turkish culture - he shared the stories, secrets, and rich history that the truly enchanted city is swelling with.
First we went to the catholic church where we were staying the night to drop off our bag and tour the grounds. The church was like a cross between a castle and a convent. Its courtyard was really cool and we went up to the roof to take our version of the apparently iconic photograph featuring the church's bell tower with the nearby mosque's minaret in the background. The city is a landmark of religious tolerance with prominent bases of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism on display throughout.
Walking through the streets again it seemed like we would turn down one winding alley only to turn again into a smaller, more winding alley and eventually end up in some quaint street filled with sidewalk cafes, artisans and gift shops. We stopped at Can's cousin's store where we ate homemade hummus and bakla (a lightly-spiced, garlicky version of refried beans (sans garlic)). Then we walked further to another restaurant to eat some doners for lunch where we met up with Can's nephew as well.
Next up was the Hatay Archeology Museum featuring one of the world's foremost mosaic collections. I'm sure our photographs won't do it justice. To spare some length I'll zip along for a little while. After the museum we got some milkshakes in a remarkable courtyard cafe.
We then headed out to St. Peter's Church - reportedly the place where the term "Christian" originated. The story is that Luke donated the cave on his property to Peter, Paul and others to congregate. Sadly the church was closed for maintenance - until August 2013! We climbed around the rocks and saw a few figures of Greek mythology carved into the rock's face.
Next we explored the endless web of the covered bazaar. People, shops, clothes, toys, foods, and knick knacks everywhere. We stopped and ate some hot kunefe - a dessert comprised of crispy shredded wheat, mild melted cheese, crushed pistachios and some type of syrup.
Then we headed back to attend mass at the catholic church. It was my first mass so I may have been lost even if the whole thing was in English - not Turkish. It culminated all of us linking pinkies and doing the Dance of David around the Eucharist table.
For supper we had some local fare at a traditional-style restaurant. We let Can choose the dishes and we ended up with a table full of unique dishes to share. We ate until we couldn't anymore, parted ways with Can and Laura, and went to bed.
The following morning Hilary and I ambled around in search of some coffee and a bite to eat. We found a nice little patisserie and restfully welcomed the morning. We walked around some of the streets we'd been on the prior day and eventually ended up at Can's mother's house for a fantastic home-cooked lunch. Shortly after we headed home to Adana. We were lucky enough to catch a ride with Laura, Can and his mother.
Our trip to Antakya filled us with gratitude, memories and amazing food. The city's buildings, streets, and rich history are more ancient than either of us have yet to encounter. Steeped back in the mundane details of daily life for a few weeks now, we cherish the joyful experience and look forward hopefully to whatever future journeys await.
Here are the pictures. https://picasaweb.google.com/102414639040665306959/AntakyaTripFall2012?authkey=Gv1sRgCK7qhcjeqoLcVw
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Backpacking in the Mountains
If you were to tell us this past June that we'd be trekking the mountains of Turkey this fall, we would've thought you were crazy. We were still looking for work in South Korea, Turkey wasn't on our radar whatsoever, and we didn't have any backpacking gear - or a very strong desire to go backpacking.
It's four short months later and here we are. Through no powers of our own we were able to go on an incredible, beautiful adventure in the Taurus Mountains in southern Turkey.
When October began we still did not know what we were going to do for our upcoming break, but God provides. Over the course of a few days our friend Luke invited us to join him on his adventure in the mountains, our friends Curtis and Annie generously offered to let us use their equipment, and our friends Can and Laura graciously lent us their tent.
The first morning we took a 4-hour bus ride north from Adana. The bus company sold more tickets than seats so we spent the 4 hours rotating between squeezing the three of us into two seats, sitting on laps, and standing in the aisles.
The bus dropped us off at a desolate intersection about 4km from the nearest mountain village. We started walking and were soon picked up by a farmer on a tractor pulling a trailer full of live sheep. Luke and I sat on the wheel wells of the tractor while Hilary stood on the narrow platform on the back. Our bags were 45, 52, and 35 lbs respectively.
The farmer dropped us off in front of the general store in Demirkazik Village and we spent the night in a villager's backyard garden. While we set up camp and made supper, the man's 7-year-old daughter stood nearby - watching, whistling and smiling. The man invited us into his home to warm up and discuss the following day's journey. Luke knew enough Turkish to communicate with him, but Hilary and I mainly warmed up. The man's wife served us hot, fresh milk and we headed outside to get some sleep.
We woke, packed up camp, ate breakfast, and started walking before the sun rose over the mountains. On the way to our base camp a pack of six Kangals - a local breed of sheepdogs - aggressively approached us. We picked up rocks, preparing to defend ourselves if necessary. Luckily they continued up the hillside without incident.
Four hours into our hike we arrived at a field which seemed to be the base camp. We set up our tent, ate some food, and rested. It was only 10am but we were exhausted. We lightened each of our packs and headed further up the mountain.
After an hour and a half we met some other hikers from Istanbul who were staying at the actual base camp. The camp was about an hour's hike from the village, but we unintentionally took the scenic route...
At one point we saw another Kangal on the path ahead of us. As we cautiously approached it we noticed it looked sad and harmless. We passed him and he followed us up the mountain until we decided to stop climbing for the day. We were in a beautiful spot with mountains on all sides of us. The dog ended up being friendly so Luke and Hilary pet him and let him nuzzle up on them. We soon noticed that the dog's mouth and paws looked wet and greenish.
We headed back down the mountain to make it to base camp before nightfall. The Kangal followed us down, but stopped at the same point we first found him. 15 feet further we saw a dead goat with its legs splayed to the sides and green, rotting innards spilling out of its gut. We spent the next fifteen minutes cleaning the green gunk off of Hilary and Luke's hands and clothes.
Side note: along the way, there were several mountain springs running through pipes into water troughs for the sheep herds that are commonly driven through the area. Cold, pure water was delicious, picturesque and readily available.
We returned to our base camp, dropped our bags, and laid on the rocky ground - 10 hours after we set off in the morning. I walked around gathering sticks and dung chips, hoping to make a fire that night.
We ate supper, drank hot drinks, and worked on starting a fire. Through Luke's handiwork and a lot of thorns and light brush he soon made a roaring fire. It was amazing to be able to thaw out and actually feel warm for around half an hour. The temperature ranged from about 40 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit during the three days we were out there.
The next morning we hiked back down to the intersection where the bus dropped us off. We hitched a ride into Çamardı and waited four hours until the bus came to bring us back home to Adana.
We stopped at Luke's house to redistribute our belongings. His wife Emily was waiting for us with a delicious, home-cooked meal. We were so grateful. And hungry.
We made it home to our apartment around 8:30 pm - just enough time to unpack and rest for our journey to Antioch/Antakya the next morning. We set our alarm for 5 am.
Here are the pictures:
https://picasaweb.google.com/102414639040665306959/BackpackingTripToDemirkazik?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ3svIux37O4OQ
For more pictures with more informative captions, check out Luke Olson's album on Facebook.
It's four short months later and here we are. Through no powers of our own we were able to go on an incredible, beautiful adventure in the Taurus Mountains in southern Turkey.
When October began we still did not know what we were going to do for our upcoming break, but God provides. Over the course of a few days our friend Luke invited us to join him on his adventure in the mountains, our friends Curtis and Annie generously offered to let us use their equipment, and our friends Can and Laura graciously lent us their tent.
The first morning we took a 4-hour bus ride north from Adana. The bus company sold more tickets than seats so we spent the 4 hours rotating between squeezing the three of us into two seats, sitting on laps, and standing in the aisles.
The bus dropped us off at a desolate intersection about 4km from the nearest mountain village. We started walking and were soon picked up by a farmer on a tractor pulling a trailer full of live sheep. Luke and I sat on the wheel wells of the tractor while Hilary stood on the narrow platform on the back. Our bags were 45, 52, and 35 lbs respectively.
The farmer dropped us off in front of the general store in Demirkazik Village and we spent the night in a villager's backyard garden. While we set up camp and made supper, the man's 7-year-old daughter stood nearby - watching, whistling and smiling. The man invited us into his home to warm up and discuss the following day's journey. Luke knew enough Turkish to communicate with him, but Hilary and I mainly warmed up. The man's wife served us hot, fresh milk and we headed outside to get some sleep.
We woke, packed up camp, ate breakfast, and started walking before the sun rose over the mountains. On the way to our base camp a pack of six Kangals - a local breed of sheepdogs - aggressively approached us. We picked up rocks, preparing to defend ourselves if necessary. Luckily they continued up the hillside without incident.
Four hours into our hike we arrived at a field which seemed to be the base camp. We set up our tent, ate some food, and rested. It was only 10am but we were exhausted. We lightened each of our packs and headed further up the mountain.
After an hour and a half we met some other hikers from Istanbul who were staying at the actual base camp. The camp was about an hour's hike from the village, but we unintentionally took the scenic route...
At one point we saw another Kangal on the path ahead of us. As we cautiously approached it we noticed it looked sad and harmless. We passed him and he followed us up the mountain until we decided to stop climbing for the day. We were in a beautiful spot with mountains on all sides of us. The dog ended up being friendly so Luke and Hilary pet him and let him nuzzle up on them. We soon noticed that the dog's mouth and paws looked wet and greenish.
We headed back down the mountain to make it to base camp before nightfall. The Kangal followed us down, but stopped at the same point we first found him. 15 feet further we saw a dead goat with its legs splayed to the sides and green, rotting innards spilling out of its gut. We spent the next fifteen minutes cleaning the green gunk off of Hilary and Luke's hands and clothes.
Side note: along the way, there were several mountain springs running through pipes into water troughs for the sheep herds that are commonly driven through the area. Cold, pure water was delicious, picturesque and readily available.
We returned to our base camp, dropped our bags, and laid on the rocky ground - 10 hours after we set off in the morning. I walked around gathering sticks and dung chips, hoping to make a fire that night.
We ate supper, drank hot drinks, and worked on starting a fire. Through Luke's handiwork and a lot of thorns and light brush he soon made a roaring fire. It was amazing to be able to thaw out and actually feel warm for around half an hour. The temperature ranged from about 40 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit during the three days we were out there.
The next morning we hiked back down to the intersection where the bus dropped us off. We hitched a ride into Çamardı and waited four hours until the bus came to bring us back home to Adana.
We stopped at Luke's house to redistribute our belongings. His wife Emily was waiting for us with a delicious, home-cooked meal. We were so grateful. And hungry.
We made it home to our apartment around 8:30 pm - just enough time to unpack and rest for our journey to Antioch/Antakya the next morning. We set our alarm for 5 am.
Here are the pictures:
https://picasaweb.google.com/102414639040665306959/BackpackingTripToDemirkazik?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ3svIux37O4OQ
For more pictures with more informative captions, check out Luke Olson's album on Facebook.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)