Friday was probably one of my top days in Turkey. We rose pretty early in Egirdir from our dorm-style room and got a filling breakfast while we overlooked the huge blue-green lake. Then it was off to one of the National Parks in a thirty minute van drive in which I do not recall much of because I kept nodding off.
William went with us as we hiked around a smaller lake and the trails it had to offer. On the sign leading into the trails it said we could see a number of typical wildlife you might find in any North Carolina forest such as squirrels (our first squirrels in Turkey!), deer, and, of course, a leopard. Okay Turkey, a leopard? We get it. You don’t mess around.
Luckily we didn’t see the leopard, but neither did we see squirrels. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m starting to miss the little critters. Though I don’t really mind their replacements – the stray cats that you see everywhere because you can often find kittens and they’re just so cute. So after spending about an hour hiking around this small lake, climbing some rocks, and becoming one with nature we hopped back into our van and went to Kanyon National Park.
It took us about an hour van ride, which I don’t remember at all because I was gone to the world, but upon arriving, we were in a wooded picnic spot next to a riverbed at the end of a gorge. We had a brief lunch of bread, cheese, and fruit and then it was time for our hike upstream.
First things first, we had to hike uphill and get above the cliffs that hung over the river. After a bit of an adventure in which we might have lost Zoe to the wild and Kristina to the gorge, we crossed over on an iron bridge and found ourselves on an old Roman road, the King’s Highway. This road was in much better condition than the trail we just climbed; it was flat, dusted with pebbles, and about wide enough for five people to walk side-by-side comfortably. Along the side of the cliff that loomed above us there were still markers from its use two millennia ago – an inscription of a poem, ledges in the rock, and slick marble from centuries of use.
It was a bit of a hike that got us to our destination, eventually the Roman road gave way to a clearing as the rock fell away, and then that led to a forest. We kept walking upstream, the river looking really inviting down below, as it rushed blue-green around white rocks. It was quite warm and I was happy to be out in my athletic shorts instead of something that covered my knees. Finally we reached our swimming site and after lathering on some screen, we took to rock hopping down to the waterfall pool we had passed just a short while ago.
This gorge probably ranks in one of my favorite places in the world now. Rising above everything are mountains, and immediately around the river was a forest. All the around the river edge were perfectly blooming, pink oleanders. The rocks, which jut out of the river, carving it up into small rushing streams, are an off-white color. They cut an almost meandering path for water, except that it continued to rush and fall everywhere. When the larger rocks give way, small pools appear that range from knee to waist deep. The water, despite being in constant motion and pulled downstream, is pure blue and see-through. When we filled our bottles up, there was nothing to be found in the water, not even natural waste of mildew, leaves, or algae. It was like a place Aquafina would advertise they get their pure spring water from.
Eventually the water comes together as two large rocks loom to either side forming a waterfall somewhere between 25 to 30 feet high. At the bottom of this was probably the most perfect, picturesque pool in the world, though it was a little on the chilly side. (And yes, it ranks above the waterfall pools I got to swim in Hawaii). This is where we decided to swim as the water was who-knows-how-deep and there were plenty of rocks to jump off of and lounge on.
Remarkably, we were the only people there the whole afternoon.
It’s hard to say what this means for Turkey, tourism, etc. I was happy that we had it to ourselves, but it’s almost sad that such a beautiful place was not being shared. Then again, it would probably not be so special to me now if it was teeming with other people the whole time we were there. It was nice to be alone in such a beautiful place. Though it does take a bit of a hike and a drive to get there, it’s not like this place is not advertised. Maybe it’s just not as widely known. In any case, I preferred it as it was; completely natural, very little trace of human activity, and a bunch of American college students without having to worry about anything.
I was one of the first ones down to the waterfall pool as the others got waylaid by the other rocks and smaller pools in route downstream. I met Kristina and David at the bottom after picking up their camera cases and having to climb through a ravine of sorts. None of the three of us had been in the water yet besides a bit of a toe poke so we knew it was going to be freezing. Kevin climbed down on the other side and was already in the pool so knowing it was safe, and sweating from the sun, I was ready to jump in. Kristina and I were going to make the leap of faith together (David was waiting for his swimsuit to be brought down as he wasn’t already wearing it and left it in his hurry to take pictures). But as we counted to three and then I made the jump, I felt her hand leave mine. After rising to the surface and shouting expletives because of the cold, I looked back to the rock only to see her standing and wincing, and David laughing. In another moment, she was in the water and as the rest of group made their way down, with a bit of coaxing, they jumped in too.
It didn’t take Edward very long to climb up a nearby rock that was probably fifteen feet above the water. After cheering his jump in, we all gradually followed suit. It did take Amanda a bit of encouragement as David climbed up there with her to help, but she was thrilled once she did it as well. It was exhilarating jumping off into the cold water because you’re in the air just long enough to wonder when you’re going to hit.
Then Edward climbed up to an even higher rock, one that was a little bit higher than the waterfall even. After a bit of worrying on some of our parts and a bit of hesitation on his, he leaped off, hurtling downward for about four seconds. Seeing that he survived and was ready to go again, some of the others climbed up to make the leap. Maybe given a little bit more time in our waterfall pool, and I might have jumped off as well, but I was happy with my fifteen foot leap. Though Zoe, David, Kristina, and Kevin all jumped off and splashed in just fine. I did get some great footage on my video-camera in between swimming.
We then all headed back up to where we left Prof Sarah and William and all our stuff. After snacking a bit, I decided to head upstream to see what I could find. The river widened here and the rocks became even more numerous with small patches of ground housing trees appearing in the middle, so it was hard to tell where the water all came from. After finding a perfect waterfall slide and coasting down it with a slightly rough landing, I was warded off from further exploring by a giant river crab. It clicked its pincers at me menacingly after having a minute stare down, I turned back knowing it was probably getting close to time to leave and seeing that the river and rocks expanded even further ahead, giving me too much ground to cover.
I found the group in a discussion perched on a few of the rocks with feet dangling in the water. Oops.
After a bit of a discussion on tourism in Turkey, and how we were the only ones at Kanyon National Park, it was time to hike back down and catch our van back to Egirdir.
We did spot some more tourists on our way down, but they were on the opposite side of the river. After grabbing some refreshments, we loaded into the van. Exhausted, I think we all fell asleep in our ride back.
We arrived back in our dormitory only to find the surrounding rooms occupied and facing a dilemma. We only had one shower between about thirty people. I made a mad dash for the shower in my bathing suit and thankfully got clean.
The hostel provided supper that night and then it was time to find a place to watch the Turkey-Croatia quarterfinal EuroCup match. Egirdir is unfortunately a small town, but we asked the guys at the hostel where we could find a sports bar. Not believing him when he said there was pretty much no where to watch the game, we ventured out in almost hurricane-like winds to find a place. We circled Egirdir for virtually the first half, but there was bar to be found. Chagrined, we made our way back to the hostel and watched the rest of the game there.
Once again, Turkey played us. They took Croatia into overtime in a 0-0 tie only to have Croatia score in the last minute. We groaned, thinking it was over; they only had a minute of stoppage time added on.
With seconds ticking down, the backup Turkish goalkeeper (the starting one had gotten a red card in the previous game) made one last desperate punt. A Turkish player settled the ball, turned, and gave the shot of his life. And well, it went in and the ref called the game immediately afterwards. Are you kidding me Turkey? They went on to win in penalty kicks so Turkey moves onto the semifinals. FYI, Turkey has led for no more than fifteen minutes this whole tournament, yet somehow, they still have gotten to the semifinals of EuroCup.
Some of our group stormed the streets of Egirdir. Kristina, Zoe, and I hung out on the terrace of our hostel watching the whole dozen cars circle the town. Needless to say, we missed the celebration in Istanbul or any town besides Egirdir.
The next morning we were back on the Fez Travel bus. After a bit of confusion that sent us to the wrong place, we all boarded and with luggage in the aisles, we were off to Konya. The bus ride for some reason did not put us in the best of moods; something to do with Bridgette, our ill-tempered Fez tour direction, and the cramped conditions, probably.
We did make a stop at a wooden mosque sometime before arriving. This was rather unique as all the mosques we’ve been in before are stone or marble. It’s remarkable that this mosque is preserved as well as it is in any case and their observatory pool setup is cool. Astronomy is very important in Islam because tracking the time for prayers as well as for Ramadan is necessary.
After that brief stop we were back on the road and soon, we were in Konya. Konya is a city of somewhere between one to two million people and is best known as the capital of the Selcuk (Seljuk) Empire. It’s also home of Rumi (Mevlana) and the base of his Sufi Islamic order and the Whirling Dervishes.
The Fez bus left us on the side of the road and for a few moments we just stood there. Before we knew it, a man pulls up in a pickup truck and tells us to load up our luggage. This was Mehmet, (not to be confused with all the other Mehmet’s we know) the carpet store owner that hails from the village we will be visiting for two days. He takes us to our hotel which is right around the corner from our shop.
We dropped all our stuff off in the rooms; the girls in one giant room, the guys in another. Then we gathered downstairs for lunch next door and afterward we went to Mehmet’s shop. He served us mountain herbal tea and we talked awhile about his village, Konya, and the carpet business.
Then we were given some free time. Feeling exhausted, I chose a nap and promptly collapsed on my bed for an hour and a half. Kelly woke me up some time later and we headed back down to Mehmet’s shop so he could show us some of the intricacies of carpet making. We loaded up in a van and first we traveled some back roads to the house of one of the weavers he buys from. There we saw some weaving down first hand as a woman and her daughter worked on a giant kilim. Next he took us to a house he owns on the outskirts of Konya that he uses as place to create his dyes for rugs.
Mehmet’s supplies his weavers with all the raw materials so its necessary for him to have a place for dyes. He also repairs ancient rugs; one over two hundred years old that he would be able to resell for $50,000. Then we headed back into the center of Konya so we could grab some food for supper.
After eating, a number of us met back at Mehmet’s shop for a third time we could witness the Whirling Dervishes. Mehmet’s brother, Muammer, led us to the Mevlani cultural center of sorts.
The Whirling Dervishes are something else. They dress in white, and somehow spin and spin and spin. It’s a way of reaching a connection with God. At the end, one of the dervishes led a prayer and I was surprised to witness a number of Turks in the audiences following along.
Sufism in Turkey is outlawed under their “secular” government because a branch of Sufis originally opposed Ataturk, but they are allowed to perform for cultural and traditional purposes. However, if a Turk is taken to court for practicing Sufism, the judge basically turns a blind eye. It’s a very interesting balance. To add onto that, the Mevlani Order is more of a lifestyle than a religion’ it’s all complicated and gives you a headache if you try to explain and digest it all.
Of course, that could just be my excuse as to not try to type out a very long explanation of it all. It’s late and I’m tired.
Moving on, we called it a night after making it back to the hotel. This morning, we met at 10:00 in Mehmet’s shop for Muammer to give us a tour of his city.
Today was really mosque and museum day. We saw four mosques and went into two museums. I was exhausted even at the beginning; I think the days were just catching up to me. Traveling every other day doesn’t give one much time to rest except on the bus/van/box-on-wheels.
After our extensive tour of important sites in Konya, I picked up a present for the family I would be staying with in the village in the Taurus Mountains, then it was back to the hotel for rest.
We met at 7:30 for supper with Muammer who took us to a great restaurant where we ate in traditional Turkish style. I definitely had a food baby after that meal which included bread, soup, salad, meze, an entrée, and a dessert.
Back in our hotel, I prepared for our stay in the Mountains before finishing up this blog and calling it a night.
These next two days in the village should prove interesting. No internet, no toilet paper, no contact with the outside world…see ya’ll in a couple of days!
