Date: Mon, 30 Oct 2000 06:18:23 -0800 From: jennifer aitken Subject: among the euroweenes ... special thanks to PJ O'Rourke Howdy all, we are living it up here in turkey, finally coming to grips with the massive culture shock we got on crossing the border it really felt like we were back in the first world with a vengeance. girls in smart westerm clothing everywhere (though a lot of the older women do wear headscarves and coats), shiny shops everywhere, flash european cars, and the buses are the height of luxury. a big change. turkey was also pleasantly vibrant after the subdued atmosphere in iran. people are friendly and exuberant, they wear colours and everywhere you go energetic turkish pop music is blasting out we had a fantastic night on our first day in turkey. went to a tiny cafe where there were a lot of kurdish dudes hanging out, to enjoy our first beer in months (aah, efes pilsner, what a brew). they ended up singing kurdish songs and having a good old dance, and 'pressured' us to join in. it was loads of fun. the first time i have danced in 4 months! travelling in turkey is super easy. the buses as i mentioned are divine, also a real bonus that you can read place names and signs and can even reead the names and numbers written on your ticket! so it's all less confusing tan usual! what luxury ... it ain't cheap though. but i suppose we shouldn't complain as you do get good value for the hard earned $$$$ turkish food is divine, they definitely have the art of flavouring down nicely. breakfast is always bread, feta, olives, tomato and cucumber, haven't got sick of it yet. there' s always kebabs, but even better are the eggplant and tomato dishes and the yoghurt dips, and finish off with a bit of baklava. yum yum yum anyway we started off in the border town of Dogubeyazit, very cool friendly place with a nice castle on the hill above. It's right by Mt Ararat which is supposedly where moses parked the ark, but is also rather impressive in it's own right. We then moved on to Van Lake in southeaster turkey, turkey's biggest lake and supposedly so alkaline you can wash your clothes in it withuot soap! very picturesque and a cool little town. had lots of teahouses where grizzled old men (but with luxuriant moustaches) wearing baggy old suits and felt hats sit around all day drinking tea, playing backgammon and smoking. seems to be a great life for men out here! so many of them seem to spend a lot f time doing nothing! Eastern turkey was really awesome, had spectacular scenery (esp with all the trees in autumn colours), charming little villages and was a great place to meet locals, hardly any other tourists which was great. Also currently very safe. There was a lot of security checkpoints along the roads, but that was it. However it was starting to get cold and we were hanging out to see the mediterranean and some beaches, so decided to head west sooner rther than later OUr trip along the coast was just superb. The scenery was 'typically mediterranean' - white villas with orange rooves, purple flowers and grapevines, crystal clear water of brilliant turquoise with gorgeous little bays and coves. Whoa i think i have used up my day's supply of cliches there, but it's TRUE We got our second and biggest ever culture shock when we hit western turkey proper, driving through a tourist ville called Alanya, all high rises and fifty something euroweenies walking around in tiny singlet tops and shorts that i'm sure would be indecent enough in their own country let alone here! (ok i have become something of a clothes prude over the last few months, but really ...) Didn't stop there ... We did stop in a place called Antalya, also touristy but done with some taste! Theres a pretty old town with cobbled streets and restored half timbered villas, all a few hundred years old and now mostly guesthouses. Also a charming roman harbour which is now a yacht marina. We were glad to be visiting in off season as apparently it just swarms in summer and there aare lots of 'discos' Hard to believe we were in pakistan not so long ago ... Next stop Olympos, also a tourist haven but of the kiwi/aussie backpacker variety. again pleasantly quiet at this time of year, enough people around to be convivial ut not overdone. Olympos was gorgeous, not only does it have a beautiful beach (so we have been doing loads of swimming, it's divine) but also has a lot of ruins dating back to around 100BC. Awesome because they are partly hidden by the forest, so you can spend a few hours rambling around and pretending to be a super explorer type person. >From Olympos we arranged a 4 day mediterranean cruise with 5 other backpackers. What a hard life that was. Cruising past islands, sunken cities and ruined castles, stopping for the odd swim and snorkel in some sheltered bay, catching lots of sun. We even got served freshly caught fish. We just finished the boat trip yesterday and are now in the coastal town of Fethiye, which is pleasant and relaxed with some interesting rock tombs cut into the hills above it, and some gorgeous little winding streets to ramble in once you get beyond the main area. Planning to have a Turkish bath tonight We're going to head up the coast over the next 10 days or so before we hit istanbul, where we will be meeting our debauched friend Martin BExon for a week of fun before heading back home to new zealand. Arrive home 21 November. Unbelievable! So i had better run off and enjoy my last days as a free woman lots of love, Jen ps bad luck for any of you using hotmail