Athens, Greece

The flight to Athens was only 90 minutes from Izmir but it took 3 hours as we flew via Istanbul.  It was a smooth flight and we arrived just after the sunset.   We are hoping to save some money by using the metro in Athens rather than renting a car.  The owner of the apartment we are renting provided us with detailed directions from the airport and it was going to save us $100 CDN each way – good motivation.  We bought our metro tickets and boarded the train. I had been to Athens years ago and didn’t have very good memories of the dirty streets and metro but things have improved drastically since hosting the 2004 Olympics. 

Nice to see the city cleaned up. We found our Metro stop by using the well-marked maps on the train and enjoyed people watching between stops. Once we exited the Metro station and got outside to start our walk to the apartment we realized the streets weren’t as well marked and it was dark of course.  We have been trying to stay where the locals live and sometimes that can backfire…..like when all the streets signs are in Greek. 

We stood on the corner for a couple minutes, stumped and then decided to ask a young guy walking by if he knew the street we were looking for and  he was happy to help, spoke English AND was going the same way we were so he offered to have us follow him. We followed.  While Calvin was chatting with him, I was pulling out our directions to make sure we were on the right path and he wasn’t leading us to some undesirable neighbourhood. We have only had good luck with all the people we have met while travelling and this guy was no exception. He walked us about a half a block away from our apartment and wished us well for the rest of our trip.

The apartment is on the 6^th floor which is the seventh floor in Europe.  We had the penthouse of the apartment building but the elevator was not working when we got there! So we had to walk up the 7 flights of stairs with all of our backpacks. Calvin alone was carrying about 40 kilos while I and Noah were packing 18 kilos and Aidan had 11 kilos.  

Once we walked in to the apartment our fatigue was washed away. The first thing that caught our eye was the welcome basket that contained a bottle of wine, a fresh loaf of bread, jams and honey, chocolate and coffee ! Then I opened the fridge and saw the juice and Ouzo! Sweet! The roof top terrace had a BBQ that puts ours at home, to shame and a view of the Acropolis.

What I was most excited about though was that the owner had left out 2 Greek cookbooks and the boys decided to put a menu together that they would make for dinner one night. They are keen to cook some new recipes and once again the cooking class in Florence was money well spent! We had chosen to only spend 5 days in Athens and only visit the main important sites.

On our first day we walked to the Acropolis. It is under heavy restorative construction so the Parthenon wasn’t very photogenic but still as impressive. The boys noticed that it was larger than the two temples we visited in Paestum, Italy by counting the number of columns and found that there were 16 across rather than 14. They ARE retaining some of what they have seen! You must be wondering how these boys could still be visiting ruins and remain interested?  We do watch either travel videos or movies about ancient engineering so it’s like an I SPY type of exercise when we get to the actual site. Plus Mom and Dad are the bosses so they have no choice! Ha!  

The views were magnificent from up there so we stayed for quite a while and tried to find our apartment, which was impossible of course but was a fun exercise. After the long walk down we sauntered through the Plaka district for a real Greek feel. The Plaka is the oldest section of Athens. Most of the streets have been closed to automobile traffic and it is an area full of restaurants, jewelry stores, tourist shops, and cafes.

Though it is quite commercialized it is still a neighborhood and arguably the nicest neighbourhood in central Athens. We found a small butcher shop where we stopped in and bought some steaks for a BBQ that night.

There are plenty of museums to see in Greece but we thought we would take the boys to the War Museum to see some weapons! At 4 euros for the whole family it was a bargain. We walked around for 2 hours and the boys were as attentive as I have ever seen them.  Ancient Greek weapons right up to present day AK47s.  

Devin saw a mosaic of Alexander the Great and recognized him right away from seeing him in Italy, Turkey and now Greece.  After some photos in the courtyard beside some tanks and jets we headed to the parliament buildings to watch the changing of the guards.

As we got closer to the government buildings we could see dozens of tour bus size vehicles full of riot police wearing armour and holding shields obviously ready for anything. The government was in session and the TV cameras were waiting so it was a precautionary stance that the police were taking. There was no crowd of angry citizens gathering so we found a spot in Syntagma Square and ate our packed lunch watching the people go by.

When it was 10 minutes before the hour we headed back up to the parliament buildings to catch the bizarre pageantry of the guards. They are called Evzones and they are the elite ceremonial unit that guard the Parliament.  Potential  Evzones are identified  at the Army Recruit Training Centers during Basic Training; there is a minimum height requirement of over 6 feet to join, and they must be handsome…seriously it’s a prerequisite – I’m not sure that defines ‘elite’ but it works for me. The unit is famous for its unique traditional uniform, which has evolved from the clothes worn by the soldiers that fought the Ottomans.

The kilt they wear has 400 pleats to represent the 400 years of Turkish occupation. Who irons these things? The march style consists of marching in normal time and then at intervals, for several paces they strike the ground forcefully with their right foot and then do this slow motion foot twirl. Guards on duty perform their movements in a very slow and highly stylized manner. They switch positions with each other every fifteen minutes and remain completely motionless and at attention in the meantime. Since the Guards are required to be totally still at all times, there is one Evzone in normal fatigues uniform and police surveillance to ensure that no one approaches or harasses the Guards while on duty.

During a demonstration in front of the Parliament in 2001, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at one of the guardhouses. In no time, the wooden construction was engulfed in flames. The Evzone standing next to it didn't even blink his eyes, let alone move, until the guard in standard uniform came and gave him the order to move. With a scorched and partly smoking uniform on one side, the Evzone did.  So these guys are seriously committed! After they made their change we went up and had our pictures taken with the tall, dark and handsome fellows. It was a bit of a weird feeling, like standing next to a statue.  We found a great playground in the National Garden where the boys ran around, Dad snoozed on a park bench and I watched the other families play. 

That night we followed the apartment owner’s recommendation for a local restaurant and after many wrong turns and being sent in the wrong direction by well-meaning locals…I think… we found it ! They sell their lamb chops by the kilo so we loaded up and had a great dinner of crispy lamb chops and Greek salad.

The night of Noah’s “fake” birthday the boys decided they would run their restaurant and cook a big meal. The menu was :

·         Cheese spread  (Homemade by Noah) on warmed fresh bread

·         Olives, homemade roasted red peppers (roasted by Noah)

·         Greek Salad (made by Devin and Aidan)

·         Button onions in a honey, wine sauce (made by Noah)

·         Roast Potatoes (made by Mom)

·         Chicken Souvlaki (BBQ by Dad and Noah)

·         Caramel /Chocolate Cake (made by the bakery around the corner)

We all pitched in but Noah was really the head chef and told us what to work on. The cheese spread was 2 types of Greek cheese pureed with yogurt and it was delicious. We had a lot leftover and had it over toast for breakfast the next day. This meal was one of the tastiest and the most rewarding.

 We left Greece the next day and started it off with the local’s favorite coffee, a frappe. Coffee, water, milk and sugar all whipped up and TASTY. It is never taken to go and never gulped. It is sipped slowly while chatting with friends in a café, so when in Greece…We grabbed the backpacks and walked back to the Metro and train for the airport.  A much easier trek in daylight than in the dark.  Next stop - Egypt. We are all very excited and I am apprehensive, but things have been quieter since the revolution in January and tourists are not a target. We will be with our tour group for the entire 9 days and that makes me feel a little less anxious.     

Pamukkale & Ephesus - Turkey

Pammukkale means 'cotton castle' in Turkish.  Thermal waters loaded with calcium carbonate exit the earth's core and create terraced limestone pools.  The water seems endless and flows over the terraced pools. 

We saw this place in one of our travel videos and Noah expressed a keen interest in dipping his toes in the warm water so here we are.  We rented a car in Kalkan and made the three hour drive and we were not disappointed.  We checked into a small family owned hotel, named the Venus Hotel.  It was a real find (thanks to Trip advisor) and their family chef prepared some of the best meals we've enjoyed in Turkey. Lentil soup and chicken shish were our favourite.

The first day, we got up early and spent the morning up on the hill once called Hierapolis.   We waded in bare feet into the thermal waters and watched the steam rise up, enjoying the scenery. A fairly large lady was sitting on the edge of one of the rushing waterways when she slipped and fell in with all her clothes on and camera.  She struggled but the rushing water and smooth surfaces had her wedged in the water channel.  The guards were all laughing as my wonderful husband rushed over to help her up.

Our next stop was the Ancient Bath or Cleopatra’s Bath. This is a natural thermal water pool for swimming with roman columns underneath your feet. You can swim around in the pool while stepping on ancient ruins from 2,000 years ago. This was the highlight of our day and well worth the drive to Pammukale.

Ephesus – A further 2 hour drive west took us to the town of Selcuk where we stayed for 2 nights to visit the Roman ruins of Ephesus. When we arrived one of the “guides” told us that we would have to walk up and then walk back down but he could drive us to the starting point which would shave 2 hours off our walk. In order to do this we had to agree to go to the government operated carpet weaving school. We explained that we weren’t interested in buying anything and he said that was ok. No obligation. We agreed as this was something we had hoped to see anyway.

So we headed off to the school (just a few minutes from the entrance). We saw wool and silk carpets being weaved and the women’s fingers moved at an incredibly fast speed. They then took us over to the silk worm processing area and we watched them spin fine silk threads from an unraveling silk worm. 
Of course the all too familiar “now we will take you to the showroom” followed. We looked at many examples of various carpets, had some great tea but left without buying anything. Finally we headed on to the site of Ephesus.

You could tell we were getting a little “over” the roman ruins by the speed at which we walked through the ancient town. It is very impressive with a large amphitheatre and temples but once you see Pompeii and Paestum it is less impressive until we rounded the corner to see the Celsus Library. It is a very large and beautifully carved structure. You could visualize philosophers and statesman sitting on the steps contemplating astronomy and other such important ideas. 

We did get a kick out of the communal toilets where many a roman (and I mean 40 at a time) would take care of their daily business while chatting with their neighbors.  A small stage in the middle of the toilet square housed a group of musicians whose main objective was to drown out the sounds of their 'audience'.    As we were about to leave we were surprised when the drums started to beat and we could see a play with actors dressed in Roman costumes start to begin. The Emperor and his Queen watched as the gladiators performed a fight for their approval.

As the victorious gladiator was about to deliver his final assault on his opponent he looked in the audience and picked Noah out to come up and finish it off. He handed Noah his dagger and they waited for the thumbs up or down from the Emperor. Luckily it was thumbs up and Noah spared the gladiator.  

We had a bit of extra time and sunlight so we jumped in the rental car and drove the windy road up the mountain that overlooks Ephesus / Selcuk to visit Maryamam (Mary’s Sanctuary).  According to predominant Christian tradition, Mary was brought to Ephesus by the Apostle John after the Resurrection of Christ and lived out her days there.

This has generally been confirmed through scripture quotes and various Pope visits. The energy at this site is very special. It is very deeply calming and centering. It also has a sacred spring near her house.  The peaceful site is sacred to both Christians and Muslims, and is visited by many tourists and pilgrims.  The entire grounds is wonderfully shady and cool, and we happened to visit when there were relatively few other groups around, so it felt quite relaxed and low key.

We ended our trip to Turkey at a traditional, very modest restaurant with great home made dishes.When we entered the restaurant we felt right at home not just because of the warm welcome but because the waiter was wearing a Vancouver Olympic jacket, hat AND t-shirt ! His cousin who lives there sent it to him for his birthday and he seemed to really like wearing it. We enjoyed a great meal of chicken and lamb shish, grilled kofte (meatballs shaped like hot dogs) ,hummus and pita and grilled veggies. When we finished our meal we started talking to the owner of the restaurant who also owned the carpet store next door and we told him about going to the carpet factory and how hard we found it to tell the difference between original designs that are locally  made carpets and the ones that are mass produced in Asia. He brought us in to his store and gave us a great education on the differences and we ended up buying a small antique carpet to hang on the wall. Great ending to our Turkish adventure ! Tomorrow we drive to Ismir to fly to Athens – Greece !

Brief summary of our Turkish encounters

Istanbul to Anadolu Kavagi (Black Sea) to Kayseri to Cappadocia to Kalkan to OluDeniz to Pamukkale to Ephesus to Izmir to Istanbul

2,800km 41 hours

Best experiences:  Turkish people; Ballooning in Cappadocia; Hookah in Istanbul; swimming in the Blue Lagoon; Hagia Sophia; bathing in thermal pools of Pamukkale; shopping at the Grand Bazaar; belly dancing anywhere; caving in Cappadocia & Goreme, and; Turkish bath in Istanbul.

Best accommodation: Cave house in Cappadocia for its ambiance; Hotel Venus in Pamukkale for its food; Istanbul apartment for its location, and; Kalkan for its view.

Best meals:  Gozleme pancakes and kebabs in Istanbul; Nazar Borek in Goreme and everything at the Hotel Venus in Pamukkale but especially the lentil soup.

Best desert: Backlava and honey yogurt

Bested by an animal: Dodging the feces of wild dogs and cats everywhere.

Best Mosque: Blue Mosque and the Call to Prayer everywhere

Best repeated new phrase: “Do you want some wine…..too bad…..all gone!” and “Excuse me, are you lost? Can I help?”

Best city: Istanbul

Best beaches: Blue Lagoon

Kalkan

Kalkan - Turkey

After a very long day we arrived at the Dalaman airport which is on the south western Med. coast of Turkey. We are looking forward to some warmer weather after Cappadocia and plan to stay put for 10 days and recharge our batteries.  The owner of the villa arranged a driver for us and we were pleased to ride the 2 hours to the villa in a comfortable SUV. The roads were winding and some times on dirt and it was dark so we were thankful that we were in the hands of someone who really knew the roads well. We arrived at the villa in Kalkan (south of Dalaman) and didn’t look around too much but headed to bed as soon as we could.  

We awoke to a surprisingly amazing view of the Mediterranean in the morning and a beautiful pool that was a bit frosty but when your body temperture lowers enough, it's quite comfortable. The villa is big with more bedrooms than we need but for a pretty inexpensive, low season rate. The town below has many small shops for food and clothing and is full of Brits.  We got our rations for the week and buckleed down for a few days of school work and sunning by the pool.

 

The Smith family was staying in OluDeniz which was an hours drive away and home to the Blue Lagoon so we ventured in to the town with our rental car. We spent the day swimming in the clear water of the Blue Lagoon and relaxing on sun beds. 

It was a very relaxing afternoon. We decided to join the Smith’s at their all-inclusive hotel for dinner and a breakdancing show (which was amazing by the way). The kids met a whole gang of kids visiting from Germany and Great Britain in addition to the Vancouver family and had such a  great night that we decided to come back the next day and stay over for a night. Again, inexpensive low season rate and all you can eat – 3 meals a day. For our 3 strapping lads, the words ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET are music to their ears and our wallets. 



OluDeniz is a paragliding mecca and there were no shortage of people to watch in the sky as this particular weekend the town was hosting a paragliding international competition.  We sat by the pool and let the kids get their fill of new friends to play manhunt with…the sacrifices we make for these children! We said good bye to the Smith’s with a plan to meet them in Egypt in 2 weeks. We headed back to Kalkan for much needed schoolwork and the last days on the coast. The next morning Devin lost his other front tooth and Calvin came down with some kind of stomach bug that gave him the chills, a fever and many visits to the bathroom.

He was the sickest that I have ever seen him and I was worried. Unfortunately I don’t know how to drive a standard engine car so he had to drive himself to the doctor in town and get some antibiotics.  He was very cautious when driving over any bumps on the road.  We made it and after paying cash to the Dr. for his time and some anitbiotics, he was on the toilet to recovery.

That night was Halloween and the boys were a little bummed out about missing it, so we loaded up on some candy and headed back home. I took Devin upstairs and put my Turkish pants on him with some other accessories and he became a genie.

Noah dressed in my clothes and Aidan surprised us all when he came down dressed as Devin, including short pants and top , blacked out front teeth and clutching Devin’s treasured blankets. We all laughed hard, including Devin. Trick or treating consisted of me waiting behind every bedroom door while the kids knocked and I shelled out candy as a different person each time. It didn’t compare to Halloween in our neighbourhood but the boys were happy to get candy…period.

Cappadocia


                           

Cappadocia, Turkey

Istanbul was possibly our favorite city but we are moving on.  The van picked us up as scheduled at 9:30am for our flight from Istanbul to Cappadocia.  I think we mentioned before that Calvin had downloaded as many travel videos as he could find of the areas where we hoped to travel prior to leaving Vancouver.  The first time I saw Cappadocia was a few nights ago while watching an old Pilot Guide (Globetrekker) episode.  To say the least, we were VERY excited.

Cappadocia is a an area in Central Turkey and it is best known for its unique moon like landscape, underground cities like Kaymakli and Derinkuyu (which we visited), cave churches and houses carved in the rocks.  The most recognizable, unique geological features are the Fairy Chimneys.  The large, cone like formations were created over time by erosion of the relatively soft volcanic ash around them. 

The eruptions of three volcanos over two million years ago deposited a soft tuff layer 150m thick in the valleys we are visiting. Years of rain and wind have reduced the tuff to these bizarre shapes that look like large mushrooms or like Flinstones’ Bedrock. Past cultures have dug into them to create dwellings, castles and hiding places – especially the early Christians.  There is such an otherworldly appearance to this landscape that parts of Star Wars and Planet of the Apes were filmed here.  

We landed in Kayseri and were met by our rental car company and unbelievably, our GPS worked but have you ever been asked by your GPS if you were OK with driving on dirt roads?   There’s nothing more exhilarating than starting your driving adventure with a gas constraint.  The dashboard read 10kms to empty and we were told that there was a shell station 4kms away.  Gas in Turkey is VERY expensive.  I’m not sure what a litre costs in Vangroovy these days but it’s over $3 in Turkey so the car comes empty.  We loaded our backpacks in the trunk and started our 1 hour drive to our cave. Yes, we rented a cave in Goreme….and we found the gas station.

We didn’t rent just any cave; we rented a luxury cave house……which basically means it has inside plumbing.  It had all the original character but included all modern conveniences. Most families in Goreme still live in caves passed down over many generations and we wanted to live as much as we could like the locals.  Upon arrival, we were given a tour of our cave and picked our bedrooms and headed out to explore.

Noah’s room used to be the stable and our room was where they made the wine...how perfect. We grabbed some groceries and were back for a homemade dinner.  The kitchen and family lounge were on the second floor and the roof top terrace had an incredible view of Goreme. Our first morning up there Calvin and I met the neighbours who are from Seattle-Bellingham. They come all the way to Turkey every year for 3 months...after the crowds leave.

The following day we planned to go to Rose Valley for some exploring.   The stone in Rose Valley is the color of red roses and it’s beautiful at sunrise and sunset.  I don’t think we made it there as we found a mountain with caves and windows everywhere.  We pulled the car over and the boys were at the base of the mountain before the doors were locked.  We started exploring.  We scaled the side of the mountain to 20 meters and belly crawled through a few openings to get to rooms in the depths of these caves. 

You can still see some of the frescos and the various notches and areas dug out by the founders for storage of food, water and sleeping quarters.  Thanks to our neighbor Darryl for his flashlight recommendation.  It was a godsend while tunneling and identifying frescos on ceilings 10 meters above.  The boys each had their headlights on as it was pitch black in many areas. I was way out of my comfort zone but I had to keep up so I let them go first and I quickly followed behind them.

The Smith Family that we met in Istanbul also travelled to Cappadocia and we made plans to meet them for dinner. We met in a small restaurant and the kids acted like old friends. We took off our shoes, sat down on couches and ate in the traditional style. I didn’t find the meal very good but with the fire going and the live music, it didn’t seem to matter. The two families compared notes on experiences and where we would be travelling next and decided to meet up again once we moved to the western coast next. 

Our cave came with a game board and the boys have been asking us to teach them backgammon.  Calvin sat with Noah and Aidan and within an hour Noah had got the best of his dad.  They now play a game when they can and I can tell that Calvin is not the best loser nor is Noah the best winner but they are having a blast and the game is played on almost every corner, veranda, restaurant and tea shop in Turkey. There was also a Monopoly game that we all played one afternoon and finished 4 hours later with Calvin the big winner and Aidan a close 2^nd.

We got up early and started our one hour drive to Derinkuyu, the underground city.  You really have to get to these locations prior to the hordes of tourists that start to invade the sites at approximately 10:00am. We arrived at 9:00am and negotiated a good rate with a local tour guide to take us down into the depths of this ancient city.  The Christians, in fear of their lives, dug eight stories underground and spent months hiding from their attackers.  At one time up to 20,000 people lived in this underground city. 

We were able to visit eight floors of meeting rooms, homes including bedrooms and living rooms, storage areas, stables, schools, wineries, tunnels and passageways.   The guide’s English was as good as most but his humour needed some polish.  At the first wine making area, he asked me “do you want some wine?, too bad, all gone!” and laughed at himself.  He repeated that joke at least three more times  and the boys said it was at that point that he received the infamous ‘Deanna stare’. 

The construction of this world is remarkable.  Ventilation shafts provided fresh air throughout the city and a tunnel connected Derinkuyu to Kaymakli over 10 kms away.  It was a very unique experience and not one you’re likely to have anywhere else.  Some of the tunnels are VERY tight and we were on all fours a couple of times.  If you have an ounce of claustrophobia, this is not the place for you.  Calvin pretty much spent his time crouched over but had no problems navigating the tight spaces.  

 It really feels like you are in parts of Indiana Jones when you are down there.  There are a few doors that connect important areas of the maze that can be blocked by a one ton stone wheel that required eight men to roll into place.  The tour guide left us after 45 minutes and we explored for another 45 minutes prior to returning to the sun….and it did burn our eyes, I can’t imagine staying months underground – NOT pleasant.

After Derinkuyu, we decided to make the trek over to Selime Rock Monastery.  We input the point of interest on the GPS and followed as instructed.  At one point, we were in the middle of nowhere – literally, the middle of nowhere.  We had turned on to the dirt road as instructed and after 10 minutes, we started to wonder.  We could not see a thing in any direction until we saw a shadow crest the hill in front of us.   We made bets on what it might be - Aidan guessed a shepherd with his flock, Noah suggested it might be a horse but as he approached, we could tell it was an old man riding his diminutive donkey to town for rice.  

We know he was going for rice because two hours later, while driving home, we saw the same man and his donkey carrying two large bags of rice.  

As we continued our drive, we saw many women harvesting potatoes in the fields. We finally got the courage to pull over and take some pictures and the women were very welcoming and friendly. 

We spent hours climbing through the tunnels and churches of Selime Monastery and it was the first time we had to pay to explore but at $2 each, it seemed more than reasonable.  We ran into 3 people the entire time we were there.  The drive is well worth the effort as it is much more exhilarating to be wandering through these places by yourself rather than with 10 busloads of tourists.

Hot air ballooning is something that should be done at least once in your life time. We decided that our initiation was going to be in Cappadocia. Cappadocia is a great place to do this for couple of reasons: 1) Great unique view of the rock formations, valleys and hills, and; 2) there are literally at least 30 to 60 other balloons in the air which makes the experience that much better. 

 Apparently the balloon pilots (Auzzies, Brits, Americans, locals, etc) left their day jobs to make the trek to Cappadocia as they consider it to be the best ballooning spot in the world.  One of the pilots described balloon piloting like surfers – everyone wants to go to where the waves are best and for ballooning, it’s Cappadocia.   

For those not familiar with the hot air balloon process, it begins very early in the morning before dawn.  It was a crisp 3 degrees that morning.  Calvin was wearing every piece of clothing he brought with him for the trip.  We found toques and gloves for the boys the night before and I was wearing my scarf that Karen made for me (love it).  We were picked up at the cave and escorted to their offices for breakfast which was nothing to write home about (although I am writing home about it).   

We were then shuttled to the launch area and put in the basket (about the size of an SUV). There were about 16 of us in there and the view was great regardless of where you stood.

Our pilot, Ali, with Urgup balloons was the best.  He is an entertaining daredevil. He would get really close to rock formations, hills, trees and other balloons and then let out a few words of concern and at the last minute, pull up and away.  At one point he reached over the edge of the basket and grabbed some leaves from a 50 foot tree on the valley floor below.  But there was no point during the ride that I felt I was in danger.  


"Every where I go, I see something that reminds me of her", Calvin

 

I was a little nervous before we lifted off but it was so incredibly smooth that within seconds I was totally comfortable, and it really felt like we were on a cloud.   Ali spun our balloon around so everybody could get great views and pics of the landscape including an incredible sun rise.  When we soared through the valleys, the boys could do shadow puppets off of the rocks of the valley walls.  There were a few larger than life rabbits and alligators shadows and a few shapes I have never seen before. 

We were in the air for over an hour and we climbed to approximately 1,000 meters at one point to see the dormant volcano 70 miles away and the one primarily responsible for creating this fascinating landscape.  Ali then delivered a 10 score, from us judges by landing the balloon directly on the flatbed truck waiting for us in a field.  He poured us champagne and the boys got some cherry juice afterwards and he gave us certificates. They dropped us off at our cave afterwards and we unanimously agreed it was one of the best experiences of our life let alone this trip…all before 9am! 

We were hoping to find a place to take some pottery lessons while we were in Cappadocia.  The Cappadocia area is world renown as a leader in Turkish ceramic art for being the creator of a colored glaze technique using Sapphire Blue, Golden Yellow and Turkish Red.  We found a place online that is considered one of the best locally but no address was provided – just the town name – Avanos.   

So, off we went to find this Ceramic production company and after driving around for 20 minutes we were about to give up when in the middle of our U-turn, there it was!  Firca has been making pottery in their family caves for over 250 years using a 5000 year old tradition.  When we arrived we were lead into their cave workshop.  Ali Kasap’s is part of the original family that created this facility and is very knowledgeable and low key.   They are very proud of their artists and finished products and wanted to show us around as if we were family visiting from out of town.  

He asked his cousin, a master craftsman to join us and to give the boys a chance to make a clay pot or bowl on the pottery wheel.  We toured the facility and saw where the artists hand painted the outlines on each of the pieces they produced.   Calvin and I were served Turkish Tea and Apple Tea as we watched the artisans at work.  We didn’t buy anything as we are trying to reduce our cargo load but it was a great afternoon and we sort of regret not getting a plate or two while we were there.  

We thought we had saved the best for last when we woke early on our last day to go to the Open Air Museum in Goreme.  We knew it was the busiest location in Cappadocia as we saw the dozens of tour buses parked in the lot each day as we drove by.  We were confident at 8:00am we would be the only group there and we were not entirely disappointed as there was only one bus in the driveway when we arrived.  

We started our hike that for the first time was well mapped with plenty of signs to herd the tourists in the planned directions.  We cruised through the first few churches that were very impressive but I think we are now spoiled from the incredible sights discovered early in the week.  There was one particular church, the Dark Church that was truly mind blowing.  Its frescos dating back to the 1100s were in amazing condition. 

The eyes of all the paintings within reach were removed but paintings on the ceiling were fully intact and quite impressive especially when you consider their age.  We spent an hour hiking around the Museum and as the tour buses began to arrive, we made our way to the car to get some breakfast.

We leave this bizarre yet beautiful place via airplane tomorrow morning to the Turkish Riviera (Kalkan) on the Mediterranean Sea.  We have booked 10-12 days there to recharge our batteries and get caught up on our school work.  We are all looking forward to the high temperatures but not so much to the school work