Bye for now, Antalya

Judy. Lest you think we did nothing in Antalya the last few days, let me assure you that is not the case. 

About ten days before our departure, Françoise and Ali contacted us to say they were having a goodbye dinner for Alpako, who was flying to Chile for a few months, and they’d like us to join them. We met at Alpako’s favorite restaurant and chatted about his plans—or lack of them. He had joined Servas, and had contacted Joel, a Servas host we met in Santiago. We waved him goodbye, and were pleased a couple of days later when Françoise texted that the two of them were having lunch. Always good when friends meet friends. 

We got a text soon after from Zehra, the other Servas host we had contacted in Antalya. She had returned from a winter in her home in the mountains, and wanted us to come for an early dinner. She not only met our bus and walked us to her apartment, but had made a delicious dinner of bulgur salad, beets, pickles, bread, and tea, packed it in bags and took us to the park across the street where we settled on a picnic table by the sea. Afterwards, she packed up the leftovers for us and walked us to the bus stop to make sure we’d catch the right bus home. 

Picnic with Zerah by the sea

Two days later, we met Zehra again and she took me to a hammam for a real scrubdown. It wasn’t one of those fancy touristy ones, but, as Ted put it, up a dark alley—a place where no one spoke English. For about $10, I sat in a heated room and poured fresh water over myself, then lay on a marble slab while a woman soaped me up and scrubbed me with a loofah for almost an hour. I had no idea I had that much dead skin! Feeling like a pink new baby, I wrapped in a towel and sat in the lobby room with a glass of tea till we were ready to meet Ted, who was sipping a beer in a seaside café. 

We had asked Zehra for her help in finding some of the gifts we were looking to take home. She took us to a “Real shop. Good shop. Not touristy!” where I found the quality I was looking for at a reasonable price—and I didn’t have to haggle. Afterwards we stopped at an outdoor restaurant where we got an excellent fish sandwich and salad for about $3 each. Sadly, for Zehra, the price was high, although we were more than happy to buy her dinner. 

Last Sunday was our forty-fifth wedding anniversary, and we asked our Airbnb host, Ismail, where we could go for a special dinner. He ran his fingers through his hair, suggested his favorite restaurant, then said, “My wife and I will take you out for your anniversary!” 

Anniversary dinner with Nilgün and Ismail

That night Ismail and his wife Nilgün picked us up and drove us to a seaside seafood restaurant nearby. On our table were rose petals and fancy red napkins. We let Ismail order, and–oh, what a feast! We had a fine Turkish wine (we’ve been discovering how tasty Turkish wines are), mezes (Turkish tapas), superb grilled sea bass, and then, to the accompaniment of Whitney Houston’s version of “I Will Always Love You,” the waiter brought a cake with sparklers and candles. Of course we had to dance for a couple of minutes, and the whole restaurant applauded. It was cheesy and wonderful and an evening we won’t forget. I don’t know too many Airbnb hosts who do that! 

Remains of the cake!

You remember it was our friend Ben had suggested we come to Antalya, and had also given us the name of Aysegül, a tour guide and friend of his. Since she was expecting a baby any day, she recommended Omer and Kerem, the guides we used for Perge and Ephesus. Once her son was born, and had a few weeks on him, she invited us over, so we took a cake and had coffee with her in her home on the other side of town. She has named her son Atlas, which is super cool, although he’s so tiny now, you wonder if he’ll grow into it! She tells this little mite, “You may someday hold up the world, but remember I carried you. So I’m the strong one!” 

Aysegül and the mighty (or "mitey" Atlas)

On our last day, we went, as usual, to our firin (bakery) for our morning breads. I don’t even know their names, but we called the lovely owner our Turkish school, because even though her English is terrific, she always let us practice our Turkish. (Ok, she won my heart when she told Ted, “She’s good!”) When I said goodbye, she hugged me and said, “I’ll see you again," and I replied “Görüsürüz,” which means the same. 

Our wonderful bakers and Turkish teachers

Strangely enough, we seem to have met more Turkish citizens than we met Spanish citizens in Málaga. I suppose much has to do with Servas, and with St. George’s, where we found an English-speaking community of expats. I have no quarrel with either. And, dangit, now I have another place I want to come back to.

Turkish food

Ted. Judy and I do not know many people who have visited Turkey. Most of the folks who have been here have come more than once. When we ask what they like about Turkey, the most common response is “The food!” Frankly, the only Turkish food I ever remember eating is a doner kebab in Germany so this was a new experience. 

We have found that Turkish people love fresh fruits and vegetables and a variety of salads, especially featuring cucumbers and tomatoes. Our vegetarian buddy, Ben loved that. Dinner is usually preceded by a variety of mezes (tapas) which can be cold or hot. They will eat anything cooked on a grill. We've had wonderful seafood including the most tender calamari I've ever eaten. The Turks enjoy many forms of bread (leavened and unleavened). I do, too, so the first word I learned was ekmek.

 And oh, do they love sweets. 

Sadly for the locals, the local currency has plummeted in recent months. The upside for us is that we could typically afford to eat lunch (our main meal of the day) in a restaurant. This way, we have explored a variety of dishes and it usually costs around $10 for two. That’s with tax and tip but excluding alcohol. Our limited knowledge of Turkish led us to visit lots of restaurants with photographs on the menus. Still, that didn’t stop us from experimenting (the grilled lamb kidneys were great!). Here are snapshots of a few of the dishes. You can find recipes on the internet if interested.

Adana kebap (Spiced meat grilled on a sword)

Börek (stuffed phyllo pastry)

Gösleme (stuffed crepes) with tea

Kulakli Corba (dumpling soup with extra spices)

Lamb kebap

Tahinli piyaz (cold bean soup with tahini)

Yeast rolls for breakfast

Our neighborhood baklavaleri (baklava shop)

For me, two lasting memories of this fascinating country will be the kindness of the people and the great food. 

Ephesus

Ted. Ephesus has been near the top of Judy’s “Must See” list for as long as I can remember. 

We chose to fly from Antalya to Izmir and arranged for a private tour of nearby Ephesus. Our guide, Kerem picked us up at our hotel, took us to Ephesus and then gave us a tour of his beautiful city of Izmir. 

There is no longer a city of Ephesus. It is actually a collection of ruins on the outskirts of the small town of Selçuk, which has it’s own fascinating story. 

According to legend, the acropolis (hill town) was once occupied by the Amazons. They worshipped a goddess of fertility and hunting. When a group of Greek colonists arrived and created the first town of Ephesus (there have been four), they adopted the goddess, naming her Artemis and constructed a temple that came to be known as one of the “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.” 

All that's left of the Temple of Artemis

More legends abound. The Apostle John allegedly settled here with Christ’s mother Mary after the crucifixion of Jesus. We visited the house where Mary is supposed to have lived out her life. The tomb of St John is thought to be under the basilica in Selçuk. As an aside, Mary is revered in Islam and, I am told, is mentioned more in the Koran than in the Bible. I was also excited to learn that one of my heroes, Ibn Battuta, visited Selçuk in the 14th century. 

The ruined city of Ephesus is the greatest ruined city I’ve ever visited (and that includes Pompeii). I won’t say a lot about it, though, because the internet has tons of information. I’ll include a few snapshots before making one more point. 

Kerem & Judy in the theatre (of course)

For me, the most memorable part of the day was spent exploring an enclosed excavation site called “the Terrace Houses.” For an extra fee, one is allowed to enter a vast enclosed section and see the ongoing work being done to restore a collection of houses created during the Roman period. 

An aerial view of the covering

I am glad Judy pushed us to make this trip and believe it will remain one of the highlights of our travels over the last five years.

Library

Antalya

Judy. Coming to Turkey was an experiment. Although I’d thought about it, Ted didn’t want to support Erdogan in any way, so it wasn’t really on our radar. Then we needed a non-Schengen country for our last month away from the US, and England was still too cold for us. Our friend Ben absolutely loved Turkey, even after being trapped in Antalya for three months during the pandemic. So we decided to give it a try—for six weeks, no less. 

We’re just over halfway through our stay in Antalya. We’re really enjoying our stay here and what we’re learning about the city and the country. Antalya is just the right kind of warm—as in Málaga, the breeze keeps it from being too hot. We have a lovely terrace, but being on the fifth floor means that the wind is a bit strong for much of a stay out there. We have to laugh—we have a sea view—just the sea-- on either side of a building a few blocks away, and from the far corner of the terrace, we can see the Taurus Mountains. 

We’re not complaining, though. The breeze means clothes on the line dry quickly, we catch the sounds of wandering bands on the street, and see the busloads of medical tourists unload at the dental office across the street. 

Our afternoon walk

We’re actually in a great location. The coastline, made up of cliffs along the bay, is a short ten-minute walk away. Food is so cheap that we eat lunch out every day, and there are plenty of restaurants with a variety of food within a couple of blocks. The grocery store (for breakfast and snack items) is just around the corner. Coffee shops abound, from mega chains like Starbucks and Shakespeare, to mom-and-pop spots, to state-run cafes with a killer view of the sea. There, a Turkish coffee is seventy-five cents, and comes with a cup of water. 

Sadly for the Turkish people, the Turkish lira is not worth much at all, but for us it has made life very inexpensive. Our main meal seldom costs more than $10 (for two people with tax and tip), and I’ve had two excellent Thai massages at $20 each from the spa a block away. The bus stop is a few doors down, and takes us where we want to go for about fifty cents each. We’ve visited Servas friends, walked the beach at the opposite end of town, and explored the Old Town (tourist part of the city, with outstanding views of the water and mountains), thanks to the crowded but efficient bus system. 

The low cost of living is also reflected in the medical sector, so much that this is a medical tourism destination, mostly for Brits, but also Germans, Russians, and Americans. On our first day here, we met three British fellows, aged from thirty to sixty, who came to have dental implants. It’s easy to recognize them—at the bars they drink their beer with a straw until the dental work is finished. This is also a popular destination for hair implants and plastic surgery. There are travel agencies that handle all this, including pickup from the airport, hotel at an all-inclusive resort, travel to the clinic, and even golf! 

We spend our days as we did in Málaga, or anywhere else, doing laundry, washing dishes, reading, taking walks. We did a tour of the ancient city of Perge and flew to Izmir to explore that city and Ephesus. We may do another trip outside the city, but mostly we just live. 

From our back terrace

View from the front of the apartment

Life is definitely different. If a menu has no photos, we pull out Google Translate. In fact, it’s become a daily occurrence! Frankly, we enjoy being a bit over our heads, and choosing to live in a middle-class area rather than a few blocks up the way with Russian and American tourists has definitely made that possible. 

Western Turkey, we’re told, is much more secular than the eastern part. When Attaturk formed the New Turkey, he demanded it be a secular country. Head coverings for women were forbidden in state buildings. When Erdogan was elected (then became dictator), he pushed for an Islamic state. Right now, what we see here and in Izmir, is a healthy mix. Young women in hijabs walk arm in arm with their friends in tight t-shirts, hair blowing free. It’s nothing to see a grandma in scarf, long sleeves and a full-length dress smoking in a café. Wine and beer, though usually not sold in small restaurants, are available, as is hard liquor. 

Discarded cigarette pack

Smoking, though! Wow! I thought there were a lot of smokers in Spain, but here EVERYONE smokes! It’s tricky to find a no smoking area in a restaurant; if they’re there, it’s far in the back. It’s interesting to see people pull out a cigarette pack with photos of cancer devastation, tap out a cigarette, and light up. 

On the other hand, the flowers are absolutely gorgeous. (Maybe they make up for the smoke.) In Málaga we smelled orange blossoms as we walked down the street. Here, there is a profusion of smells—jasmine, honeysuckle, orange blossoms, and roses—ah, the roses! Huge roses in all colors, along with yellow and red poppies and wildflowers in all hues. Some are along the coast, others in the yards of the apartment buildings. Our own little front yard sports no grass, but five rose bushes scattered in the otherwise bare ground. 

Street cats and dogs rule the city. People leave out food and water for them, but I don’t know how many are neutered. A cat I saw today had a notched ear, and I’ve seen dogs with tags in their ears. I hope that means they’re fixed. Of course that doesn’t solve the problem of their poop everywhere. 

This street cat thinks people food might be better

Street pup finds it cooler in a shop

Everyone we’ve met warns us about the Turkish drivers. Yeah. No question. Don’t play games. 

A few blocks away is a mosque, and five times a day we hear the call to prayer. It’s distant and lovely, and reminds us both to take a minute to pray for our friends. It’s very comforting. 

There’s a proliferation of national flags. The only place I’ve seen this many flags is possibly in the US, or maybe France. Massive flags hang between apartment buildings, down the sides of them, from balconies, and all along the coast and streets. Very proud of their country, these Turks. 

Over a busy street

Some flags have Attaturk's image. Others, Erdogan.

The apartment building next door

Shopping street in Izmir

And they should be. They have a rich history, delicious food, and incredible scenery. 

Turkey, memnum oldum. Nice to meet you.

Türkçke bilmiyorum

Judy. In the past few days, we’ve gotten word that three of our dearest friends have passed. Hearing about their deaths has been difficult enough, but being on the other side of the world and unable to hug their family members, or attend their memorial services has left a huge hole in our lives. 

Even leaving behind the friends we’ve made in Spain has tugged at our heartstrings, and while we hope to see them in something over a year, the loss of our dear ones in Georgia has reminded us that we are promised nothing. Fr. Louis, Gloria, Naz, John, Will, Rosella, Anthony, and others at St. George’s Málaga have kindly pulled us into their circle and allowed us to take part in the day to day works of the church. Colin and Harvey, who pop into St. George’s every few months have taught us and delighted us and asked us to visit them in England before we head back to Málaga. (They’ve got a deal!) 

 

Fr. Louis at St. George's Málaga

Gloria will welcome you with open arms

Colin and Harvey fill you with joy!

So, what to do? 

There’s not really a church here in Antalya for us to join, and we don’t speak Turkish. However, these people are so darned friendly that we feel we’ve settled in, despite the fact that Tükçe bilmiyorum—“I don’t speak Turkish.” Ted and I have worked on learning a few words—hello, how are you, please, thank you—you know, the ones that let people know you’re interested in them. And boy, does that make a difference! A günyadin (good morning) to our downstairs neighbor meant we got a paragraph we can’t understand and a smile we can. Merhaba to a coffee vendor and then ordering in Turkish ended with a phone conversation with her son who is fluent in English, used to live in the US, and has offered to help in any way we need it (It also means a photo op with his mom, Handan plus two cups of water and tea that she insisted on giving us). The owner of the bakery lets us struggle, and speaks in English when we wind up totally lost.

Handan (L) and fellow coffee vendor

 

On our flight to Izmir (more later) we sat next to a SunExpress pilot, Captain Ertan, who had done some military training years ago in—wait for it—Alabama! We

had a delightful conversation.

Izmir airport with Ertan

 

Our tour guides, Omer here in Antalya, and Kerem in Izmir and Ephesus, have filled us in on more than history and shopping, offering to send us recipes, or giving us their numbers should we have questions. 

Omer expands on the ruins of Perga

With Kerem at the Theatre of Ephesus

Even the guys at the rug workshop in Ephesus, once they got over the fact that we have no house and couldn’t buy a rug, just enjoyed chatting, and bought us lunch. (By the way, the rugs are stunning—if you’re ever interested, let me know.) 

Feridun at Nakkus carpets and his stunning wares

Feridun, Kerem, and the guys who bought us lunch

We’ve had Servas visits with a family on the other side of town. Françoise was a Belgian filmmaker, Ali, a Turkish photographer; they met in New York, took off to photograph Antarctica, traveled all over the world with their son, then settled down here and built a lovely home in an orange grove. What a great place to spend an afternoon and have coffee and homemade chocolate cake topped with homemade orange marmalade. A few days later we were invited for a delicious dinner and more conversation.

Ali, Françoise, and their son Alpako, who is leaving for adventures in Chile

And there are more opportunities. 

These folks will never take the place of the dear friends we left in Spain, and certainly not lifelong friends, but the warmth of the Turkish people we’ve met have certainly made us feel welcome. 

Perge

Ted. Much of the world’s history lies buried in the soil of Anatolia. There are dozens of famous archaeological sites scattered around Turkey and Judy and I wanted to explore a few. A good place to start was just 10 miles from our apartment. Our buddy, Omer, agreed to drive us there and show us around the large ruined city of Perge. He later took us to the Antalya Archaeology Museum where all of the statues now reside.

Main Street

Stadium exterior

Stadium interior

Originally known as Perga, this place has been part of recorded history for at least 3,000 years; back when this was area was part of the Hittite Empire. Speaking of which, the English word “wine” traces it’s roots back to the Hittite word “wiyana.” The locals have been making wine around here since God was a boy and I can attest that it is still pretty tasty. 

Greeks and Persians passed through Perga on a regular basis. One of the Greeks was a young lad named Alexander the Great. Apparently, he lined all of his troops up outside the city gates and the city fathers opened up without a fight. 

Hellenic gates

Alexander the Great

As usual, the Romans eventually showed up and expanded Perga greatly. A good guess is that the population reached 70,000 at one point. For a while it was run by a woman named Plancia Magna. 

In the 1st century AD, a boy from Tarsus – just down the coast – came through here. St Paul’s visits to Perga are recorded in the Bible. 

Plancia Magna

Bathes

Calcium carbonate build up in pipe

The high point for Judy, however, had to be the 12,000 seat theatre.