Hello ‘people I miss all round the world’!
Well I’ve made it back from the land of apple tea and carpets and yes before you start wondering I did give in to a very convincing carpet man and bought a small one…but it had LADYBIRD symbols on it which are good luck so I HAD to!!
Turkey was amazing.
The ragged mountains, aquamarine beaches, midnight blue oceans and ancient ruins dotting the country made it visually spectacular.
The friendly people, laidback atmosphere and hot weather made it very holidayish and the dodgey food, horrible bathrooms and flea-ridden cats and dogs made it an experience!
I initially thought a month to do one country would be too long but we only did a third of Turkey in that time and that was both staying and site-seeing in 11 places with Rn’R days in between. We started in Istanbul and did a circuit down the coast and back through the Cappadocia region to Istanbul to fly to London.
The highlights of my trip would probably be the mudbaths in Dalyan, the Ephesus ruins dating back to 300BC and a hot air balloon trip over the amazing valley of Goreme. Goreme looks like a movie set with cone shaped rock formations called ‘fairy chimneys’ that people have turned into cave houses and restaurants. The valleys are pink and white and from the air at sunrise were just breathtaking.
We also did a boat trip from Fethiye to Olympos for 4 days, sunbathing, reading and swimming along the mediterranean coast. DEVINE!!!! So now Ive got this great tan that is covered up in a fast-approaching London autumn!
Gallipolli and Anzac Cove were also a highlight, reminding me of the very significant role New Zealanders and Australians played in WWI. Did a full day tour of the area with a very informative guide who spoke like he’d been on site at the time!
A wonderful trip and a country I would fully recommend!
NYWAY! Back to reality now, school goes back in a few days so Ill start supply teaching again and saving for my next trips, Paris in November and the USA for Christmas.