Turkey Art

Since I am here studying art I guess I could post some. These are some of the watercolor paintings I did in/inspired by my Trip to Turkey. Oil Paintings to come soon...if I ever finish them.

Athens Classic Marathon

Having unforgettable experiences on a weekly basis has now become my norm. Last Sunday, Halloween, was the 2500 anniversary of the Athens classic marathon. The 42km marathon course takes the same route the Ancient Greek messenger, Phiedippides, ran in 960BCE from Marathon to Athens to bring word of victory over the Persians. The marathon finishes with a lap in the Olympic Stadium where the Olympic games were born.

Although I do love to run, a full marathon was too daunting. The 10km road race seemed like the race for me. Dressed in my bright orange spandex D&G boxer briefs and matching orange shirt from the Turkish bazaar, I line up for the start bursting with anticipation. We took the first 5km at a good steady pace, then switched being leaders and puling each other through the herd for the second half. Finally, for the last lap in the Olympic stadium we gave it all we had left. Adorned with my medal, I walked away from the stadium of champions pleased with my time of 57min 49sec.

Sulcuk, Turkey (part III)

Our last day in Turkey we went to the huge Saturday bazaar. There was pile after pile of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and spices lining the streets. Further down were stands with heaps of clothing, scarves, and other textiles. The sights and sounds, the hustle and bustle, the haggling, the vibrancy of the colors, all combining to form a rhythmic harmony, this is Turkey. To say our farewell to Turkey we had a group dinner at the Old House Garden restaurant. I wanted to keep eating stuffed eggplant boats, not get a real boat and go back to Greece.

Denizli Province, Turkey

After over 3 hours on a bus in a week already full of traveling, my expectations for Pamukkale were pretty high. I was not disappointed. Pamukkale, meaning “cotton castles” in Turkish, looks like it is covered in snow from a distance. The “cotton” was formed from calcium minerals left by flowing water. Hot springs and travertines are scattered all along the cliff and have some of the smoothest mud I have ever felt. If I didn’t have my camera I would have smothered myself in it, I had to be satisfied with squishing it between my toes. Yet another surreal experience in Turkey.

*embrace the Chaco tan*

Selcuk, Turkey (part II)

Back in Selcuk Thursday we went to Ephesus. Even more amazing than the huge stone theaters or the towering entrance to the library is the fact that what we saw was not even 15 percent of the ancient city. The rest of the city lies under the hills next to the excavated section, archeologists still haven’t figures out how to uncover the rest of the city without destroying it or what they have already uncovered. For lunch we all went to a place they called the tree house. We climbed up into an elevated pavilion where we all sat on pillows and ate Turkish pancakes. The pancakes are more like tortillas with savory or sweet filling.
After lunch Kate and me went to Hamami, a Turkish bath. After changing into towels that felt more like small tablecloths we went into a hot marble room. An old man pointed to a bench for us to sit, dumped buckets of water on our heads, then pointed for us to lie down on the raised marble in the middle of the room. There were three guys there about our age chatting like they were at a café or bar. After soaking up the heat of the stones I was exfoliated with a rough lufah, I could feel the grime washing away. Then on another marble slab with another old Turkish man I was soaped up and rubbed down again. After a quick rinse in a cold shower I went upstairs for the oil massage. The massage was deep and felt good after a busy week. None of it was awkward or uncomfortable, but it is weird to say that the last time anyone saw that naked was an old Turkish man.

Cappadoccia, Turkey

A 1 hour bus from Selcuk to Izmir, 1 ½ hour flight to Kayseri, followed by another 1 hour bus to Cappadoccia seemed like nothing given the drastic change in the landscape. As our plane landed the buildings looked like colorful scattered legos, then as we entered Cappadoccia the rolling hills dramatically changed into stalagmites resembling elf houses. Our hotel room was in a cave with the selves carved right into the wall, and a roof top patio where we were served breakfast as we watched the hot air balloons take off.

To celebrate our first night, Kate, Patricia, and I found a cozy corner in Goreme Restaurant. We took off our shoes and settled onto out pillows next to the old man that was singing and playing his oud and violin. The atmosphere would have been enough, but the food made the night even better. Our wine came out in a clay pot, the bread was steaming, and the hummus was the best I have had since going abroad. We sat for hours eating, drinking, and watching the old man play and sing.

Tuesday we explored sites around Cappadoccia. Our first stop was the underground city where people use to take refuge during wars. The city went down eight stories and had everything from stables, to living quarters, to meeting halls, to churches. The farther down we went the narrower and shorter the hallways got, I almost had to crawl to get through. We stopped to taste the wine of Cappadoccia at a small wine tasting room, Kocabag wine from 2008. Then we visited a ceramics workshop where we watched a master spin a pot in less than 5 minutes. The showroom was overwhelmingly colorful, with each piece differently patterned various colors. Our last stop was the Goreme open-air museum. We walked between various stalagmites that were mostly churches with frescos inside that had been partially destroyed by the iconoclasts. There were also kitchens black from smoke, and dining halls with the table and benches carved right from the rock of the cave.

That night we went to “Turkish night.” I was excited to see whirling dervishes and other traditional dances, but got a tourist show instead. The dinner was bland and some of the costumes looked like Halloween costumes from a department store. We still had a fun night, but next time I’m in Turkey I want to see a real ceremony.

For our last morning in Cappadoccia we drove out to Rainbow Ranch to go horseback riding. Seemed like the thing to do considering Cappadoccia means, “land of beautiful horses.” The horses were beautiful, and very spunky. Some of the horses seemed on the verge of being crazy, and had a lot of personality. I rode an Appalachian, who at one point decided he didn’t want to wait for the rest of the group and would rather roll in the dirt. At first I thought he was going lame, I managed to get off as her fell over with only a few scratches only to realize that her was gleefully rolling in the dirt. Jerk. Brushed off and hopped back on for the rest of the ride. They took us through a valley under pigeon houses that people had carved into the rocks and through a small village with cobblestone streets.

Selcuk, Turkey (part I)

Breathtaking. The closest I can come to explaining the sunset and my feelings on the ferry to Turkey. Behind the ferry the sun forced rays through the clouds and a double rainbow hovered above the coast of Turkey.

Hotel Canberra welcomed Kate, Patricia, and me with an incredible pink room. Tat restaurant, run by a Turkish family hosted our group dinner. All of the people that waited on us were obviously related, and just as equally welcoming. Once the food started coming it didn’t stop. Baba ganoush, hummus, spicy tomato dip, and stewed eggplant in tomato is where I stopped but the servers kept it coming with stuffed mushrooms, mushroom puffs, fried cheese rolls, and skewered meats. The best part was the never-ending plate of steaming flatbread you could see them rolling out and baking in the restaurant.

Sunday morning we headed into the hills to Sirince, and old Greek village. Colorful shops selling with textiles, scarves, and jewelry, old women knitting next to their hand made crafts, and cozy rooms with fireplaces serving as tasting rooms for fruit wines lined the narrow cobblestone paths that seemed to get even narrower and disappear the further up the hill you got. Wanting to

see more of the countryside than taking a van back to the hotel would allow, some of us decided to walk the 9 miles back. On the way we saw a random crab crossing the road, and a small turtle stuck in a plastic bag. Odd. Other than the out of place wildlife we passed fruit orchards and rural Turkey. The walk took about 2 hours, and was worth ever second.

That night in need of some relaxation we hung out at Musa’s drinking apple tea and playing with his costumes before heading out to eat. Turkish pizza and an Efes (Turkish beer), enough said.