The diversity of Turkey is an absolute inspiration. Leaving the vastness and eeriness of the rock formations of Cappadocia, we retraced our road inward to turn north to the Black Sea region for our next accommodation in Safranbolu.

Instead of mountains, the road took us through incredibly flat areas, where our view of the horizon seemed endless with no interruptions at all. This was such a contrast to our last few days of travelling through some amazing mountain ranges.

This central part of Turkey has a huge salt lake, Tuz Gölü. There was a small amount of water, but this lake is similar in salt content to that of the Dead Sea, and contributes to a growing salt industry in Turkey. In summer, as this lake dries up, it reveals a 30cm thickness of dried salt. This was fascinating to drive past, and even more fascinating to walk on.

We drove on to Ankara, the capital of Turkey, and found a huge well-planned modern city with many amenities. One of the points of pride for Ankara is that this is the place where Mustafa Ataturk is honoured by a huge complex acting as a memorial for this war hero and first president of the Republic of Turkey. This man was formational to modern Turkey as he led great reforms during the 1920s, saw the downfall of the Ottoman empire and the reigning caliphs, and brought Turkey to its independence in 1924. Ataturk’s mausoleum is housed in an amazing building, under which is a significant and moving war museum, with a huge diorama of the Canakkale campaign, which we know as Gallipoli. Mustafa Ataturk certainly gained our respect as we read about his life and achievements. Our understanding of Turkey and its nationalism reached a new level as we took all this in. It was very impressive, as it appears this man was. We found the war museum very powerful, especially seeing the 1915 situation from a Turkish perspective. We arrived as the changing of the guards was happening – another quite impressive formality.

We continued on to yet another new insight into Turkey as we reached the saffron and turkish delight haven of Safranbolu. This little town is in the Black Sea region of Turkey towards the north, although we were still a distance from the actual Black Sea ourselves. This old village is an historic beauty as its building were built in a distinctive ottoman style from the18th century. Not much of Turkey’s architectural history uses wood for its structures, but this town certainly has its own flavour. We stayed in an old Ottoman mansion, made of timber, which has now been converted into a hotel. It was very quaint, and we walked up cobblestone lanes to reach it. We had ample time to wander around and simply take in the atmosphere and engage with the locals. We kept walking these lanes and found the local blacksmiths, all having their shops in the same locale. One specialised in axes, another in door & window latches and another in pots. Fascinating to see.

We had a lovely evening meal in an outdoor garden setting at our hotel, and again, felt thoroughly spoiled.

The next morning we journeyed back to Istanbul and had the afternoon at the Grand Bazaar, a huge covered building with about 4,000 shops and many lanes and alleys to explore. We felt underwhelmed by the Grand Bazaar in many ways. We wanted it to be more authentic, but found it to be much more modern in its commercialisation. Our general assessment was that we enjoyed the Spice Bazaar much more. Perhaps if we were more inclined to ‘spend’ we may have gotten into the mood, but we chose to leave after about 45 minutes and found a nice cafe for a latte.

We finished our tour with a beautiful night out at the restaurants at the Istanbul Fish Market. Chris described it as Lygon Street on steroids! It was a terrific night, with singing minstrels serenading, and a perfect way to end our marvellous tour of Turkey.

Early rise this morning for the highlight of sunrise hot air ballooning over the ancient and amazing landscape of Göreme. Seeing the so-called fairy castle chimneys hewn by volcanic activity, rain, rivers and wind over thousands of years was simply awe-inspiring. The weather was perfect, all other conditions excellent, and the peacefulness of floating amid so many other balloons was simply fantastic!

The pilot took us both high and low, rising to 750m and then descending low through the valleys to see the rock caves dug out so many centuries ago. To view the ancient homes of ancient Christians seeking refuge from enemies, the tombs and the storehouses, the pigeon coops carved in the mountains so those tiny messengers from valley to valley could find rest, and the skill of the pilot negotiating the ‘chimneys’ made the morning so very special. There were many times when my heart was singing praises, and my voice was very close. But with 24 people in the basket it may well have been an intrusion! A quiet hum of ‘How Great thou Art’ sufficed.

The descent and landing was a real tribute to Volkan, the pilot. The support team meeting us at landing, had communicated their location and Volkan, with unspeakable precision landed the 24 person basket on the trailer of the vehicle for its return to base!

We then celebrated at our landing location with champagne, chocolate cake and certificates. We returned to the hotel for a more substantial breakfast before leaving yet again to visit some amazing viewpoints for photographs and then to see one of the many underground cities of this area, where Christians hid from persecution. Intricate tunnels, rooms, chapels, storehouses, ventilation shafts, wineries and kitchens, amazed us all. The tiny part that we saw was only 10% of that particular site, and there are many more scattered throughout this ancient volcanic landscape. We descended 77 metres, but our understanding is that the underground cities were much more expansive. Quite incredible.

Christians continued to live in these parts for the ensuing centuries, and the great Cappadocian Fathers, Basil and the two Gregorys hail from these parts. During our visit to Göreme [now an outdoor museum] we entered the tiny rock church dedicated to St. Basil. It was amazing to consider that we were in the location of the great man who defended good theology, opposed Arianism, and supported the Nicene Creed.

More and more carved out rocks were made into chapels and monasteries, with living quarters and eating quarters. Our minds boggled at the sheer determination and patience it would have taken to build these chambers, to live there, and to provide for yourself and others.

We praise God for his faithfulness in seeing that these early Christians were protected, were encouraged, and that they spread the faith.

Sunday August 31
It was difficult to leave the beautiful town of Fethiye, and the fantastic hotel. Fethiye is near to so many great places to explore and enjoy.

But yet another Turkish treasure awaited us. It was just a short hour’s drive to Saklikent Gorge, a beautiful fresh water narrow gorge which is fed by millions of megalitres of water from huge springs visible from the boardwalk. The springs gush out of the rock and become a freezing cold river. The force of water was similar to Huka Falls in New Zealand, but due to a very different reason. There are two months of the year when tubing down the river is not possible because of the melting winter snows, adding to the spring water. Fortunately that didn’t affect us, and we had a wonderful hour and a half of tubing down the freezing waters.

The story of Saklikent Gorge is an interesting one. It was not publicly discovered until 1949 when a shepherd lost a goat and came upon the gorge on his search. Since that time, it has been open to the public, and for the first 50 years, half the entry fee went to the shepherd, and the other half to the government.

The 4 hour afternoon drive through the Taurus Mountains was spectacular! It is obvious to the naked eye that these mountains have had a volatile history. At various points the strata was not just at angles, but quite often you could see that what was once horizontal is now vertical. Lots of ‘wows’ at various points. The scenery was stunning, but so hard to take good photographs from a bus.

We came to Antalya, a beautiful Mediterranean city, that is now a huge tourist destination. Antalya is the third most visited city in the world, mainly due to Russian and German tourism. We first visited a tremendous waterfall, from a river that originates in the Taurus mountains. The waterfall comes straight off the cliff into the Mediterranean basically in the middle of the city.

Our Antalyan hotel, the Baruk Park, has just finished a one year renovation, and it was certainly very stylish, with amazing decor and superb food. We felt very spoiled, and the view was ‘to die for’.

Monday September 1
We left Antalya for another very long day of driving to get to Cappadocia. Our first stop was at Aspendos where there is a first century theatre in very good condition, and is still used today. There have been some renovations in the last few years. It is so wonderful that a theatre built 2,000 years ago can still be used for performances today and enjoyed by the public.

Driving through the magnificent Taurus Mountains again today was wonderful, but of course, slowed the trip because of the steep and winding roads.

We had a quick stop at a Muslim museum to look at the history of an old Islamic sect called the Whirling Dervishes. This sect was formed through disagreements early in the development of Islam, and the main characteristic is the style of dance which originates in focussing the heart on Allah. The dancer bows their head towards the heart, the right arm points up to receive from God and the left arm is down to share God’s blessing with the world. As the music starts, the dancer goes into a trance and then spins faster and faster, in an anti-clockwise direction.

Our afternoon stop was at a 13 century caravanserai on the Silk Road, where travelling traders had safety and shelter for the night. These caravanserai were about a days camel ride apart [about 30-35 km] and the one we visited was the 2nd biggest in Turkey, and in incredible condition.

We arrived in Urgup, Cappadocia about 7pm and look forward to our two nights in this unique environment.

Friday, August 29
A day of relaxation, swimming, and more Turkish experiences.

We left our hotel to go on a 1½ hr drive followed by a 40 minute waterway cruise to Turtle Beach, where the Aegean meets the Mediterranean.

At the embarkation point for our boat cruise, there were some spectacular carved tombs from around the 4th Century BC. Absolutely amazing, and was a tiny reminder of the grandeur of Petra, albeit a small percentage of the size.

Turtle Beach at Dalyan was a beautiful place and we had a great amount of time to swim in the sea. Very clear waters, gentle waves, a warm day, clear skies. Who could ask for more? We even saw a huge turtle swimming around our boat, who unfortunately didn’t co-operate with the photographers.

We then headed back on the boat to the marina for a wonderful meal of barbecued sea bream, followed by another boat ride in the other direction for a mud bath! Absolutely fantastic! This area has been famous for its hot mud and springs. The sulphur smell certainly reminded us of Rotorua.

Saturday August 30
Another day of beautiful holiday relaxation.

Our first stop was interesting and poignant. We drove to an old abandoned ghost-town of a village which evoked a sense of tragedy and great loss within us. When Turkey became a Republic in 1924 there was a population exchange between the Greeks and the Turks. All Greeks in Turkey were repatriated to Greece and all Turks in Greece were repatriated to Turkey. The plan was that each would be given the others homes in each country. However, it ended up being a painful and difficult process because of the anger in each community brought about by this compulsory policy. Each community had to leave everything and only take a suitcase to their mother country. The anger ended up being vent through destruction of property, so these towns are now ghost town ruins. It seemed such a tragic waste, and the futility of the policy was so sad. The human fallout of such a practice has ongoing consequences to this day. The sad history of the relationship between these two countries results many individual family stories. This particular village, Kakavoy, was first established in the 16th century. We could easily imagine its beauty even though today’s reality was anything but.

We then drove to Oludeniz, and the Blue Lagoon, a magnificent Mediterranean beach. It was a place where relaxation was so easy, and to swim in those waters was such a joy. Even I didn’t want to get out. It was a pebbly beach, and the water was beautifully clear. It became very deep, very close to shore, but the high salt content made floating so easy and fun. No waves at all …. my kind of beach!!

This small bay is surrounded by mountains and as the thermals are so good there are literally hundreds of paragliders taking advantage of the location. When we were in the water [without a camera] there were easily about 40 paragliders above us.

We took the option of being dropped off in the town of Fethiye and walking back to our hotel, just to take in the atmosphere and have a coffee and ice cream along the bay. It’s a very pretty little spot.

Tonight we all opted for a sunset cruise dinner. And why not?? It was a balmy night, with hardly a breeze, great food, great company, and God’s exquisite handiwork to witness. What a marvellous blessing!

Leaving Kusadasi meant a long day of driving to get to Marmaris, through two different mountain ranges. In all about 7 hrs on the road, interspersed with some great stopovers. Firstly we visited a leather factory. Turkey is world famous for its leather products and we were blown away by the quality, fineness and the fashion of the leather clothing. The lamb leather is very light, strong and versatile, and even though it would have travelled well, neither of us succumbed to the temptation!

Another 2½ hr drive and we passed the ancient city of Laodicea. Paul requested that his letter to the Colossians be passed on to the church at Laodicea, and one of the seven letters in Revelation was also addressed to Laodicea.  It was fascinating to drive past this ancient place where no excavations have happened as yet. To think that it was only a few decades ago that other ruins we have seen would have looked similar, we have a new respect for the archaeological world and the work that is done.

We shortly came to the ruins of Hierapolis, built on the hot springs of the area. Another great quality theatre greeted us in all its glory. But not only the ruins attract people to this place. The enormous and quite spectacular limestone formations and cascading pools of Pamukkale bring hundreds of thousands of people here to visit. Millions of years of water flow bringing calcium carbonate have produced this beautiful location. But the hundreds of thousands of people are leaving their mark, and it wouldn’t surprise us if access becomes increasingly limited to allow for some natural rejuvenation to take place. There are lots of places the public is prevented from walking and unfortunately that means that positions for really good photos are limited. The water is diverted from a lot of the cascading pools and is stored. Each month different areas of the pools are used for the public, so every visit would bring different photo opportunities.

One of the most interesting things to realise is that in ancient times, the water from Hierapolis would have flowed down to Laodicea, which is only 15 km away. In the letter to the Laodiceans in Revelation, it says: ‘“ ‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” As the water from the hot springs flowed to Laodicea, it would of course have lost its heat. For this church to be reprimanded in this way, would have resonated with the people in a very real way. Again, being here, and seeing the physical and geographical relationships between these churches, has opened the scriptures to us more and more. Colossae is also not far away, but unfortunately it’s not a stop on this tour. But again, we see why the Colossians and Laodiceans were to share their letters from Paul. What a pity we don’t have the letter to Laodicea!

Colossians 4  ¹² Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.  ¹³ For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. ¹⁴ Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas. ¹⁵ Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. ¹⁶ And when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea.”

^{Revelation 2:1} “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lamp stands. ² “ ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. ³ I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. ⁴ But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. ⁵ Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

Today we saw the place in the road where the lamp stands would have been placed. A larger hole in the middle, and four minor holes forming a square around it. The lamps were placed in the holes and used to mark the way for the pagan festivals of the gods. Amazing to see exactly what this letter was referring to.

Being at Ephesus was something both of us have been looking forward to for months. And it did not disappoint!

Ephesus has a history dating back to 700BC. But of course for the two of us, our interests are mainly in its 1st century history. Ephesus was transferred from Greek to Roman rule by bequest along with the rest of the empire around 133BC. It even has been visited by Marc Antony & Cleopatra while they organised one of their war campaigns. It was great to have some detail pointed out to us that showed the Roman ‘signature’ – the lion’s foot on the stair guards going up the small theatre.

We saw and learnt so much today, but again, to see the remains of this place where we know that the Apostle Paul spent nearly 3 years, and had such influence, was another awesome experience.

Paul disrupted much of the industry and market in Ephesus, which was based around paganism and the worship of the goddess Artemis. He taught about a Messiah who had come among the people, and about the one true God, and about the grace this Saviour Jesus brings. This meant that those people profiting from the market based around idols were losing trade, and so a riot erupted and there were many public meetings to try and solve the issue. And yet, through faith and perseverence, Paul also planted a church, taught them, fellowshipped with them, and made such good friends, that we read in Acts 20 as he was leaving Ephesus … “he knelt down and prayed with them all. And there was much weeping on the part of all; they embraced Paul and kissed him, being sorrowful most of all because of the word he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship.”

Paul preached publicly and privately in Ephesus … we saw the small theatre and the large theatre [incredible!] … likely places where Paul would have preached.

We saw the remains of terraced houses alongside the main colonnade … possible homes where Paul could have shared the gospel of grace with the people of Ephesus.

We saw the road leading to the port where Paul would probably have had his final conversation with the Ephesian elders.

But, the archaeological piece de resistance today was undoubtedly the Library, which was the third largest in the then known world. It’s height, stature, detail and imposing structure was hard to take your eyes off.

It is quite amazing that now Ephesus is about 6km from the coast as the silt buildup over the centuries has changed the coastline to such an extent.

Being in this place, was truly an eye-opening experience. But we feel blessed because we get to return to Ephesus in 2½ weeks, and can hopefully catch things we missed today.

We then had another great Turkish cultural experience by visiting a carpet manufacturer. We learnt the unique method of carpet knot used by the gifted Turkish craftspeople in their handmade work, and saw the fine result it gives. Seeing silk cocoons being spun, and the method used to find the end prior to spinning was incredible.

Other Turkish cultural firsts today was Chris trying Raki while I had my second Turkish coffee, and then moving on to try some Turkish wine – both a local red, and a mulberry wine as well. Verdict – pretty good on all counts.

Visiting a quaint old village which used to be Greek prior to the population exchange, but is now inhabited by Turks, with its narrow stone streets, and local produce markets was a beautiful way to end a beautiful day.

As we left Cannakkale this morning our drive took us past a wonderful view of the Gallipoli peninsular, where the Dardanelles opens into the Aegean Sea. We saw the French and the English Memorials at the tip of the peninsular.

Our first visit this morning was to Troy – an ancient city with a rich history, including 9 eras of civilisation. The layers however, have unfortunately been significantly destroyed due to the inappropriate and basically selfish work of one German archaeologist who started digging at the base to only pursue his specific interests and in the process, destroyed much of the subsequent layers.

Despite this, we saw some amazing things, including a Temple of Aphrodite, a couple of different eras of the city walls, and another section of the city wall which we were walking on, but hasn’t been excavated yet. It currently looks like a road because the ground around the walls is at the same level as the top of the wall. It’s amazing to imagine what might be discovered if excavations should happen there.

It was also amazing to see the ramp leading up to the main city fortress, and to imagine the former grandeur of the structure.

The story of Troy is confused between history and mythology, but there is a replica of the Trojan Horse which can be explored. Unfortunately, we didn’t find Helen, not did we see any Spartans. The experience of the history though, is a truly wonderful thing.

As we continued our drive south along the western coast of Turkey we were blessed to be beside the Aegean Sea with a great view to the Greek Island of Lesbos.

The afternoon was spent at Pergamum, the ancient city to which one of the seven letters in Revelation was addressed. Check it out in Revelation 2:12-17.

We ascended the acropolis by cable car and saw some excavating happening on the hill as we passed over. These amazing ruins showed evidence of a once thriving city that had the second largest library in the world after Alexandria.

The people here invented parchment made out of goat and sheep skin. There was a Sanctuary of Athena and Demetus, and a Temple of Zeus. The massive theatre, in excellent condition, could hold 15,000 people. We saw the Sanctuary of Asklepios [medical centre at Pergamum]. This famous ancient hospital could house 3,500 patients and especially cared for and treated people with psychological disorders. It was at the base of the hill and was joined to the city by a long colonnaded street which we could see from the top.

Also visible in the distance from the acropolis were two tumuli [burial mounds] situated in the modern city of Bergama. A tumulus was formed at the site of the burial of a rich or highly respected person, and buried with them was food, drink and all their possessions, so that when they were resurrected they had all they needed.

We were blown away by being here and came away thanking God that the Christian people of Pergamum were faithfully following Jesus despite the pagan worship surrounding them, and yet also aware that the same letter in Revelation 2 rebuked them for eating food offered to idols, obviously referring to the goats, sheep and bulls offered to Zeus.

We had plenty of free time to explore on our own and walked around the fortress, through the Temple foundations and had amazing photo opportunities with the sun high in the sky at the Temple of Trajan. The foundations of the acropolis were a fantastic compilation of arches and stores, and really gave you the feeling of a lively and busy place with an active agora not far away.

To know that a Christian community had lived and faithfully followed and proclaimed Jesus as Lord in this place where we also were walking 2,000 years later, was yet another humbling and encouraging experience.

It was amazing to drive out of Istanbul this morning. The city is so large. From one end to the other is 176km and we seemed to be driving for such a long time before we could say we were ‘out of Istanbul’. Driving further into the European part of Turkey, we saw increasing agriculture, especially sunflowers. Hugging the coastline of the Sea of Marmara, we went through Tekirdag, a town famous for its production of Raki, the high alcohol content Turkish drink, similar to Ouzo.

We stopped for lunch at a great little out-of-the-way restaurant at Seroz beach. This was where we first saw the Aegean Sea. Absolutely gorgeous quiet little place.

It was then only a relatively short drive to the Gallipoli [Gelibolu] peninsular where it was very poignant to be at the place where Chris’ grandfather had landed and eventually was captured by the Turks, and was a POW for 3 years. As a family, we were blessed that he returned home. So many others did not. The total casualties along the Gelibolu Peninsular, from all sides of this conflict, was 525,000 young people.

This beautiful coast was so idyllic today, that it was hard to imagine how different the water would have looked with so much blood filling it. The impossible task proved just that and the whole campaign was so futile. It was again compelling to hear the story, to know how the soldiers of each side respected each other yet still obeyed their orders.

To see the memorials for the Aussies, for the New Zealanders, the Brits and the Turks was a powerful testament to courage, heroism and sheer determination shown on all sides of this epic battle.

Each place we stopped at had a story to tell. Each grave we saw had a story, each name on a monument had a story, and each family back home was scarred, whether home was in Turkey or on other shores. To know that every Turkish flag we saw marked a mass grave was a stilling thought.

Each person today just wandered alone in quiet reflection, whether we were in a cemetery, at a memorial, reading plaques, gazing at the magnificence of the blue Aegean, or walking in the crystal clear shallow shores.

We reluctantly moved on to Eceabat to catch our vehicular ferry for the short ride across the Dardanelles to Canakkale for our accommodation. We are now back in Asia!

So for the first day of our tour of Turkey we stayed in Istanbul and went back to the area of our initial hotel [which was such a great location by the way!] to see the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and Hagia Sophia. Each of them were quite amazing in very different ways.

The Blue Mosque was built between 1609 and 1616 and is the only mosque with 6 minarets. It’s called the Blue Mosque, not because of anything particularly blue on the outside, but because of so many blue tiles on the inside. It is certainly a feat of architecture and engineering, but there are many mosques in Istanbul which all look very similar. Continue reading Blue Mosque | Topkapi Palace | Hagia Sophia →