Turkey Vacation

Istanbul


Mom and Tania posing in front of the Blue Mosque.

After 18 days of hard training at high altitude in Ethiopia, the “Turkey leg” of the Abate vacation was a breath of fresh air, to say the least. The four of us started our Turkey endeavor in Istanbul, a city which we caught a slight glimpse of last year on our Mediterranean cruise. Nevertheless, our agenda on this year’s trip was composed of more or less the same sights we saw last year; with this in mind, we had less of a hurry-up agenda and more of a leisurely stay in the city which blends European and Asian cuisine and culture. Here, I will present you with my list of memorable experiences from this year’s trip to Istanbul (in no particular order).

1. Running in Sultanahmet and on the sea wall. I think after one runs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, navigating the terrain of any other city is a piece of cake. With this in mind, I ran through the winding (and hilly) streets of Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district with ease. Better yet I found my way to the Bosphorus sea wall, a runner’s haven that doesn’t have the crazy drivers or massive hills found everywhere in Istanbul. With the extra O2 and flat road ahead of me, I was able to click off 7-minute miles like it was nobody’s business.

2. Indulging in Turkish ice cream. How can one stay in Istanbul without trying the taffy-like treat that is Turkish ice cream. Even more, how can one exercise enough judgment not to be enticed by one of these masters of a lost art? Despite being entertaining, these boys can leave you penniless after a small purchase; my family and I learned the latter the hard way after having to pay a hefty price of 17 YTL (or $11.50) after just buying two cones, falling victim to the acts of your friendly neighborhood scam artist.


3. Watching a Dervish spin himself into submission. Popular forms of dinner entertainment, the Whirling Dervishes are men clad in white gowns who spin themselves into a meditative trance. Not even videos can do this religious dance justice, as one has to see a Dervish in person. The best analogy for those who have yet to see this art is that they look like the Tazmanian Devil from the Bugs Bunny cartoon fame, but with more grace and without growling or drooling.


4. Playing with one of the (sometimes) friendly alley cats. Unlike Ethiopia where dogs roam on every street corner, here in Istanbul you’re likely to encounter numerous friendly cats on a stroll through the city. While sleeping I have, on many occasions, been rudely awakened by the sounds of a screeching alley cat.

5. Sailing from Europe to Asia – and back – in one afternoon. A 20 minute ferry ride from Istanbul will still leave you in Istanbul – except you’ll be on a different continent, whether it’s Europe or Asia. While Asia appears exactly the same as Europe (actually, it’s more commercialized), the ferry ride is a nice change of scenery. And the sea gulls put on a great show catching pieces of bread (flung overboard by passengers) while gliding in mid-air alongside the ferry.

After the past three days in Istanbul, I felt like I saw most of what the city had to offer. With this in mind, the four of us flew into the vast Turkish interior, where our next destination, Cappadocia, awaited us.


Cappadocia


A landscape dotted with fairy chimneys.

It was 10 AM and our puddle jumper flight just touched down on the black tarmac, which seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere. Upon further inspection, my intial impressions were right; there was desert that stretched for miles, eventually morphing into mountains in the distance. Once off the plane, the oppressive heat hit me like a ton of bricks - we truly were in a desert, leading me to think how in the world the region was such a popular tourist destination. Our stay in Cappadocia was during a stretch of unusually high tempuratures even for this region, with high temperatures hovering around 40 degrees Celsius. Needless to say, I was chronically parched during my training runs here.

The one-hour shuttle ride to our hotel gave a good overview of what the area had to offer. The landscape, which was desert-like moments earlier, quickly transformed into scenery that closely resembled that which is on Mars: jagged, pointed "fairy chimneys" crowded the dry, sandy landscape. With the tourism here being more eco-based, it seemed like Cappadocia was Turkey's answer to the Grand Canyon.

Our digs were even more of a surprise: we would be spending our nights in a cave hotel. When I heard the word "cave," I anticipated sparse accommodations with no amenities. Turns out, our room was lavishly furnished, complete with all the typical hotel amenities.



For the sake of simplicity and efficiency, here's another list of the most memorable and interesting experiences from our time in Cappadocia.

1. Trekking through valleys. You can get a good tour of the area's churches and rock dwellings with just a hike through one of the neighboring valleys. While I fared relatively well on our four-hour trek through Red Valley, these hikes are only for the rugged and not for the faint of heart. Too bad the latter wasn't known to my sister until after the hike...

2. Visiting an underground city. Cappadocia is one of the few places in the world that contains vast underground cities, some of which held up to 15,000 Christians who sought refuge in the 5th century. The cities have a vast network of tunnels passages, a select few of which are now open to the public. Nevertheless, I felt pretty claustrophobic eight stories underground.


A claustrophobe's worst nightmare: The underground cities of Cappadocia.

3. Eating kebabs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Coming from Ethiopia into Turkey, I was starved for meat. I came to the right place, and indulged in any and all types of meat in Turkey. Nothing quite beats a "doner" kebab, a foot long wrap stuffed with meat. Yum.

4. Interacting with the locals. The Turks are extremely kind and hospitable people. I think that in the small towns of Cappadocia, they pay even more attention and are more generous. While in Istanbul we met some nice people, whereas in Cappadocia, we forged friendships that will last until our next visit.

5. Exploring - just that. It's not that there isn't a lot to see or do in Cappadocia; it's just that it's less tourist oriented and more do-it-yourself oriented. Whether venturing off the beaten trail or exploring a cave dwelling, there's plenty here to be discovered. And that's what makes this place unlike any other that I've visited.

Needless to say, I anticipate returning to Turkey. I've greatly enjoyed my time here, but after being outside the U.S. for a month, I'm ready to go back home. Heat and humidity, here I come.