Ephesus, Göreme and Gallipoli
Put these on your bucket list! I insist…
Well Ephesus and Göreme for sure, Gallipoli only if you have
a keen interest in World War I or are Australian.
Göreme would be without a doubt my favourite out of the
three. The day before I left for Turkey, my friend Sharlene Versfeld demanded I
stop here, and reluctantly I did. And for that I am eternally grateful!
The landscape is fascinating. The entire area has a
mystical hobbit feel to it. You walk around the town or shire half expecting to
set eyes on Gandalf or Bilbo. The Nevşehir Province is made up of these dainty
cone shaped mountains that all look like fairy chimneys.
The reason for my most recent trip to Turkey was for the
FIBA Basketball World Championship for Women. The games were being played in
the capital Ankara, a gateway into Cappadocia.
Being based in a big city for six days, I was delighted to discover the
tournament followed theatre etiquette and had no games on the Monday night.
I took this opportunity to escape. First thing on Monday
morning a hasty yellow cab spat me out at the enormous bus terminal or the AŞTİ
in Ankara. I cruised the counters looking for Süha Turizm, a bus company that
would take me to the small town, Göreme, a five hour bus ride away.
Göreme is a historic region and is a recognised UNESCO
World Heritage Site. The first chronicled inhabitants of the area were
Christians during the Roman period and they lived in square carved-out caves
usually impressively high up in the cone shaped mountains. Inspired by this knowledge,
I opted to dwell in a cave for my one night there, it was simply called the
Traveller’s Cave Hotel and for 55Euro B&B, was an affordable experience.
Bekir, the hotel owner also kindly shuttled you up the steep hill from the bus
stop. From the reception to my room I ambled down 91 steps to my room.
This magical town is easy to navigate, with two main
roads bisecting each other. After checking in, I deposited my bags and went
walk about. Following the route the shuttle had taken me, I strolled down to
the main part of town. Turning left into the next main road, I headed out of
town towards the hills to Pigeon Valley. After a decent hike and a bit of rock
climbing I literally had a bird’s eye view overlooking all of Göreme.
On my way back I stopped for an early dinner at a spot
called One Way. I was eager to try the meal Cappadocia was renowned for, a dish
simply called pottery kebab. It came in an enclosed clay pot which the waiter
broke open with a small hammer. It was served with rice and a simple garden
salad. Delicious!
As night settled in, the peaceful experience of the sun
setting was interrupted by keen photographer’s flashes going off. But once the
sun had set, the fairy chimneys became more mystical bathed in yellow lights.
Some from large spot lights illuminating the hills and others from the huddles
of abodes cut into the rocks.
Sunrise greeted early risers, most of them taking the opportunity
to float above the chimneys in hot air balloons. The sandstone colour scheme
had patches of brightly coloured balloons hovering above them. The experience
cost 120Euros through Bekir. Other adventures on offer were quad biking, horse
riding, cycling and hiking.
At breakfast, the Turkish lady on duty insisted I have a
traditional start to my day. It consisted of a waffle-like pancake with a local
version of Nutella. The usual Turkish breakfast options were also available of
cheeses and breads.
My highlight in Göreme was cave crashing. I spent several
hours walking in the opposite direction to where I had been the previous
afternoon, following signs for the Rock Churches. After spending ages in the El
Nazar Kilisesi keenly looking at the beautiful cave paintings, I roamed the
surrounding area discovering more caves with humble paintings that were just
left open to the elements. The former tenants had chipped away steps to their
front doors, so with a bit of clambering, you could get in. Each cave had a
different feel to it, some with crumbling pillars others with real pigeon
holes, small little rooms sprouting off the main living area. All of these had
their own simple paintings on the walls, nothing as detailed as the churches, but
enchanting none the less.
Next stop, Ephesus. This ancient place is remarkable,
picturesque and majestically beautiful, an ancient Greek city that started
taking shape in the 10century BC, and then ‘modernised’ by the Romans around
130BC. It is near the coast of Ionia on the Asian side of Turkey, a stone throw
away from Greece and its capital Athens.
Like Göreme, my trip to Ephesus was brief. The ruins of
Ephesus are a hot favourite tourist attraction and contain the largest
collection of Roman ruins in the eastern Mediterranean. Researching Ephesus,
words such as flourished, attacked, conquered, destroyed, raided and damaged
all jump out at you and standing in amongst the ruins it is hard to imagine all
the blood that has spilt in this wonderful area.
Listening to the various tour guides directing large
groups of people, they explained that only a fraction of the ruins have been
excavated and there is still so much more preserved under the surrounding
hills. The entire area is hugely attractive in its history but moments that
stood out for me would have to be visiting the original public toilets, the
massive and impressive amphitheatre that up until recently hosted live
performances, big names like Sting, Pavarotti, Elton John and Ray Charles have
graced the stage. The old harbour road and the road leading to the library that
is rumoured to have housed all the best retail shops.
An outline of a foot carved into the marble promenade
outside the brothels indicating if the customer was man enough to spend time
with the ladies. If your foot was smaller than that etched out yard stick,
unlucky! The library of Celsus standing in all its glory was fabulous to see.
Standing in front of its massive facade I stood in awe admiring the
architecture, the details just exquisite. The library used to house 12,000
scrolls and now is home to Celsus who is buried in a sarcophagus beneath the
library.
If you have time, the House of the Virgin Mary and the
Temple of Artemis are well worth a visit. Both are a short drive away from
Ephesus. The House of Virgin Mary has a steady flow of pilgrims passing through
it. The shrine itself is not extensively large, but can be best described as a
modest chapel. Outside the shrine is the Wishing Wall where pilgrims leave
behind their personal intentions on paper or fabric and tie it onto this
wall.
Nowadays, The Temple of Artemis has just a few marble
pillars standing lonely in a field on the outskirts of Ephesus. With a bit of
imagination you can picture what it must have looked like in its heyday. Most
of the temple is on display in British Museums, the site was pillaged in the
60s and the temple was transported by rail to England.
Finally Gallipoli, directly translated means beautiful
city. I accidentally spent a day touring around here in winter. The seaside
city was the venue to the great Battle of Gallipoli in World War 1 that lasted
8 months. The battle is regarded as a defining moment in the nation’s
history, the struggle forming the bases for the Turkish War of Independence.
Spotted around are various memorials and burial grounds
that are immaculately maintained. Walking around, you find yourself looking up
to a massive ANZAC memorial and then further along, standing in actual trenches.
100,000 lives were lost on this peninsula. Littered in the strait there is
supposedly 216 French, British and Italian vessels that were sunk and now are
fabulous to explore, even for inexperienced divers.
If you find yourself in these parts, be sure to make a
detour. It is an affordable trip down a variety of historic lanes.
·
Travelling by bus to Göreme, make sure your bus
ticket clearly states the destination as they often deposit you in Nevşehir, a
rather costly alternative route that is half an hour away.
·
If you book directly through the website for the
Traveller’s Cave Hotel you get 10% discount.
·
Göreme isn’t the most friendly place for wheel
chair visitors.
·
Pegasus Airlines flies just outside of Ephesus
from Istanbul, and booking in advance you can pick up really good deals.
Kamil Kaya from Hotel
Sultan’s Inn in Istanbul can organise tours to both Ephesus and Gallipoli
