Time for a holiday

There is no point going into much depth about Gallipoli, it is a personal experience. It is a place of great emotion and greater loss.

Lone Pine

Chunuck Bair

It is humbling to see the rolling terrain and trenches where so many lives were lost.  The battle was pointless and although the Turkish forces won, there were no real winners.

The fascinating thing about Gallipoli is that it is as much a Turkish shrine as an ANZAC one.  There were thousands of Turks visiting the day we were there and I got the sense it was a truly joint tragedy.

Anna, Neil and I caught the car ferry across to Cannakale for 7 Lira each including the car and in 15 minutes we had crossed to Cannakale.

We found accommodation in the ANZAC Hostel.  Several places around town catered specifically for Gallipoli sightseers.  There was an ‘Aussie Hostel’, ‘ANZAC Hotel’ and my personal favourite, ‘Crowded House Hotel’.  The front desk at the hostel mentioned a place had opened up on a 4 day cruise through the Aegean Sea.  I would receive a decent discount for filling the spot so decided to do it. It would be a bit of a rush to travel to the start point but as always it is great to go with the flow. 

Next morning we were off the Troy, the ancient city famous for the ‘army in the horse’ trick. The hostel had warned us of the poor quality replica horse that was on show. They said that everyone wanted to replace it but the government refused as it would offend to local tradesmen.

Troy has 9 different levels of civilisation with each city built on top of the next.  In places you can see several very distinct layers.

Fairly standard ruins but with amazing landscapes behind. 

 

We drove for about 5 hours and then our first swim in the Mediterranean.

Anna and Neil then dropped me off at Izmir bus station where I waited 9 hours for my next overnight bus.  Fortunately Turkey was playing Kazakstan in a Euro 2012 qualifier.  About 150 people crowed into this little café to watch the action. Turkey won in the 95^th minute from a freekick.  I caught the moment on video.  

Check the grin on the face of the guy next to me.

I arrived at 5am and slept on a bench until 9am when I would go to the cruise. It turned out that 9 of the 16 people on the cruise were Kiwis! The guys I hung out with most were a group of 4; Jono, Claire, Mike and Jason.

The cruise was effectively 4 days of swimming, eating, beers and sightseeing.  

 Followed by breakfast. 

Followed by a swim.

Followed by fishing for dinner

Followed some cruising.

Followed by some cliff jumping

Followed by anchoring a historical sight. 

Followed by a swim at the shore of the historical sight. 

Followed by some beers

Followed by another swim in crystal clear water. The water in this photo is probably about 7 meters deep yet it looks like Jono is about to be permanently maimed.

Followed by dinner

Then another swim late at night. Then repeat.

The sights included Butterfly Bay with its 450m high cliffs surrounding.  I would equate it to Totoranui in NZ.

Kars, a mellow seaside town known for a geographical oddity. Megisti is an island just 400m from shore and is surrounded by other islands yet it and it alone is part of Greece…

Kekova, a place of cultural wealth, natural beauties and geography.  It is the site of the sunken city where an earthquake shifted a large city entirely underwater.  Snorkelling is not allowed but you can cruise over the top and look through the crystal clear water at village that once was.  There is a 2000 year old fort with various wells and tombs dotted around the island.

It was a very relaxing 4 days after weeks of hectic culture-filled travel. We slept under the stars every night, the stars amazing because we were moored in remote bays and were woken up at about 7am when the temperature rose above 35C.  When too hot you simply jumped into the beautiful water, went snorkelling.

In the evenings the local villages came around trying to sell their local produce including freshly boat-cooked pancakes. Spinich and Feta one was boomtown.

We slept under the stars every night and caught some amazing scenery. I managed to capture a sweet timelapse of one of the lagoons.

It was a truly magical 4 days and a great wee rest after a 3 weeks of quite intense travel. I am back in Istanbul with one more day to explore.  Then off to Greece to meet my cousin and maybe Sam Bisset who will be there at the same time.

Tblisi, Butumi, Istanbul and 3 unpleasant bus rides

Arrived in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, at about 9pm.  The bus ride was miserable. The bus wobbled and jumped up and down as we hurtled to what I swore was certain death.  One the bus  met Rizarki, an Iranian man.  We had some some intereting discussions about his life in Iran.  He wants to leave desperately but the government require large payments if you wish to live anywhere.

It was clear that Georgia is different to Armenia.  It is much more run down, Yerevan was amazingly first world, whereas Tbilsi had rubble and broken streets everywhere. 

Walking in the door of the hostel I was immediately confronted with a shot of 'Cha Cha'.  Cha Cha is a home-made local spirit made out of grape skins. (I notice, with mild alarm, that the cha-cha is coming out of an old gin bottle and the taste fitted the bill).  However, with coke as a follow-on, it was clear the night was not going to be short.  The drinking party consisted of 2 Georgias, a Lithunian, a German, an Israli, a pom and myself.

The next day I set off in search of Tbilisi’s wonders.  Unfortunately it was raining and the sites did not measure up the natural wonders of Armenia. I met two new Israelis the roman ruins on the hill.  One thing I have noticed through all of my travels is how undeveloped much of the tourist  infrastructure is in these countries.  For instance, there were no signs, information or safely barriers on this Roman site. People were free to scramble about, no doubt doing damage, and putting themselves at risk.  The Israli guy and I found ourselves in a couple of precarious situations before emerging on top a turret with this great view.

I was feeling a little miserable in this underwhelming city in the rain.  I saw a sign which said the Liverpool game was on so went in and brought a beer and some lunch. I was quickly joined by Josh and Steve, two Brits working in Georgia as English teachers.  They were having a reunion of all their friends in Tblisi and invited me along.  It was 12 hours of solid beer drinking.  Fantastic.

What started with a beer over lunch.

Ended with multiple beers at 2am.

The next day I rose early, planning to head to the seaside resort town of Batumi.  Onto another old minibus. The bus was old. A USSR legacy, belching fumes and filled to the brim with passengers. Pre-assigned seats meant nothing here, when we jammed ourselves into the bus, it was every-man-for-himself, chaos. The fact that I had a massive backpack didn't help either. After 10 minutes of shouting, yelling, pushing and changing seats, I was finally settled in, into what, I wasn't sure.

As the bus started so did the cigarettes.  It seemed that every passenger had an endless supply of Georgian smokes.  If I die of lung cancer I will be able to put it down to this 6 hours.  To make atters worse, the man behind me spent nearly the entire bus ride yelling down the phone. I may misunderstand the culture but to me it seems as though whenever Georgians speak they are angry.  The tone and intonation is very aggressive.

  

Batumi is on the shores of the black sea and has a subtropical coastline climate framed with rich green mountains.  The setting reminds me a little of NZ with forest coming right down to the sea.  The difference being that the sea as 30C and it was perfect weather every day.

                           

This is the border between Georgia and Turkey.  You can see the last swimmers on the Georgian side. You will be swiftly arrested if you 'swim' into Turkish territory.

After a few swims it was off on my 29 hours bus ride to Turkey.

The bus ride was one of the most arduous of my life.  My first error was entering Turkey with no Turkish money.  Over the 27 hours it meant I had no access to food or water.  This as not the least of my worries. The places we stopped were all owned by the same company: large, overpriced buffets.  They also charged $1 to use the toilet.  This meant that I was unable to legally relieve myself for te full 27 hours.  I took to creeping around the back of these facilities and finding a spot.

It was relieving to arrive in Istanbul to say the least, however my worries were not over yet. The bus dropped me off in the middle of the touristy part of Istanbul.  With no idea where I was staying I had a few priorities. 1: get some money, 2: find some internet, 3: use internet to find accom, 4: find accom using taxi.

After walking for a whole hour through the crowds looking for an exchange office in 35C after a 27 hour bus ride I was ready to give up.  Out of nowhere a random man said ‘hello’ in perfect English.  I was relieved.  I asked him where all the exchange offices were and he mentioned that it was the first day of the 3 day public holiday for the end of Ramadan  - no exchange offices will be open for 4 days.  He asked how much I wanted so I swapped a $20 note with him for about 70% of its value.  He mentioned his restaurant had internet and that if I brought something I could use it.  Exhausted I thought a cheap coke for the use of internet was not a bad deal.  I found a place to stay and went to pay for my coke – $4….

After this palava I went to find a taxi.  I had drawn a little map of the route to the hostel and had the address.  Surely easy enough to find a cab….right….wrong!  I spent literally an hour in the taxi stand without any luck.  Downtrodden again I started the 7 km walk up the hill carrying 25kgs in 35C heat with my ankle throbbing.  After about 2km I tried another cab.  This time successful but had to pay $15 for the 5 minute ride. 

Next day I rose early and met a NZ dude Neil at breakfast.  He had one day to see Istanbul before his mrs got here so we decided to team up.  First was the blue mosque, the mosque built by Sultan Ahmet upon the capture of Istanbul.

Second site was Hagia Sofia, the 1500 year old church that was turned into a mosque upon the muslim invasion of Constantinople. 

Istanbul is a city so rich with history and I was lucky enough to read a fantastic book about the fall of Constantinople before arriving. It brought the city to life for me as I could see the Golden Horn harbour, the remnants of the great wall and the Bosporus.

Next stop was the utter opulence of Topkapi Palace - Ottoman Empire royal palace

was great to have a kiwi to tour around with after a week by myself.

Fish sandwich for lunch: $3 

The next day Neil and Anna offered me a ride to Gallipoli.  Unfortunately I do not have time to do a proper writeup for Gallipoli.

Here is lone pine: a place where 7000 allied men died in the area the size of a football field.

I do not have time to complete this blog properly at the moment.  Tomorrow we are off to Troy and Ephesus and then a 4 day boat tour.

Armenia: simple living, high thinking

Let me start by commenting on the toilet situation throughout the trip.  Iranian toilets were lets say, sub-optimal, usually consisting of a hole in the ground with a hose to clean and no toilet paper.  Poor but nothing to write home about.  BUT on crossing into Armenia at 2am I was confronted with this. 

 

No hose to clean with.  Instead an interesting looking broom, a bucket, a hole in the ground and a watering can!  Now if someone can come up with a strategy that results in a satisfactory toilet session then please let me know.

The other funny occurrence was the great unveiling.  As soon people passed customs into Armenia every single woman on the bus took their veil off and put it away... The funniest thing I have ever seen! 

Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, is a beautiful city with a mixture of ancient, soviet and modern style buildings.  The city dates back nearly 3000 years although walking around it is the soviet era which has the main appeal.

I visited a supermarket in Yerevan and was amazed to find a whole Aisle dedicated to Vodka.  It is one thing to allow spirits into supermarkets but it is another thing to have a clearly labelled aisle so close to the check out.  Classic.

I was met by Patris, from the Armenian family, and Karen, his friend.  Karen is a tour guide in Armenia, Russia and India.  He offered to give me a unique Armenian experience at a budget rate so I agreed.  Tomorrow it would be into the great outdoors for 5 days.

First it was time for a feast with my home family.  First to the dining room table for what I thought was the main meal.  Fruits, cheeses, bread, spreads, meat and a few shots of a cogniac with Joseph.  Then I was told this was just the precursor.  Out to dinner for a ful restarant meal with more cogniac.  Full and a little worse for wear it was time for bed.

Early the next morning we visited 3 famous Armenian sites. The oldest church in the world at 302AD andSt Gregory’s Cathedral in the mountains. 

Then to Garni temple which dates back 2300 years to the Roman Empire. 

Beautiful site on the edge of a cliff.

It was time to hike the 2.5 hours to the first camping spot at the confluence of the Azart and $$$$ rivers.  A breathtakingly beautiful spot...and enough ants, spiders and moths to make ‘A Bugs Life II’.

We were camping with another group Karen was guiding.

The next day we walked high into the mountains to a place called the dragons stones.  These stones date back 7000 years and their meaning is yet to be ascertained. 

Up and up we went to a total height of over 3100 meters.  After 10 hours walking in the beating heat we arrived and the spot was simply magical.

 

Shepards litter the hills with little stations and offer cheese, bread and tomatoes to any passerby.

The following day it was time for the long descent back to the Azart river.  The scenery was magic and reminded me of NZ in places.

And more sheapards,  Atfter 2 hours walking we arrived at a large sheapard camp. We were watered and fed by this family.  Among them was ^^^^^.  He is a Juventus fan and although English was not a shared language we managed to have a conversation simply by saying the names of players then smiling, frowing, grunting and frowning. 

^^^^^  complained of a bad heart.  When asked at just 38 years od he had a bad heart he said it was because he gets angry.  “Angry about what?” Karen asked.  “The donkey misbehaves” $$$$ reasoned!!! 

The shepards also mentioned that when their butter runs out they use New Zealand butter!  What is more incredible is that they only pay $1.90 per block of butter which is far cheaper than NZ.  I think New Zealanders have a right to be angry about the price of dairy when sheppards in the Armenia high country can access cheaper NZ butter than we can!

Canyons

Large rolling hillsides

Along the way we passed a 2000 year old pagan temple.  It has been great to be off the tourist trail in Armenia and see some legit old remains rather than processed touristy stuff.

We continued down to the Azart River once again.  A new campsite, a new private bath and some firewood to cook a proper meal.

In all the walking was not too bad.  2 hours day 1, 10 hours day 2, 13 hours day 3 and then a final 2 hour walk to civilisation.

On the way out we walked through a classic borat-esque village with stray dogs, old corrugated iron, dusty streets, chickens and old women selling singular apples on the side of the road.

We taxied back to Yerevan and took in some more sites around the city

I then taxied back to the Simonian house and found out we were in for a night of partying. A young girl had just been chrisened so we were off to a restaurant.  The restarant was incredibly plush and up rolled the Mercedes, Porsche and Hummers.  The food was incredible with an array of vegetable cominations, cheeses, yogurts, seafoods, beef, pork, lamb and unlimited drinks brought by the waiters.  To my right was Joseph, the granddad of the house.  Very quickly I realised this was not just a night of eating but drinking too.  Round after round of 10 year old Cogniac.  After 4 days in the hills I was feeling it a little.  Just as I thought Jospeh had finished another bottle appeared.  Joseph and his mate proceeded to drink another whole bottle in front of my eyes. Very very impressed.

Classic Armenian Cogniac and plenty of it

Karen, Me, Ophelia, Mama, Joseph, Patris

The feast

Boozed and a little tired we headed home for my last night in Armenia. Tomorrow I am off to Georgia.