First Report: Turkey

Turkey isn't really that far away from the UK. It's not a seismic shift in culture; I suspect it will be nothing compared to the next stop: Iran. Still, I feel like I've stepped into another world. Maybe it's the otherwordly landscapes we've encountered. Pammukale is a mountainside of shelves of smooth white rock. The sheer amount of pure whıte ın your frame of vıew disorients you; it feels like it should be snow, but the water that runs over it ıs warm, from the hot springs whıch contain the minerals that have created the whiteness. Just as alien are the vistas of Cappadocia, where metres and metres of volcanic ash have eroded to leave 'fairy chimneys' of soft 'tuff', rock which the inhabitants of the region have tunneled into to create their homes, like giant termite mounds.

In more prosaic fashion, it may just be the knowledge that, unlike any other trip I've ever taken, there is the knowledge that the next stop is onwards, as is the one after that and the one after that. 'Home' isn't until October, and maybe that's startıng to sink in. Part of it has to be the cultural differences, the little things, from the weird Turkish keyboard that's driving me crazy right now to the breakfasts of bread, olives, cucumber and tomato; from the language that we're just about getting our tongues around to the endless groups of men drinking tea and playing backgammon. Of course, it's all of these things.

Turkey is such a wonderful place to start our trip, though. There is so much friendliness here. Looking lost the other day in Kayseri resulted in a guy walking us to our bus stop, refusing to allow us to pay for our tickets, and waiting until our bus came so he could make sure we got on it safely. And so much beauty. As well as Pamukkale and Cappadocia, there are the ancient ruins at Hierapolis and Ephesus, which had us wandering round jaws agape. The Fatih mosque here in Kayseri is beautiful - I love the geometric designs and script; mosques to me seem such peaceful, reverent places. The old Roman aqueduct at Selçuk, with storks nesting atop every support and the quiet town nestling below, was beautiful to walk around.

Everyone is happy to talk to us, too. Admittedly, some of them want to sell us carpets, but they're very happy to talk to us about life, politics, being English and being Turkish. We,ve had our difficulties and adventures too - trying to book transport and get food (especıally veggie food) in places where they've no English is always a challenge, and my war aginst mosquitoes from previous trips abroad has resumed. Every time I stand there in my boxer shorts, torch in one hand (so as not to wake Briony with the light), rolled-up newspaper in the other like a harpoon, I understand a little more about Captain Ahab. The maps in our seven-year old Rough Guide are a tad dodgy, too, which has resulted in us wandering merrily with our backpacks into odd parts of town and down train sidings.

The best part of it all, though, is the feeling that this is our honeymoon, and we've earnt it. We,ve worked, and saved, and had donations from all the lovely people who were able to give something as a wedding gift, and it's felt so far away for so long, but now it's here, and we're only two weeks into it, with some of the more intrepid parts still to come. Later today we board the three-day train to Tehran. It seems like a great adventure, and it's only stage two.

Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/brionyandterry/sets/72157624051526070/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/brionyandterry/sets/72157623927152097/