From Cyprus to Austria – a diary! We left Cyprus on the ferry on the 21st, and it was as chaotic as when we arrived. This time we were loaded onto the middle deck, which meant hot, not enough ventilation and very, very noisy. It was a very pleasant night, and we arrived fresh and …
From Ihlara, we drove past Aksaray, where we went to the Sunday market and a great bakery. Further south, we stopped at something which looked like a volcano from the road. Finally, we reached the Meke Gölü, a crater lake, or for the moment a crater without a lake. At Meke Gölü, a lake was …
From Songali, we took minor roads in the direction of Güzelyurt and the Kizil Kilise, the Red Church, which was a beautiful drive. The Red Church, built in the 6th century, stands alone in the landscape and reminded us a bit of the churches in Armenia. The red stone in the green landscape was a …
On our way to Soganli, we did some shopping in Ortahisar, where we also climbed the 90-metre-high rock-castle in the centre of the town, an extraordinary example of the rock-cut architecture typical of the region. The rock-castle has served as a refuge from attackers in Byzantine times and the climb was an interesting experience, which rewarded …
Again at quarter to five, we were woken by the noise of balloons getting filled up, this time even closer. Many were starting next to us, floating into the Love Valley with its fantastic fairy chimneys, before they made their way further to Göreme. More and more people started to come there, taking their pictures …
At Göreme, we visited another open air museum with churches. The entrance fee of 20 Euros, with another 6 Euros when you want to visit the “Dark Church” with the best frescos, felt a bit like a rip-off. We had a lovely lunch in a small pide restaurant in Cavusin, away from the more touristic …
Coming from Iraq, we made our way to Cappadocia, with a couple of stops. In Mardin we had our washing done and enjoyed some local food before we continued. We came through the region where pistachio trees grow, and crossed the Euphrates a last time on our way westwards. In Kahramanmaras, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake had …
The weather was awful, so we kept driving as we had decided to go back to Greece and then to Italy. We took the shortest route via Çanakkale and the ferry. What we needed for the border was a PCR test. As we both had Covid in December, we were fiercely hoping that we now …
When we arrived in Izmir, the third largest city in Turkey with around 4.4 million inhabitants, it was only drizzling, and we decided to go for a stroll through the bazar and along the bay. The old Turkish and partly ancient city center was largely destroyed in the earthquake of 1957. One of the landmarks …
Our second time in Fethiye, we wanted to visit the abandoned Greek village of Kalaköy and Lycian rock tombs. But we were not sure, if the weather would allow us to visit anything. When we arrived at Kalaköy, a village in the mountains between the bay of Fethiye and the coast, it was pouring with …
