October 5, 2002
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I hope you have had a wonderful week and that you're enjoying a fun and relaxing weekend. With fall here now I'm sure you're all busy with different things -- football, back-to-school, traveling, etc. It's really my favorite time of the year.
We're still in awe of what we saw and experienced in Turkey, I've never been anywhere like it. Not only did we see some of the most interesting historical sites and world-renowned buildings, but we also visited "off the beaten path" places to take in the natural beauty and, my favorite part, the kindness and hospitality of the Turkish people.
Although I hope to get our photos onto a web site in the next couple of days, I'll give you a quick overview of where we traveled. And for those of you who are into details, you can follow our route by going to the following web site for a map of Turkey:
Map of Turkey (http://www.yukitour.com/map-turkey.htm)
We flew into Istanbul on Thursday evening and then directly to Bodrum, a resort town on the coast of the Aegean Sea. Although it was definitely geared for tourists, it was still a beautiful spot with a couple of incredible sites (including one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, and the Castle of St. Peter - built in the early 15th century). The next day we rented a car and drove to Fethiye and hiked around in the hills on the edge of the sea, enjoyed the views, and saw sites dating back to 450 BC. Then it was on to our favorite overnight location, Oludeniz. The Mediterranean was calling our name, so we threw on our bathing suits and went for a long sunset swim. To make our time there even more magical, there were paragliders everywhere! Floating through the sky and landing right in front of us on the beach. After a great evening of wandering around and a restful night's sleep we headed off for our next adventure. The three hour drive through the mountains between Olundeniz and Pamukkale was SO beautiful. We could have been anywhere -- the Sierras, the Rockies (not counting the several Muslim prayer stations on the side of the road along the way). Pamukkale (not on the map, but just outside of Denizli) was impressive -- an area with calcium-rich mineral water forming natural pools over thousands of years. The waters have always been known to have curative powers -- all the way back to the Roman times. They built a whole city (Hierapolis) in 190 BC around the pools -- including a theater that was capable of seating 12,000 people! Next we headed back to the coast and stayed the night in Kusadasi. Early the next morning we headed out to Didyma, where we were just amazed by the Temple to Apollo (from the 4th century). We were the only ones there as we wandered around the remains of this impressive site and imagined what it looked like in its time -- 120 huge columns and all. We couldn't linger there, though, because Ephesus was next. We stopped by Priene (a Hellenistic city) and Miletus (built in 700 BC) on the way. As you can tell, there are endless places to visit ... but we had a plane to catch so we forged on to the "best-preserved classical city in the Eastern Mediterranean," Ephesus (Efes). This city, which once was home to 250,000 people, was first built in 600 BC and has been carefully preserved. Our walking tour took us through the marketplace, the theater (which held 25,000 people!!), an incredible Library with statues of the four virtues (goodness, thought, knowledge, and wisdom), and more. We had to pull ourselves away, though, and head on to Izmir, where we flew back to Istanbul. What could possibly compare with what we had seen so far??? Istanbul, that's what :). We met Mark's dad there for three packed (and very fun) days of talking, exploring, shopping, and learning. Some of the highlights were Hagia Sofia, the Sultan Ahmet Mosque (Blue Mosque), the underground cisterns, the Grand Bazaar, the Spice Market, the Bosphorus (the river that divides Istanbul into Europe and Asia), the old Jewish area, and on and on.
Phew!!! Although it was long and detailed, I hope you enjoyed the recap and I'll pass along the website address as soon as I put it together.
Back to the pleasures of Shabbat and Jerusalem.
Take good care, my thoughts are with you.
Love,
Rachel Ann
