Neile's Turkish Holiday

July 8th

as transcribed from my journal

Matt, Ali, Christina, me, and Jim in front of Mehmet's carpet store, where Jim and I had bought 3 carpets from Ali.

 

On the road now. Stopped at Nigde to see its citadel, which is on a hill the Hittites built. Not that much to see there as the building on top was locked, but we could still admire it.

Had viçne (sour cherry juice) on the terrace there and drove off. Stopped briefly to by some cassette tapes and fruit at a gas station. They had a great selection of tapes, and we found several we'd been looking for.

Stopped for lunch in a small town, and bought a couple more tapes, and drove past the caravanseri Matt and I had visited the previous day.

Decided to take a sidetrip to Ivriz to see a Hittite carving on a mountainside. Drove through orchards, fields, many poplars. Parked in a schoolyard--walked around to a covered area where there were all kinds of rags tied. Obviously this was the local equivalent of a rag tree (a well where women would make wishes and tie rags there as markers); there must be water there at some times of year.

Then down to where the river literally came out of the mountain. So beautiful. I walked down to the water and splashed myself with it--it seemed somehow necessary, though everyone else walked on and I was having some trouble clambering on the rock pathway with my ankle swollen. There were rags on the bushes here, too.

Matt and Jim above where the river comes out of the mountain. Unfortunately, you can't really see how dramatic it is. Note the rags tied to the bushes. Rags are tied like this above springs in Scotland and Wales, too.

 

Then, thinking we'd been directed that way, we climbed up a valley--gorgeous rocky place all bits of quartz. I got two pieces, though the big beautiful pieces of quartz were too heavy to carry back. The carving we were looking for wasn't there, but lots of sun instead.

On our way back we passed a group of women picnicking and making tea over a fire. I said how beautiful the valley was. One older woman said how beautiful the water was, pouring water on her hand to be sure I understood, and I agreed. I wonder if she'd seen me earlier transfixed by where the water came out of the mountain.

Then went around (through a fence, a picnic yard, across a little dam) to where the carving was. Magnificent. A big chunky god carrying grapes and a staff with wheat at its tip, and a smaller king facing him. Truly in startling good shape, especially considering the age of the Hittite civilization.

The Hittite carving. A man on the right makes an offering to the large god on the left. [Christina's caption: "Ooh, is that King Tunawuna of Wapalawa? That really is his name, folks."]

 

And on the road again.

Things I have seen everywhere: men sitting in tea gardens, orchards, vegetables, chickens, women in those seven-day poop pants (Marsha's name for the local trouser/skirts which have elastic around the ankles but drape loosely to ankle level), horses and donkeys pulling carts, tractors, head scarves, tin can mosques (mosques with aluminum domes), speakers on the minarets, jandarmes, people ignoring red lights and stop signs and traffic lanes, pictures and statues of Ataturk, water in places that look dry, buildings crumbling, buildings half-built (and abandoned?).

Up a piney mountainside highway--rays of light through the clouds--we turn off at Alahan to see The Church of the Evangelists (Alahan Monastery), ruins of two amazing churches with a baptistry between them.

An overview of the Alahan site. Christina had to climb pretty high to get this. You can't really tell how high up in the mountains this is.

 

Beautiful carvings still clearly from the 5th century (a transition period from late Greco-Roman to Byzantine architecture with features from both styles). The whole area, too, is surrounded by caves where presumably the population of monks they built the chapels for would live. The first church is full of carvings, a few columns resurrected. Knot-work and roses and fishes everywhere (rose of Sharon, fishers of men).

A detail of the carvings with birds toward the top and the right, and fruit below. [Christina's caption: "Lovely vine leaf decoration. Mebbe Baccus made an appearance, once in a while, had a wee dance up in the hills, when the bishop wasn't looking?"]

 

Seats where the clergy sat. Crosses, a few of them Maltese. Then a row of tombs in archways, then the next church reassembled--stunning bits of carvings--goats, a knotwork flower.

 

 

 

	The second church
	A view through the archways of the ruined clerestory.
	Arches in the second church.
	Matt steadying Christina as she photographs the arches.

 

Hard to believe it's so old. Stunning view over the valleys, caves above and to either side. So isolated and beautiful in the piney hills. And all the flowers there (three pressed in the journal). Such a magnificent place, and all to ourselves. Hard to define the feeling, but I'm amazed at the age, and how so much remains and in such good condition--so different from less isolated places. In Scotland there are many Celtic crosses from about the same era, but they are in much poorer condition, but they get lots of rain falling on them, unlike here.

A view of the sky as we left Alahan.

 

Then Matt continued to drive. Very isolated areas, few other cars on the windy roads, occasional goatherds, rocky pines. Reached Gülman just after dusk, but it had no pension there, though some people we asked thought there was. Continued on the windy mountain road as it got full dark. We could see Aydincip from way up in the hills as we wound our slow way down, alarming Christina who can't bear mountain roads (she had already had to suffer through the road up to Alahan and this was the last straw for her nerves).

Found a pension right on the water. Rather minimal but at least fans and a decent bathroom. Had a late dinner across the street, bothered by mosquitoes. We could hear the Mediterranean but not see it in the pitch dark, so I said we must have taken a wrong turn and wound up at the Black Sea.

Amazingly suddenly humid here, hot even in the dark, so slept badly off and on. Apparently the power went off about 2:00 am and Matt went and complained to the owner but it was out for the whole town--it came on again right after he complained. Jim and I slept through that part.