Turkey

The Islamic country of Turkey is located in the Eastern Mediterranean, on two continents: Europe and Asia. I now just need to figure out the dividing line and find out which continent Ilgin is in.

Istanbul is the only city to straddle two continents and the only one to have been a capital during two consecutive empires: Christian and Islamic. The capital city is now Ankara, and as of 2005, the population was approximately 71 million. The currency is the Turkish Lira.

Three seas hug the Turkish coastline: the Mediterranean (south), the Black Sea (north), and the Agean Sea (west).

Worst case, I visit Istanbul to fulfill the “I.” It’s not what was picked out of the hat but it does begin with the right letter.

Put John Kerry and me in a boxing ring and I’d win hands down as the prize-fighting flip-flopper. I make a decision, I change my mind, I say I’m going to do one thing and I do another. Even I can’t keep up with myself. I say I want to chill in one place for a while and as soon as I’m free to swim in the clear water off the coast of Syros, at one of the numerous beaches available, I quickly begin to twitch and feel guilty for sitting still for too long.

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Call me completely stupid and uneducated, but I’ve spent my life believing that Turkey was part of Europe. No one has ever told me otherwise, up until now when I’m thinking of scooting out of here in a few days to head to Ilgin.

Please can someone give me a difinitive answer. Is part of Turkey Europe and part of it Asia, or does it all come under Asia? I’m so confused! And if it’s not part of Europe then I really shouldn’t be heading there for Europe On An Alphabet.

Feedback and advice would be much appreciated.

From a (obviously) no-so-savvy traveler.

“You’re like a little girl in a toy store,” my father said to me this morning on the phone. “You keep picking up things you’ve never had or tried before, and then as soon as you’ve got what you want, you get bored and change your mind.”

He’s absolutely right. Continue reading this entry »

As I walked back from the beach today a car came down the hill from behind and pulled up so close he might as well have pushed me into the hedge. Stopping at a slight angle so the nose of his gold-colored Honda cut in front slightly, I got the distinct impression he wanted to chat. From behind, and seeing my blotchy red sun-burned legs my ass must have become a prime target.

“Ja!” the bare-chested Greek said with a big smile spread across his face. “Hi! You go down?”

Yeh, I bet you’d like to.

Oh, you mean down the hill, a ride in your car? Sorry, for a moment there, by the way you approached me, I presumed you were some greasy horrible pervert looking for a good time.

What I actually said was, “Okhi efkaristo, no thanks, walking walking, fabulous exercise! Efkaristo anyway.” You tosser.

Yes, another lazy day on Paradise Island…

Or in this case, Turkey.

Having only been in Syros for three days, I’ve decided to rest for a while, to study the place and its people in depth. On An Alphabet wants to slow down and breathe for one month. I need to be in in a place long enough to get to know people. Traveling alone is getting hard at times, I admit. Continue reading this entry »

After a few hours swimming at Finikas, a quick kip before heading out at 2300 hours for the evening (everything starts very late here and your body clock is completely screwed), and much less alcohol than last night, I’m now sitting at one of the waterfront cafes drinking copious amounts of coffee and munching on a fresh-from-the-oven croissant. As John Williams, a Welsh implant, told me, “Another lazy day on Paradise Island.”

Have just re-read previous post. So we’re all on the right page, “bang bang” was alcohol induced rather than squeaky bed induced

Let’s just say last night was eventful and I’ve only had two or three hours sleep. Some things are just better left unsaid, me thinks… Am now trying to put together some kind of coherent posting for yesterday before heading over to Finikas on the west of the island. I hope to collapse in a heap on the sand and not move until dinner time.

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Many people said to me before I started this trip, “What if you meet someone, or stay some place you don’t want to leave?”Out of all the places I’ve been to so far, this is my favorite, and I’m even a little tempted to not write well of it in order to prevent it becoming a total tourist trap.

The island of Syros, which dates back to around 3500 BC, the Bronze Age, has everthing: architecure, history, cobbled narrow streets, mountains, beaches, boats, restaurants and sidewalk cafes, no pressure and plenty of friendly Greeks. Even what I’d call polite pavement construction. Work is being done to improve the roads and sidewalks but it looks like it’s being done gradually rather than en masse, without upsetting visitors and residents alike. I love it!

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