Provinces of Turkey is famous for what?

 ADANA

Cotton (white gold), Adana Kebab, Cukurova, Anavarza Castle, Misis ancient city, Tekir Plateau, Yasar Kemal, Sakip Sabanci

 ADIYAMAN

Mount Nemrut, Besni grape, Pirin-Gümü?kaya Caves, River Kahta

 A?RI

Mount Ararat, Ishak Pasha Palace, Fish Lake, Meteor Hole, Gürbulak Border Gate, the Caves of Günbuldu

 AFYON

Poppy, cream, sausage Afyon, Afyon marble, Cascade Recreation Area, Iscehisar Cliffs, Bayat, Kilims, Huda, Gazl?göl, Dinar and Discussion Spas

 AKSARAY

Ihlara Valley, the Minaret of the Curve, Snake Church, Sultanhani and A?z?karahan Caravanseraias, Acemhöyük, Monastery Valley, Ancient Nora City

AMASYA

Diamond of Amasya, Borabay Lake, Amasya Castle, King Rock Tombs, Wood Amasya Houses, its portal (Mental patients are treated first in the music and the sound of water), Princes Town

ANKARA

Citadel of Ankara, the Mausoleum, angora goat (Angora Goat), the tomb of Haci Bayram Veli, August Temple, Roman Baths, Gordion (Frigia Capital), Atakule, Karum Business Center, Hot Springs Kizilcahamam-Ayas, Beypazar? Houses

ANTALYA

Duden-Lead-Manavgat Waterfalls, Dim-Cleopatra-Karain Caves, Olympus-Beyda? s-Canyonlands National Parks, Konyaalti-Lara-Patara Beach, Citrus and Greenhouse Production and Alanya, Side, Alanya, Kemer, Kalkan, Kas as Tourist Attractions , Historical Old City Homes, Golden Orange Film Competition, Cut Flower Production, of Aspendos, Perge, Fhaselis Termessos, Olympos

ARDAHAN

Cheddar Cheese, Wild Lake

ARTVIN

Bullfighting, Barhal Church, Sarp border gate, the Coruh River, Karagol – Sahara and Valley National Parks Hatilla

Aydin

Camel Wrestling, Great Menderes River, Aphrodisias ancient city of Priene-Miletos-Didyma-and Kusadasi, Aydin fig, Dilek Peninsula National Park

BALIKESIR

Susurluk buttermilk and toast, yogurt and Manyas Lake Manyas, Ayvalik and Edremit Zeytini, Kaz Mountains National Park, boron minerals, Gonen-Manyas-Burhaniye Hot Springs, Mount Ida Sar?k?z Festival, Hawk Creek Canyon, Sutüven Falls, Ayvalik-AltInoluk-Akcay-Oren Tourist Attractions, Hasanbo?uldu, Tahtaku?lar Ethnographic Museum, Cologne Balikesir, Kaymakl?s?

BARTIN

Amasra Castle, ?nkum Beach, Bartin River

BATMAN

Hasankeyf Mausoleum and the Citadel, Oil Refinery

BAYBURT

Bayburt Castle, Martyr Tomb of Osman, Aydintepe Underground City, S?rakayalar Falls

BOLU

Seven Lakes, Abant, Golcuk, Circumcision Lakes, Mudurnu and Göynük’ün Date Wooden Houses, Kartalkaya Winter Sports Center, Mengen Cooks, Akkaya Travertines, Seben Rock Houses, Seben Diamond, Aladdin Highlands, Mudurnunun Sarot and Babas Thermal Spring

BURDUR

The ancient city of Sagalassos, Insuyu Cave, Burdur and Salda Lakes

BURSA

Green Tomb, Grand Mosque, Kozahan, Iznik tiles, and Cumalikizik Village Houses, Uludag National Park, Chestnut, Peach, knife, towel, Gemlik and Mudanya’n?n Zeytini, Inegol Meatballs, Junior-Oylat Springs, Alexander Kebab, ?nkaya Plane Tree, Mihalic Cheese, Iznik Lake, located in difficult precedent IRGANDI bridge, the tomb of Osman Gazi and Orhan Gazi, Emirsultan mausoleum, Mullah Gürani Mausoleum, the tomb of Mullah Fenari, Karagoz and Hacivat, Uftade Tomb, the Citadel and the city walls and the Ottoman Bursa, the first entry into the Central Market neighborhood The door (not the new Imperial Door), precedent, hard to bridge the IRGANDI

BILECIK

Sheikh Edebali and Ertugrul Gazi Tombs, the Clock Tower, the Turkish Elders Forum, established the Ottoman town of Willow Place, Marble Pottery Production and Bozöyük

BINGOL

Kös Spa, Soguksu pleasure ground, Glacial Lakes, Kigi Castle, Floating Island (Lake Cranes), Eagle (Karakus) Basic Fashion

BITLIS

Mount Nemrut, Nemrut Crater Lake, Ahlat Vaults, Tobacco Production, Suphan Mountain, Adilcevaz Castle, Ihlasiye Madrasa, Al-Aman Caravanserai, Ahlat Seljuk Cemetery, five Minaret (Goodwill, Kalealt?, Grand, Square and Gökmeydan Mosques)

CANAKKALE

Imbros and Tenedos, the ancient cities of Troy and Assos, Gallipoli Martyrs National Park, Adatepe and Çetmi (Yesilyurt) Villages, Dardanel Canned Fish, Tomato and Ceramics Production, Hö?merim (cheese, dessert)

CANKIRI

Cankiri Castle, Ta?mescit, Bulbul Spring recreation area, rock salt production

CORUM

Yaz?l?kaya, Hattusas, Alacahöyük ruins, Corum roasted chickpeas and Clock Tower

DENIZLI

Pamukkale travertines and the ancient city of Hierapolis, Buldan cloth, towel and bathrobe Production, South Falls, Karahayit Springs, Kizildere Geothermal Resource, Denizli Roosters

DIYARBAKIR

Berries Diyarbakir, Malabadi Bridge, Diyarbakir Walls, Ergani Copper, Behrampa?a Mosque, Delilo Basic Fashion, Evidence Han, Diyarbakir Streets, (Küçeler) Hilar Cliffs, Cermik Baths, Virgin Mary Church, Yellow Absolute Tomb

DUZCE

Samandere, Güzeldere, Ayd?np?nar, Sar?yayla, Hidden Canyon and Falls Aktas, Faki LLI, Sarikaya and Aksu Caves, Akcakoca Tourism Center, Efteni Lake and Hot Springs, Konuralp Museum, Clumsy, Heel, Kardüz, Odayeri, Torkul Highlands

EDIRNE

Selimiye Mosque, Rustempasa Caravanserai, K?rkp?nar Oil Wrestling, Sunflower-Brass and White Cheese Production, Uzunköprü.

ELAZIG

Harput Castle and the City, Keban Dam Lake, Caspian Lake, ice cave, Çaydaç?ra Basic Fashion, network Baths, Hazarbaba Ski Center, Arap Baba tomb

ERZURUM

Palandöken Ski Center, Twin Minaret Madrasah, Tortum, Oltu stone, Aziziye The bastion, the three Vaults, Cag Kebab, Tray Minaret (Clock Tower), Erzurum Castle, Rustem Pa?a Bazaar, Erzurum Congress Building, Çobandede Bridge, Narman Peribacalari

ERZINCAN

Girlevik Falls, Ek?isu Spa, Tulum Cheese, Copper, Stud Lake, Ice Caves, a roll (Kemaliye) Folklore

ESKISEHIR

Meerschaum, Badger Creek, Midas, Temple, Anadolu University, Yunus Emre Tomb, History of Wood Market Houses, Yaz?l?kaya Phrygian Valley (Midas City), Scabies, Couples and Yar?kç? Baths, Çatac?k Forests and Recreation Area, meat biscuits, Inonu Glider Camp, Sivrihisar Armenian Church

GAZIANTEP

Pistachio, Pistachio Baklava, Ancient Cities of Zeugma-Carchemish-Yesemek, Yarn Industry, Dülükbaba Karpuzatan and Recreation Areas, Pistachio Cuisine

GUMUSHANE

Tomara and Torul Falls, the ancient city of Satara, rosehip tea and marmalade, ?mera Abbey and Houses of Gumushane

G?RESUN

Giresun Castle, Nut Production, Hay?rs?z Island, ?ebinkarahisar Fortress, Vault, Bektas, Gölyan?, Kulakkaya and Sisda?? Highlands, Aksu, Festivals, Fountains Waterfall Aygir, Giresun Castle, Gedikkaya

HAKKARI

Cilo and Sat Mountains, Glacial Lakes, Zap Water, Reverse Lale (Tulip Weeping), Semdinli Honey, Mountain Hyacinth, Hakkari Kilims

HATAY

Antakya Mosaic Museum, the War Picnic Area, Arsuz beaches, Iskenderun Iron and Steel Works, So?ukoluk Promenade Place, Kunefe dessert, the Church of Saint Peter, Erzin Spas

IGDIR

Cotton Production

ISPARTA

Lake National Park is an Aquarius, Isparta Rose, hand-woven carpets Isparta, Golcuk Egirdir and lakes, Isparta, Diamond, written Canyon National Park, P?nargözü Cave, Davraz Mountain Ski Center

ISTANBUL

Topkap? Palace, Blue Mosque and the Suleymaniye Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Grand Bazaar, M?s?rçar??s?, Istiklal Caddesi, Dolmabahce and Ciragan Palaces, Star-Gulhane – Emirgan Parks, Camlica Hill, Princes Islands, Rumeli Fortress, Piyerloti the Golden Horn, Leander’s Tower, Istanbul Strait, Miniature, Walls of Istanbul, the Galata Tower, Sultanahmet Square, Hagia Eirene Museum, Eyup Sultan Mosque, the Bosphorus Bridge, Bozdogan Aqueduct, the Fener Greek Patriarchate

IZMIR

Izmir Clock Tower, the Velvet Castle, Virgin Mary’s House, Culture, Ancient Cities Ephesus-Pergamon, Balcova spas Kemeralt?, Çamalt? Salt and Bird Sanctuary, Cesme Castle, Cord Length, Elevator, Black Eunuch Han, Birgi Cakiraga House, Meatballs, Socket and Kemalpasa Desserts, Foca, Cesme, Seferihisar, Selcuk, Alacati Tourism Centers

KAHRAMANMARAS

Maras ice cream, Döngel Caves, Afsin-Elbistan Thermal Power Plant, Maras Castle, tarhana, the imam of dairy

KARABUK

Safranbolu Houses, Safranbolu Turkish Delight, Iron and Steel Factory

KARAMAN

Hatuniye Madrasa, Yerköprü Falls, Karaman Sheep, Turkey Biscuit Production Center, Karaman Diamond, Karamani the Sheep

KARS

Citadel of Kars, Ani Ruins, Sar?kam?? Ski Center, Cheddar Cheese

KASTAMONU

Hell Creek Canyon, Ilgarini Cave, Tosya rice, garlic Stone Bridge, Ilgaz Mountain National Park, Rural pita, the sphere is copper

KAYSERI

Mountain Ski Center Erciyes, Kayseri bacon, Bunyan carpet, Sultansazligi Bird Paradise, Kapuzba?? Falls, Gesi Ties, city of Talas, Gevher Nesibe Medical Center

KIRIKKALE

Gun Factories, Oil Refinery

KIRKLARELI

Dupnisa Cave, Alpullu Sugar Factory, Hamitabat Natural Gas Plant, as regions of Dereköy-??neada-Kiyikoy-Kastro Places

KIRSEHIR

Tomb of Ahi Ervan, Hirfanl? Dam, Lake Seyfe, Petlas Rubber Factory, Cacabey Madrasa, Mucur Underground City

Kocaeli (Izmit)

Candy Delight, Hazelnut Degirmendere, Hannibal’s Tomb, Petrochemical and Automotive Industry, Osman Hamdi Bey at the Museum, the Old Castle Castle, Clock Tower, Hereke Carpet, Kandira yogurt, Abdülazizin Hunting Lodge, the Kaiser Wilhelm Mansion, Ball?kayalar Valley and inhabit Nature Parks, Darica Bird Paradise, Masukiye, Kartepe and Highland Lamb, Shepherd, Mustafa Pasha Complex, Cherry Semi-mca

KONYA

Mevlana Tomb and Mosque of Alaeddin Hill, Karatay Madrasa, the ancient city of Çatalhöyük, Aksehir Nasreddin Hodja Festival, Balatini Cave, Ilgin Spas

KILIS

Kilis Quilts

KUTAHYA

Porcelain and Tile Manufacturing, the Commander in Chief of National Park, Kütahya Castle, the ancient city of Aizanoi, Tuncbilek-Seyitö mer Lignite, Tavsanli roasted chickpeas, and Gordes carpets Simav

Malatia

Malatya apricots, Günp?nar Falls, Pinarbasi Promenade Place, Aslantepe Ancient City, the Karakaya Dam, Somuncu Baba Mosque and Fish Lake, the Slide (Takaz) Place of Recreation, Arapgir Square Bridge, Battalgazi Caravanserai, Sultansuyu Stud Farm, Bath Darende Bitter

MANISA

The ancient city of Sard, Mesir Toothpaste, Spil Mountain National Park, grape and tobacco production, Soma’n?n lignite, Weeping Rock (Nyobe) Muradiye and the Great Mosque Complex, Vestel Factory

MARDIN

Deyrul-Zafaran Monastery, Mardin Castle, Stone Houses, Filigree Silver Processing, Tare and Zinciriye Madrasah Ruins

Mersin (Icel)

Maiden’s Castle, Heaven and Hell Pits, Silifke yogurt, Anamur, banana, citrus and Greenhouse Production, Goksu River, Sertavul Gate, the Tarsus Falls, Çaml?yayla (Namrun)

MUGLA

Bodrum, Marmaris, Datca, Fethiye, Dalyan, Gocek as Tourist Attractions, Butterfly Valley, Bodrum Castle, the White Bodrum Homes, Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology, Saklikent Canyon, Dead Sea Mud Bath, Iztuzu Beach, Cedar Island, Knidos-Letoon-Caunos -Labranda-Keramos Ancient Cities, Milas carpets, Fisherman of Halicarnassus, Marmaris Pine Honey, sweet gum tree, and Oil

MUS

Mus Plain, the Statue of Manzikert, Gas Lake

NEVSEHIR

Fairy chimneys, underground cities deep wells, and clotted cream, Tomb of Haji Bektashi Veli, Vineyards and Wine, Potato Production, Testi Kebab, Labour Pottery Avanos, Goreme Open Air Museum, cik Springs, Ortahisar and Uchisar Rock Carved Castles, Historic Houses Mustafapasa , Zelve

NIGDE

Clock Tower, Aladaglar, Bolkar Mountains, Turkey, Apple and Potato Store, Ku?kayas? Cemetery, Hot Springs Ciftehan

ARMY

Nuts and Honey Turkey Store, Bob Hill, summerhouse Picnic Area, Yason Cape and the Church, Highland Keyfalan

OSMANIYE

Toprakkale Castle, Castle Hemite, Karatepe-Aslantas Open Air Museum, the Karachai and ?arlak Falls, this mountain plateau, Haruniye Spa, Groundnut Production

RIZE

Tea Gardens, Kaçkar Mountains, Highlands and ChamliHemshin Ayder, honey, Zilkale and glacial lakes, waterfalls Elevit, Palovit Highland, Storm Creek Valley, Rize Castle, Rize Cloth

SAKARYA

Sapanca and Poyrazla Lakes, Akyazi Kuzuluk Springs, Sakarya River, Potato and Onion Production

SAMSUN

Tobacco Production, Wednesday and Bafra Delta Plains, Basin and Ladik thermal springs, Ataturk Memorial, the Bafra pita, Vezirkö Pru District Samovar

SINOP

Sinop Castle, Boyabat rice, Inceburun (Turkey, the North Point), Ayancik lumber, Erfelek Tatl?ca Falls, ?nalt? Cave, Akgöl, Sinop Prison, Linen Production

SIVAS

Buruciye Madrasa, Gok Madrasa, Kangal Shepherd Dog, Kangal Fish Spa, Divrigi Iron, Pir Sultan Abdal and love Veysel, Divrigi Great Mosque and its portal, Twin Minaret Madrasah, S?z?r Falls (Gemerek), Tödürge Lake (Zara)

SIIRT

Oveys Tomb, Büryan Kebab, Pilaf Curtain, Clock Tower, Siirt woolen blankets, the joint Castle, Billoris Baths, kilim is Jirkan

TEKIRDAG

Sarkoy grapes and wine, Tekirdag Raki, Sunflower, Tekirdag meatball, Rákóczi Museum, Mosque Rustempasa

SLAPS

Tobacco Production, Niksar Ayvaz Water, Almus Dam Lake, Baker Cave, Topcam Plateau, Zinav Lake, Gok Madrasa, Tokat Çemeni, Water Palace (Sebastapolis) Tokat Kebab, Writing Production

TRABZON

Sumela Monastery, Ataturk Pavilion, Uzungol, Zaganos Bridge, Hamsiköy rice pudding, Galley Plateau, Trabzon bracelet, Akcaabat Meatballs, Boztepe, Halva and Vakf?kebir Concrete Wood Bread, St. Sophia Museum, Horon, Kisarna (Bengisu) Mineral waters, the Ottoman Sultan Murat Plateau, Girls Monastery, Trabzonspor

TUNCELI

East Valley National Park, Mount Smooth Father, the link Il?cas?, East Cells, single-threaded Web garlic

USAK

Leather, Rug and Blanket Industry, Sugar Factory (Turkey’s first Sugar Factory), Akse Çaml???, Hammam Strait Healing Waters

VAN

Van cats, Akdamar Island, Lake Van, Ho?ap Castle, Muradiye and Bendimahi Falls

YALOVA

Thermal Spas, Pear Kap?calar?, Ataturk House Museum

YOZGAT

Clock Tower, Yozgat Çaml??? National Park, Kestrel Ruins (Keykavus Castle), Akdag Forests, car, test, and Tandoori Kebab, Mad?mak, Ceska Castle, Turkey’s first World 3 National Park summerhouse

ZONGULDAK

Hard coal (Karaelmas), Cehennema?z?, Gökgöl and ?na?z? Caves

?ANLIURFA

Urfa Castle, Urfa place at night, Khalil-ul-Rahman Lake (Fish Lake), the ruins of Harran, Ceylanpinar Breeding Farm, Raw Meatballs, Bald Ibis birds, Halfeti Houses, Cotton Production, Hz.Eyüp Cave, ?uayip Cave and City.

SIRNAK

Mount Cudi, Kasrik Strait, Habur Border Gate, Mem-u Zin Tomb

For my next problem I have to figure out what to do about the bathroom door. I grab the puzzle section of the newspaper. Evelyn looks at me like I am weird. I repeatedly fold it in half. “What are you doing?” “I am folding a doorstop for the bathroom.” “Good idea!” Well, that is really a big part of what I do for a living. I look at the tools available and decide how to use them to make things better. Like the pillow I improvised from a briefcase yesterday. I am not saying it is a brilliant idea, but I am pleased I thought of it.

We have breakfast in the room. We share between us three oranges. One has very little juice and I suspect is a good deal older than the other two. After breakfast we finish packing and head for the bus terminal where we hop a bus for Sardis (a.k.a. Sart).

We get off the bus and walk to the ruins. We check our heavy backpacks at the ticket booth. Then we look at the complex. The first thing we get to is the Hall for the Imperial Cult. The next thing that we see is the Sammons, the retired school teacher and his wife. Once again our paths crossed. Actually they probably crossed several times, but frequently we would not see each other because we were at the point where they cross hours apart. We only really notice them when our paths cross and we are at the crossing point at the same time. That was what happened about now. Of course, if we consider time as if it were a fourth spatial dimension, then our paths would not really be crossing unless we were both there at the same time. So I guess the usual meaning for us seeing each other when our paths cross really makes a sophisticated assumption about space and time.

Anyway we said “hello” and compared travel notes. Then we continued on through the Hall for the Imperial Cult. It has swimming pool and imperial Ionic columns in front in two layers. Much of the decoration still has Greek text. Continuing on there is a Synagogue, but since its entrance is at the far end you must circle it around Jewish shops like Jacob’s Paintshop, Hardware, Shop of Jacob, the elder of the synagogue. Entering the synagogue you do not see any stars of David. Perhaps that is a symbol established in a later year. The decorations are in large part geometrical ones made from arcs of circles. At one end there are statues of double lions facing in opposite directions. A large workbench-like object is said to be for offerings. (Offerings? Were there still offerings at that time?) It has lion paws for its feet. At a kilometer or two distance is the Temple of Artemis, a large ruin with two large stone columns and a good deal more. You have to climb the hill behind it to see the whole layout. We will be seeing another Temple to Artemis that will be more impressive; in fact it is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

On the way back to the ticket stand we see more columns and rocks by the side of the road that we must have missed when we walked by the first time. This must have been the temple district.

We talked to the Sammons in both directions. They are Pat and Mary Lynne Sammon. Pat taught Latin, but there was not much demand for this talent so he taught mathematics and other subjects. Part of what we talked about is how much popular Turkish radio stations sound like our pop stations and how the world is homogenizing. We picked up our luggage and the bus to Izmir was right on time. We grabbed it and paid for our seats. I worked on my log. It occurred to me that we were all thirsty after our walk. The buses provide chilled water in foil covered cups. I grabbed four and passed them out to the two couples. I think they turn the air conditioning on for five minutes each hour but after being in the hot sun it was worth it. We see an awful lot of American brands here. We pass a building decorated with an eight-foot mock-up of a can of Pringles Potato Chips. How do they fit into Turkish culture? About the only thing that seems Turkish about them is the moustache on the man on the can.

We get to the Izmir bus terminal and find the bus to Selcuk (actually someone asked us where we were going and then led us there). We paid our tickets and boarded. Evelyn saw a bread stand outside our window and since it was 12:30 and we were unlikely to stop for lunch she went and got bread. It was cheap, but not all that good. For 160,000TL she got two toasted sesame bagels (described on May 1) and a sort of cheese thing in phylo dough. It would have been good fresh, but it was all stale and dry. It was filling, however. (Later when I got one of the sesame bagel things that was closer to fresh, it was a lot better.)

Somebody got on and tried to sell us a room at a hotel called Nazar in Selcuk. I had seen hotels that that swarm you as you arrive on the bus, but it is really unusual to start trying to sell you before you even get to the city. The hotel business must be really cutthroat in Turkey. The place really was recommended in Lonely Planet and he was offering it at 4 million a night. We agreed to look at the place. How wrong could we go for $16? The Lonely Planet recommended it at $25.

There was a cute little boy on bus with a rash on his face. He was walking up and back on the aisle and whenever I saw him I made a different face. It calmed him down and tested my creativity. I napped a bit and apparently the boy came around to offer Evelyn and me a taste of his lollypop while I was asleep. Evelyn woke me up as we entered the town. There is a hill with a very large citadel. You can see it from the road. It looks like some of the walled forts in India. You can see it from the outside, but it is not open to the public. Ayasoluk is the name of the hill so I suppose you could call it it the Ayasoluk Fort, but there is no name for it given in the Lonely Planet.

Leaving buses can be a sudden affair here. We entered Selcuk and were sort of tapped on the shoulder. Moments later we were off the bus. I made one last face at the boy as I was leaving. We were met by the owner of our hotel and were led there where we inspected the rooms, found them to be reasonable, and were invited up to the terrace for tea. This was my first taste of the apple tea supposedly so popular here. It is quite good. It tastes a lot about hot apple cider. Some people claim that it really only a tourist-related item. Others say it really has caught on with the locals. It tastes better than any tea that I remember having at home.

A brother of the owner talked to us about conditions in Turkey and anything else that the four of us had questions about. We explained that were not really travelling with the Sammons, we just repeatedly ran into them.

Back at the room I took a shower. There are two taps. If you turn on the one on the left the water is always cold, if you turn on the one on the right the water is room temperature. Perhaps the water is not hot all day.

We went out to walk to get the lay of the land and found ourselves in a touristy section. This is one of two parallel streets that have a lot of restaurants and things set up to cater to the tourist trade. The other one street over has the remains of a Roman aqueduct. Between them they seem to be preparing for some sort of celebration. There is also a big outdoor film screen being put up. As we were trying some other street, I commented to Evelyn that what we had seen was probably part of the aqueduct. Like with the camels she did not believe me that we had passed ruins. She missed them entirely. I said yes we had passed some ruins. Hadn’t she seen the stork on top of one? She hadn’t but she knew that one of the attractions to the area was to see the storks nesting on top of the aqueduct. I hadn’t read that, I just saw a stork on an aqueduct. Now she wanted to see so we went back. Indeed several of the aqueduct supports had stork nests. Most of the aqueduct is gone but the supports are still there. I got some pictures.

Evelyn wanted to find the tourist agency and only had a vague idea how to do that. We went searching and found it. Evelyn asked some questions and got a map. I got a sort of chachka, a woven map pattern. I will decorate my workstation at work. Now what. I suggested sitting in a park we passed. It is near a playground where some children are playing football (what you call soccer, Yank). As we write a couple little girls of 13 come around to watch us write in our logs and to ask about us. They want to see the Lonely Planet. Eventually conversation runs out and they just sort of stare at us. How can we be entertaining? I pull out my pad and rip off a square of paper and fold a flapping bird. I take it origami is new in their lives. There are four children and I fold each a figure. They go off, one at a time, and bring us rosebuds from the bushes. I am not sure they are supposed to be doing this, but they want to give us something to show their thanks. I fold four figures and we are given three rosebuds. I just wish it were larger paper. The figures are imperfect because they are too tiny and rushed. A couple of men see the tail end and say I should teach the kids how to fold the figures. I tell him I would like to. They ask how I learned and I say I have been folding since I was a small boy. Origami is perfect for a poor country like Turkey. There is a lot of paper available and otherwise children probably have a hard time getting toys. If they learned origami they could make their own toys. I should fold children more origami.

It is now about 5:20 and we just had some bread for lunch. We find a cafe with outdoor dining. I order a spicy salad and get served Haydari instead. Fine. Evelyn ordered and got mushroom salad. For main course she got lamb on bamboo skewers. I got mixed grill. For once it was a substantial portion. The wind blew up while we were sitting they and blew over flower vases, napkin racks, menus, etc. The cafe was a total mess. I had apple tea for desert; Evelyn had Turkish coffee. When the bill came they had charged me for the salad I ordered and not the tea or coffee. So the bill came to 2.3 million and should have come to 2.4 million. I could have tried to explain but decided it was not worth it. I left 2.5 million and had the waiter keep the change. We stopped on the way back to the room to get water. 150,000TL is a little high. I asked how much it was and the woman behind the counter showed me by pulling out a 100,000TL and a 50,000TL note. I gave her 250,000TL and she gave me back the 100,000TL note.

I think by this point I can declare victory over my cold. I am 48 hours into the cold and cannot detect symptoms. That is a real relief. The cold I got on our Southeast US trip lasted me four months! This one lasted me a day and a half.

We were sitting writing when there was a sort of ruckus in the street. It was sort of a rudimentary parade. There were a couple of people with a banner and a truck carrying children. Mothers were bringing children and putting them on the back of the truck. I think it was some sort of political campaigning.  Evelyn thinks it is an ad for beer. Most likely it is a circumcision day celebration.

I wrote for a while longer, finally getting caught up about 9:45pm. I celebrated with the rest of the hazelnut cookies I bought in Canakkale and a can of Cappy Cherry.

Bringing the short-wave instead of a Walkman, speakers, and a few cassettes has been something of a bust. I can get only three English language short-wave stations: 15.575 for BBC, 15.640 for Israel, and 11.850 for Voice of Russia. Only the last comes in really at listenable strength.

Let’s see, if this is Monday this must be Selcuk. Salihli was not really a tourist town. They had one site several miles away. So the accommodations were not very good. There were one low-end place and two middle to high-end hotels. Selcuk seems to have a lot of hotels and much more competition and as a result it is a lot easier to get a comfortable room.

The one thing that seems to be a universal problem is that the covers do not really cover the bed. A little tossing in the night and your legs or arms are uncovered. The other problem in many places is that you cannot sit straight on the toilet. It is too close to the wall or the sink or the cutoff for the bidet so you have to sit at an angle. These are all minor inconveniences.

Selcuk is set in a hilly region. Mary Lynne asked someone yesterday the name of these mountains. Turkey has mountains and they are name. This is just a hilly region and there is no name for the hills, they are too insignificant. It is interesting, but none of the people want to be in the European Union. The people I have talked to are all relatively pleased that the country was rejected. They think that the country has resources that have not been tapped yet and the do not want to give them up to the Europeans. They think that the country can become rich if it stays on its own.

The film Prince of Darkness was about alternate interpretations of Christianity and it talked about a mystical “Brotherhood of Sleep” who knew the true purpose of Christianity to fight an evil force. I wonder if the inspiration came from the local Grotto of the Seven Sleepers. The legend says that agents of the Emperor Decius, trying to suppress Christianity pursued seven Christian boys. The boys hid in a cave where they could not be retrieved. The pursuers could not get the boys so the cave was sealed so the boys could not dig their way out. Two centuries passed. One day there was an earthquake and the wall blocking the cave crumbled. The seven youths arose from a sleep and walked to town to find their friends and food. Instead they found the town was now Christian, but all their friends were long dead. They lived out the rest of their lives with these strangers and when they died they were buried in the cave. This could also be the inspiration for Rip Van Winkle.

We hear the people just outside the door going to breakfast. They sound Australian. It is funny how few Americans we see here. I guess it makes sense that we would see a lot of Australians and New Zealanders, but I would have expected to see a slightly higher proportion of Americans. We ran into one set of Canadians (whom I consider to be “Americans” coming as they do from North America, though they don’t use that term to apply to themselves) but I don’t think we have run into many other travelers from the US. At least none long enough to talk to for long.

We have to ask at the desk if there is a bus to the ruins at Ephesus.

We go up to breakfast. Everywhere Turkish breakfast seems much the same. It is bread, hardboiled egg, tomato, jelly, honey, butter, cheese, and in this case cheese. I am eating it leisurely and the owner comes to our table. You have less than five minutes before your ride leaves. Okay. I have a ride? Well they did say something quickly about a shuttle to the ruins. I had thought it was an option. Suddenly I have a ride leaving in minutes. Evelyn says to send them on, she cannot possibly be ready in five minutes. “Well, maybe we give you a little more time.” I have a ride? Well, I am ready to go in the five minutes and it takes Evelyn a little longer but we are the in the lobby and there is a woman who will take us to the ruins. “We must hurry because there will be crowds at the ruins.” It is just us and the Sammons. So we pile into the van and in a few minutes we are at Ephesus.

“We pick you up in two hours and take you to my carpet shop. I am married to cousin of owner of your hotel. You don’t have to buy. You buy, we smile. You don’t buy. We smile.” So that’s it. As far as I have been able to tell, since Turkey was rejected from the European Union, the government would like better economic relations with the United State. The individual Turk has his own desires. He would like that Mark and Evelyn Leeper would come and visit his carpet shop. Right now the economic plans are on hold and the country is working full time to get Mark and Evelyn Leeper into carpet shops. Turkey has more carpet salesmen than the US has lawyers but otherwise the two professions have the same standard of ethics. In the US lawyers actually have to chase ambulances while in Turkey carpet salesmen just lay in wait under the nearest rock for a tourist to come by.

Pat and Mary Lynne take over this delicate negotiation. “But we don’t know how long we want to be at Ephesus.” “That is Okay, two hours is plenty.” “We want to go at our own pace.” “Then we cannot know when to pick you up.” “We don’t want to be picked up, and we don’t want to go to a carpet shop.” “Will you take my card if you change your mind?” I take the card.

A street boy is selling books and maps of Ephesus. He wants a million for a map, I offer 500,000TL. I get the map. On the way in we see at the admission box the same map is selling for 750,000TL.

What is Ephesus? It is the best-preserved Roman Empire city in the world. If you want to know what life was like in the time of the Roman Empire, this is the place. It recovered from an attack by Cimmerians in the 7th century BC to become prosperous in the 6th Century. It was ruled by the Lydians and the Persians. Alexander captured the city with no resistance but when he died the city went to Lysimachos. He brought the city to new artistic heights. Rome later ruled Ephesus but it was attacked and destroyed by the Goths in 262 AD.

Our first stop is at the theater. It was built in the third century BC. It held 24,000. It was built in the shape of a huge parabolic reflector. The structure is good for the view and better for the acoustics. It was used for plays and for more violent entertainment like gladiatorial fights and wild animal fighting. We first sit up in the peanut gallery but also stand on the stage. Voices really carry to the audience and back. After a while we move on. We were wondering however how they convince a slave to die on stage. They used to really kill a slave for realism.

The next biggee was the Library of Celsus, built 117-120 AD. It is a big two-story affair with a facade with two layers of pillars. Across the street from the library was a building identified in all sources as a bordello. On it are signs saying it was falsely identified as a bordello, but was really just a fancy house with a lot of rooms. You can believe whom you wish. Being right across the street from the library may have led to interesting dilemmas as to which way to for knowledge.

The alleged bordello was where excavators found a small statue of Priapos, a little man with an enormous phallus. A little further on there was the Latrina. There are no dividers between the seats and commoners and Emperors used it alike, though presumably the Emperor on the go could go to the head of the line for immediate seating.

The academic baths feature rooms to heat up and cool off after baths: a tepiariam, a calidarium, and a frigidariam. Most of the third floor has disappeared, but the lower floors could be identified. By this point the other tour groups were beginning to be a pain.

We walked further ending up going through a field where we saw a particularly well-armored thistle. Mary Lynne looked at it and dubbed it a triffid. Evelyn and I looked at each other. “She knows about triffids.” A triffid is a particularly nasty carnivorous plant from a novel by John Wyndham. One of my supervisors at one point asked me what the novel I was reading The Day of the Triffids was about. I stupidly said it was about man-eating plants and she sort of gave me a sour look. But actually that is not really what it is about. It is about societies and what makes them work and fail. A huge disaster leaves everybody but a handful of people on earth blind. Civilization immediately falls apart and small societies have to reform from start. Round 1 is whether your society falls apart of its own weight. Some do, some don’t. Societies that are entirely unselfish and altruistic fail, for example. Round 2 is whether your society can survive conflicts with other societies. Then if you have survived the first two rounds the question becomes can you survive really nasty disasters out there, worse than people. That is really where triffids come in. It is a really good novel that was the basis for a very mediocre film version and a very good BBC television version.

The thing to do if you have to push past a group is you say “Pardon,” in French with a French accent. If the group is French they know you are not, but they will like you because you are at least speaking their language. If they are German they do not forgive you, but at least they blame the French.

Toward the end of the visit is another theater, this one was at one time covered and had a capacity of about 1500 people. This one was used for concerts and for meetings. We were sitting in the theater when it started to rain. Evelyn and I whipped umbrellas out of our photovests. Mary Lynne was impressed. “Where did you hide those umbrellas?” I didn’t tell her my canteen was in the same pocket. My vest carries a water bottle, an umbrella, field glasses, a camera, a walkie-talkie, spare batteries for my camera and palmtop, earplugs, notepads, a palmtop and the Lonely Planet guide, and I can stash my jacket in the back pocket. I may be missing something. But it all comfortably fits on me. I feel like Batman.

Well, from there we start walking back to town hoping to see the Cave of the Seven Sleepers and the Temple of Artemis along the way. It is a long walk in what becomes the hot sun. If that were not parching enough, I am still on antihistamine. Very quickly my mouth goes dry. When I take a drink of water it feels like pudding. Mary Lynne is shorter than we are but Pat is over six feet with longer legs. He sets the pace. Often he is a fair distance in front of the rest of us. He says he can’t walk any slower.

We find the cave of the Seven Sleepers eventually. We cannot get inside as there is a grate blocking the way. We climbed up above the cave and looked down at it. People had written prayers on cloth and tied them around the grating above. On the way down we got some cold water. It was a bit overpriced at 250,000TL/1.5 Liter but it was good cold.

It was an even longer walk to the Temple of Artemis. The temple did not look its best today. In fact it had not looked very good since it was burnt down in 356 BC by headline-hound Herostratos. He wanted to be famous and he was like the guy who killed John Lennon. This was once one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It is lost to us in large part because it was disassembled by Christians who were building the local St. John Basillica. There appears to be a belief that of you are stealing for your religion it is really okay. A lot of our history has been lost by plunderers trying to please their gods.

A tout selling flutes asked me what country I was from. It is always a mistake to tell since they have a spiel in your language, whatever it might be. I looked at him strangely when he asked in different languages. I finally decided to tell him. “Magyar Repooblic. Hongary.” Mary Lynne said smiling “Buda-Pesh.” There was a little too much grinning and he knew we were lying. Well, lying is a strong word. My mother’s mother was born in Buda-Pesh. Her father was born in Baja. That is Baja, Hungary. But the flute salesman knew no Hungarian.

We continued our walk to town. It was not a lot further beyond the temple. We wanted to go to the museum, but lunch came first. I had Haydari and Octopus Salad. I mean, where else can you get octopus salad? Evelyn had Kofte. We continued on to the Museum of Ephesus. This is a museum to display the are found at Ephesus, as excavations are continuing. The exhibits include statues found at the site. Among the ones more familiar was Eros on a Dolphin. This motif could be familiar to the reader for the Alan Ladd, Sophia Loren film Boy on a Dolphin. Well, they couldn’t call the film Eros on a Dolphin, now could they? There is also the Priapos with the large phallus. There are various carved heads. There is an Ethnographic Section with exhibits of life in the country. There are farm implements, there is a barbershop, that sort of thing. There is the head and arm from an emperor statue seven meters high. It is truly of impressive scale.

We got some small gifts for people at the museum. Outside we sat around waiting for one person or another. A shoeshine boy came up to me. The material of my shoes is leather, but not with the usual finish and I would not trust a shoeshine on the street. The boy asked me where I was from, again I was from the Magyar Republic. He wanted to give me a free sample of what he could do for my shoes on the top of one shoe. Of course once I let him do that the shoes would never look right unless he did this to the whole of both shoes, perhaps not even then if he did not know what he was doing. This struck me as a particularly bad idea. I got up walked away from him. After all there is little point in getting these shoes polished if tomorrow they would just look dusty again.

The rest of the day does not bear a lot of description. It was farbling over what we would do the next day, what Pat and Mary Lynne would do, etc. We had different ways to do various sites to choose from. From about 6pm on we were in our room writing.

I finished writing about 10pm and read some article I had brought and saved on my palmtop.

We went up early to breakfast. Meals are served on the roof terrace. Then down to get our luggage. I guess it called “luggage” meaning “that which is lugged.” We went down to the desk to pay and there was nobody there. We rang the doorbell and still nobody came. I took off my pack and ran upstairs. I paid the owner. He asked where we were going next. I drew a blank. I could not think of the name of the next place. And he could tell I did not know it. “Konya,” I said. That wasn’t a lie. We will get to Konya eventually. “You have a ticket?” “Yes, we are all set.” Now he probably knew no bus was leaving for Konya, but he let it pass. I got halfway down the stairs and the name Pamukkale came back to me. I could turn around and tell him, but that would seem even more stupid. One of the great joys of living is the knowledge that most people in front of whom you have made a complete ass of yourself will never see you again and don’t even think about you. At least that was true until the Internet came along.

Well, I got downstairs got on my pack and we headed off for the bus station. We pass by a school. Instead of bells ringing they play Fur Elise when you go between classes. It sounds like a good idea gone bad. If they had different melodies that would be one thing. This way the kids will always associate Fur Elise with something painful.

There is a sculpture in front of the school showing a head split apart and held together by a blindfold over the eyes. It is about four feet from top to bottom. Evelyn’s interpretation is that it is a human rights message. Amazing how when we first see artwork that is abstract we assume it agrees with our own philosophy. To me what is keeping things together is restraints placed by others.

We got to the bus station early and sat and waited. The Farises showed up a little later, also going to Pamukkale. We talked to them. It turns out that we are taking a minibus. There are only a handful of people going to Pamukkale. I thin that Evelyn is not really happy about this. A minibus cannot offer either the comfort or the service of the big buses. I think we have grown used to the big buses, which are really the most popular means of travel in Turkey.

Maybe it is a sign of age but I am enjoying the travel days more than I used to. You actually do learn a fair amount looking from the window of a bus. They are not such strenuous days. The thought of climbing long distances uphill as we are doing so many days of this trip is just not appealing to me. Turkish buses are a really enticing way to spend a day. Travel days even give me a chance to get caught up on my log.

In the bus the discussion turns to what a theologian really does. (Peter was first a theologian, then a school administrator, and then a high school English teacher.) He studies history but also looks at systems of religious thought. We have a discussion with the guy sitting next to us in the minibus. He is on a four-month vacation. They went to places we had been on other trips. They had been to Kenya. They saw lions trying to take down an elephant, or so they claim. The elephants were in the brush. The lions were sitting and just waiting for the elephants to come out. One came out of the brush, sensed the lions and trumpeted. The elephants formed a circle facing out so the lions would have to attack right into those tusks. Ah, elephant is tough meat anyway.

After a while we stop for a beverage. I have a cherry nectar, my favorite drink in Turkey. Apple tea comes second. But neither is really Turkish. We talk with the Farises about opera. As we go the roads get a lot worse. We are getting into the interior, toward the real Turkey though we won’t see much of it firsthand on the tourist routes. We can see some of it from the bus windows. After a while we pull off the main road to a side road. We pass through some towns. I am a little surprised to see school children in jackets and ties in small villages, both because it is so formal and because it is so Western.

As we get to Pamukkale we see what looks like icy cliffs incongruously in the hot sun. It is actually a calcium precipitate. They are the big attraction in this area. As we pull in it is almost like being in Agra, India, again. Touts trying to get you to go to their hotel swarm the minibus. We and the Farises go to the Ozturk. They had it recommended by the owners of the last place. We have a bunch of people carry our luggage, unrequested. Shirley and I check out the rooms. It is pleasant enough and fairly Western in style. I tell Evelyn it is along the lines of a Ramadan Inn. She does not get it. It is going to be a long trip.

The staff of pension seem to be all on family. We get a very homey family feel. They have us choosing our dinner before we have even decided on a room. We pick fresh trout, Mother’s special kabap, yogurt, and tomato salad. We don’t even have a room number yet so they dub us the dark-hairs and the Farises as the gray-hairs.

We drop our stuff and get ready to go explore. Back on the street it feels like a dead New Mexico town. The sun is beating down, there is nobody on the streets but flies. We walk to the bus station. There is somebody resting out front. We go into the office. “Hello?” No response. We wait about 15 minutes and nobody shows up. Now what? We talk to the young man outside bus station, pulling Turkish phrases from the book. He looks at us but does not react. We ask next door at the little market (these little markets are not like 7-Elevens, they have about 16 square feet of floor space for the customer. They have just about enough space to get to the cooler. They tell us we can get bus reservations at the Koray. That is next door to our pension. As we are walking back we run into the Farises so go as a group. We go to the Koray to make arrangements. It is a little fancier than our pension. The man behind the desk makes arrangements. He also tells us that the Ozturk owners are lazy and do not run their pension very well. He gives them a list of hotels in other cities that are good, but he says do not show the list to the owners of the Ozturk. The capper was when he pulled out a half-inch thick stack of Koray business cards and asks the Farises to give them to their next hotel. I guess hotels are a cutthroat business.

We continue our exploration walking toward the white cliffs. It is a little problem figuring how to get in, but I suggest we go the way the tour buses are letting people off. We pay to get in. There is a long path up the cliff right through the white area. We climb part of the way up and have to get our shoes wet crossing one white pool. The water washes over the side of the cliff leaving calcium residue. A man with a whistle tells us we have to take our shoes off and climb the path barefoot. Peter is well-used to walking barefoot. He did it as a child jumping from rocks to rocks and running through fields. Evelyn had done some barefoot walking delivering mail. Shirley and I are complete tenderfeet. I have it worse than she does because I weigh more than she does by a fair amount and both she and I have dainty little feet. We step on something sharp and it hurts. A lot. And the way up has smooth patches moderately painful to walk on and gravelly parts which hurt like the dickens. It was about a 45-minute climb and it was painful. Great, I am spending my vacation ripping up the bottoms of my feet to climb a slime cliff. Evelyn tells me it is not a slime cliff. Sure enough the Lonely Planet corrects me. The water is scummy, not slimey. The European visitors must do more barefoot walking than I do. I was really happy to reach the top. Shoes are such a convenience. The pools are an interesting shape. They have walls around them from evaporation from the outer edge.

It was a real pleasure stopping for a drink of Coke. The topic of discussion was Shakespeare interpretations. Also movies. We continued on to the Hieropolis, and some very well preserved ruins. These had been Roman baths and a cure center. There is a Byzantine church, there is another latrina. There was some good photography here.

The time came to go down and we were not sure we could find the other route. Also we could not find how far it was. Eventually we decided on a cab. I sat in front with the driver while the others piled in the back. The driver gave us freshening cologne like on the buses. The driver put rock music on the radio. I asked for Turkish. First he put on a radio station, then he popped in a cassette. It had a really good beat. He snapped the fingers on one hand to the beat. I started snapping my fingers to the same beat. I did it with both hands. On the straightaway he took his hands off the wheel and either snapped with both fingers or clapped. I did a sort of modified Zorba the Greek dance only sitting down. The two of us were having a high old time. Evelyn asked how he was steering. I told her I would give her a hint.

When he clapped, that was not the sound of one hand clapping.

The driver left us off in town. He was still snapping his fingers as he drove away. Back at the Ozturk a shower felt very good.

Evelyn came out from the shower dressed for swimming. She thought it would feel good. Usually I am the one lobbying for us to swim. I was honor-bound to join her. Down at the pool it was another matter. The local water is full of calcium and is cloudy. There was no way to tell how deep he water was. I would have gone in up to my waist, but I did not want to dive in where I did not know how deep it was. And that went double for Evelyn. We t by the side of the pool and talked. The Farises went out to try to get money at the bank, but failed. We talked to them for a while and then went in to get dressed for dinner.

During and after dinner we had a discussion a long discussion with the Farises. We were there from 7 until 10. We talked about religion and books and deconstructionism.

I showed Peter my way of diagramming the plot of a story. It seems I went to see Richard II in London, April 1989, and had no idea what the story was. I tend to get confused about who is who in a Shakespeare play. The program had the plot, but on first reading I said I would never keep it straight. On the spot I invented plot diagramming. Each character is represented by a bubble in a diagram. The character’s name is written in a bubble. Actions and relations are represented as arrows between bubbles also with labels. By thus making the plot visible on paper every character somehow was clearly delineated in my mind. I find this technique extremely useful reading novels, watching films, keeping straight the plot of stories I am about to see, etc. (I would love to hear from readers who try this technique and find it useful and/or have comments on it.) I thought this method seemed mathematical so I asked Peter what he thought our training was because we were discussing Shakespeare and literature so much I assumed we might have fooled him into thinking that was our field. Without hesitation he said, “You’re mathematicians.” “Had I told you already?” “No, but mathematics is very visual.” I thought that was extremely insightful.

Peter had wanted to find books to complete his collection of G. A. Henty books. We told him about bibliofind on the web. We discussed science fiction and fantasy and Toyotas and the Y2K computer problem.

After a while Evelyn said it was time to pack it in. We headed up to our room. Evelyn went to bed fairly quickly; I worked on my log and went to sleep at 10:30 or so.