Things Fall Apart

Things fall apart here in Turkey.  First of all, it has rained most of our trip.  It is cold, too.  I realize that this is not Minnesota and it is not the famed polar vortex but at day 7 of this trip the ugly starts to come out in all of us after long long bus tours and being dropped at ancient sites to tromp through in the rain.  Okay, I take it back, it really isn't the ugly that comes out, it is just at this point in our travels, some of us just don't have as much patience anymore with anything.  Me, for instance, I hate the food situation.  There, I said it.  I can't really complain because I am in Turkey, this is a trip of a life time and it is all good, but the food totally stinks.  I've eaten better at gas stations in Duquette, MN.  Our tour guide expounds on the olives, the fruit trees (peaches, apples, lemons, apricots), the fertile ground everywhere and yet, apparently it is kept from us.  We are sticking to the truck stops along the way, so what should I expect?  I am not in charge of this trip which has its bonuses, but also its downsides.  Food #1 downside.

Some of the group can't stand treks any more on slippery uneven stone (I guess what might they expect, there have been a few things that have happened in the past 3000 or so years that wear on your average ancient site) in the cold and rain.  Those women are sick and tired of being tourists.  There's also a gal or two who might just drop a complaint or two about the wonky shower situation, or the fact that mostly we cannot throw toilet paper into the toilet.  They should rename it little wastebasket next to the toilet paper, but that's gross.

Travel is romanticized, I think, as some grand adventure in which the eager traveler encounters the world, embraces it and returns home laden with souvenirs.  What really is happening, and likely happens during any type of travel, is that like childbirth, some of this stuff is painful and uncomfortable, but will be forgotten when the weary worn out traveler returns.  

But, I do think there are bright small moments in which going somewhere far away and pushing the limits of comfort rises to the surface and makes all the inconvenience worth it.  I have had many of those moments on this trip.  One today was standing in a shop outside of Troy and chatting with a 80 year old man who has lived his whole life in Turkey yet his favorite thing is the movie Tarzan.  We talked Tarzan and John Wayne, it was cool.  When I said goodbye, he patted his chest over his heart and said, "We all, we all are one in this world, we belong together."  I couldn't agree more.

Tomorrow we set sail on a ship for three nights around the Mediterranean Greek Islands, so today is our last day in Turkey.  Right now, we are driving through Ancient Smyrna.  It is huge and vast and like the many many other cities and villages we have seen the only pretty building is the mosque.  People really only live in apartments here, according to our tour guide.  The concrete block apartment buildings are everywhere and ubiquitous all throughout the many miles we have driven.  They remind me of pictures I've seen of the Siberean skyline, which is in Siberia.  It's weird, not pretty at all.  The mountains and the sea have no competition with the architecture around this country.

Troy was on our agenda today and then later Pergamum.  Troy is famous for a love affair and battle, both mythological.  Pergamum/Bergama has wonderful ruins as well.  The ruins at these sites are beautiful and huge, but at both places, our guide has told the same story:  A German came along and stole the important artifacts.  They found the stuff that was stolen from Troy in Moscow, and you can see parts of Pergamum in Berlin...actually a whole temple to Zeus.  Not sure if these treasures were stolen under cover (although I don't think the best magician could even pull off stealing a whole temple) or right under the open eyes of the country folk who led the men right to the spot of the ruins.  The whole story has left me wondering if what happened was that Turkey was wrapped up in other matters and simply didn't realize, recognize or care at that moment what happened to their ruins.  Both sites are very important, but are not very organized nor do they seem exceptionally important to anyone but us tourists.  Troy especially was a little underwhelming.  It was pretty there, and there was a cool Trojan horse parked at the gates in which to snap a quick photo, but I wish there had been more...maybe even a museum store?  Maybe I ask too much.  Maybe I am too disney-fied.  Which is possible.

Pergamum/Bergama is gorgeous (except for the apartment buildings, of course).  The acropolis is what drew us there as well as the fact that it is mentioned in the Bible.  An acropolis is a fortification that sits atop the highest point of a city in ancient times and houses the important stuff.  So, we got on the most modern thing I have seen on our journeys so far...a gondola.  We took it to the top, it was raining and our hearts were sinking but we muscled our way over the rocky path and saw the breathtaking ruins.  For sure the most extensive we've seen.  It is clear that they don't waste time with wrongful death lawsuits here or negligence or OSHA or some such modern inventions.  

On that note, let me tell you about Joyce.  There is this sweet lady in our group who told us today (when we asked) that she is 78 and a half years old.  First of all, that might just be all you need to about her right there.  Until I hit my teens I designated my age in quarters and halves.  Then, I grew up and got too serious, I guess.  Joyce is still excited about being a half.  She was in a bad car accident in 1990 and was in a full body cast for a month.  The doctors told her she wouldn't walk again.

I don't think a gold medal athlete has anything on Joyce.  This sweet gal has never said she can't since we got here.  Five women turned back down the mountain when we got to the top at Pergamum today and Joyce, she stayed.  Someone commented that surely Joyce had been one that turned back when we heard a little voice saying, "No, I'm here!" When we turned around, we saw her with a mischievous smile on her face.

We walked on some of the most treacherous terrain in Pergamum.  Steep stairs through narrow little tunnels and overlooking high cliffs.  A false move seriously could be fatal...seriously.  Joyce just grabbed on to whomever was nearby and without a complaint, put us all to shame, she made it.  We cheered for her at the bottom, she was a superstar.

And, it was worth it.

Finally, I keep meaning to mention the millions of dogs and cats that are roaming free everywhere.  I have only seen one or two dogs on a leash, the other 999,998 are free to go where they please.  They all look fed and our Greek guide told me that they are all immunized and sterilized, which can't be true, because we saw a little litter of puppies guarding part of the ruins at Pergamum today.  Our guide keeps bending over to scratch the dogs and cats, but I wouldn't touch them for anything, and I am mentally noting not shaking hands with our guide.  They are dirty at the very least.  Not one dog seems aggressive and both dogs and cats dart in and out of crowds of people and traffic.  It is a melting pot here of animals and people, you might say.

We are heading down to our last night in Turkey now, one more hour to go on this blasted bus.  It is so inconvenient that they didn't put the ancient sites closer together.  I suppose they didn't think ahead much.  I will be sad to leave this Turkey behind in many ways, I don't know that I feel I really got to experience it all yet.  I know I will come home with a longing to return, especially Istanbul.

P.S.  We arrived at our last hotel in Kusadasi until we get on a boat to sail around for a few days and this town is a beautiful resort town.  Bonnie, my roommate and I wanted to stretch our legs and as soon as we dropped off our bags and passports (one of the many things about Turkey, they need copies of our Passports at each hotel...weird, feels like we are handing over our passwords to our life somehow, but we have no choice) we headed out the door, down a steep hill and made our way to the sea.  We made five dog friends two who followed us faithfully for a while and only went after each others' throat once, destroying my theory that they are passive.  But they soon learned we had no food to offer them and went on their way.   Beautiful Aegean Sea view, totally worth fearing our lives for a moment with the dogs.  We made it back to our hotel in time for dinner and now I am sitting in the internet cafe listening to some guy strumming a guitar playing some Van Morrison, then three men with fire and broken glass showing off and for the final entertainment tonight we have us a DJ.  Funny, the cafe has cleared out.

I can't upload photos now, will tomorrow.