To add insult to injury, when we woke up this morning, we were treated to a view of hot air balloons in the air. It was a bit of salt in the wound for some of us who really wanted to take a flight but it was still a sight to see. While it was a tough pill to swallow, we soldiered on, and after some breakfast made our way out of Cappadocia and onward to Konya.
Sultanhani Caravanserai
Our first stop before Konya was at Sultanhani Caravanserai. Caravanserais’s are fort-like structures that were built along trade routes so that caravans could rest safely before moving on. Sultanhani Caravanserai was one of the larger structures and we were given the chance to explore it. Honestly, it was fairly empty and you could imagine what it would be like if there was a caravan inside. However, most of us were more fascinated by a single beam of light that shone into the middle of the large hall. We played around with it for most of our time at this stop and some of the results came out great!
Sifa
After the Caravanserai, we resumed our trip to Konya. We were delayed a little by a highway accident which forced us to take a detour, but we eventually arrived at our lunch stop called Sifa. I ordered kebab plate simply because I was feeling meaty! I was not disappointed as it was very tasty.
It was also my first chance to order a Turkish Coffee and I did! It came in this very fancy display and was a great first for me!
Our next stop was the Mevlana Museum which was a short walk from the restaurant. The Mevlana Museum is a mosque that was once a lodge of the Dervish order. Or known to some as the Whirling dervishes. The master also had a tomb here. It has since been converted into a museum dedicated to displaying items from the Dervish order and for many to visit the tombs.
It was interesting to see a different side of the Muslim faith and to explore this museum.
Catalhoyuk
After our museum visit, we drove around an hour to our next stop, Catalhoyuk. Catalhoyuk is an important archaeological site as it has excavated a village from the time of the stone age. It is still and active site so we had to be careful where we walked and to stay within the marked paths. However it was quite interesting to visit and see what life could have been like that long ago. It was also interesting to see an active archaeological dig and what actually is needed to do this work.
Homestay
As evening approached, we made our way to our final stop for the day. As part of GAdventure’s itineary, we would be spending the night at a Turkish Family’s home tonight. When we arrived, they had dinner ready for us. We got to have dinner with the family and “try” to converse with them through the only person that could speak both languages: Ibo (our guide). Regardless, it was really delicious to have a truly home cooked meal an spend some time hanging out with our group and the family.
Before we knew it, it was time to turn in. It was a little bit of a tossing and turning evening given the surroundings, but I was able to catch a few hours of sleep. In the morning, we were treated to another home made traditional Turkish breakfast. I normally prefer the savoury items at breakfast, but I couldn’t get enough of the apricot jam the family had made. Eventually it was time to leave, we took a group picture with the family and hopped back aboard our bus en route to Antalya.
To Antalya
The drive to Antalya was relatively uneventful. However in order to get to the coast we needed to cross a mountain range. While passing through, I found myself reminded of what home is like. The mountains, the trees and landscape all seemed pretty familiar. As we neared the coast, we stopped at a small fruit stand on the side of the road where we bought a few items. I was thrilled that the region is known for their bananas since its one of my favourite fruits. I picked up a few and wasn’t disappointed.
Antalya – Meshur Piyazci
Soon after the fruit stop we arrived in Antalya. After settling into our hotel, Ibo spent about 15 minutes to orientate us around the “old city” of Antalya. Afterwards, he suggested a local meatball and salad place for lunch called Meshur Piyazci. A Majority of us went along to try it out. We were lucky as once we got to the place, it started to downpour. As we sat under the tin roof, I ordered the meatball plate (which was more like sausages) and had lunch with our group. The food is similar to Kofte which I had in Egypt. After a few days of lamb inspired dishes, this beef meatball plate was very welcome!
Exploring Antalya
After lunch we were free to explore the city. Gimpy and I wanted to walk around the old town and see what it was like. We split off from the rest of the group and started walking up and down some of the streets inside the old town. We really enjoyed this walk. The streets have a very “European” feel with small streets, rustic looking buildings and great patios.
Eventually we ended up at the coast where we were afforded a beautiful view of the Mediterranean sea. We even got to catch some wedding photos being taken.
As we looped around on our way back to the hotel, we noticed a large crowd gathering along the main street. It looked like there was some sort of event happening. We were curious and started to crowd along with everyone else. As vehicles started to drive by, lots of people started waiving and screaming at the occupants of the cars. Gimpy and I didn’t recognize anyone, but what I was told after was that they were Turkish stars. After doing a little research, it looks like they were in town for the International Antalya Film Festival.
Castle Cafe and Bistro
Gimpy and I returned to our hotel room to rest a little before dinner. For dinner, Ibo was taking us to seafood restaurant he knew off called Castle Cafe and Bistro. It was a nice restaurant with a huge patio overlooking the water. It was also nice because our entire group was present for dinner, so we shared a large table. I ordered the sea bass and it came as a whole grilled fish. I was surprised and happy. It tasted great and cleaned off the bones! Overall it was a great evening for our group to continue to grow closer together.
Antalya Night Life
After dinner, Gimpy and I wanted to walk the town again and try and take some photos of the same streets we saw during the afternoon but at night. In doing so we got a great glimpse of full bars, and lively patios.
A few of our group had tagged along for the photo taking. After about an hour of pictures, we decided to call up our guide Ibo for drinks. He took us to this cool outdoor bar with live music right beside the old city walls. It was a great experience trying to decipher Turkish music and lyrics all the while sharing some beverages and good times with our guide and fellow tour mates!
After a few hours at the bar, we made our way back to our hotel. We had another early start and day of travel tomorrow.