PROLOGUE
Law school is hard.
I saw Brian sacrifice a lot to make it through Columbia with high marks while working on a high-profile journal. The years of effort paid off and he landed a job with White & Case, a multinational law firm in Manhattan. He requested he start late to take some time off to travel before getting into the grind. I thought it was a ballsy move. As it turned out, the firm applauded him and said he had a lot of hard work ahead of him and they wished more new associates would take a break between law school and "the real world".
That established, all that was left for Brian was to study for the New York State Bar exam in the early summer and take the exam in late July. He started a cram course right after graduation, but there was not much change to his demeanor. He actually said the Kaplan Bar Course was easier than normal study had been. I largely left him alone - he knew what was best. I made the announcement I was leaving the Sociology Department at NYU as their administrator at the end of July.
The ducks were slowly getting into a row - Brian had a job lined up; he was studying for the bar; and I had given notice at work.
Let the adventure begin!
NEGOTIATION
We both had done a huge round-the-world trip via the Trans-Siberian railway (believe it or not), but in opposite directions. We liked the idea of another epic voyage, the question was how and where? In the New York Times Travel Section we located a few travel agents that specialized in round-the-world tickets.
Next, where to go?
We both said "no Europe" - too expensive. We agreed Turkey looked cheap and fascinating, so we would start in Istanbul and spend the full 30 on-arrival visa days on a grand tour. After a LOT of convincing, I agreed to India. If I have something to thank Brian for (actually there are many things), it was turning me onto India. I had ZERO desire to go and he literally wore me down. I was totally up for trekking in Nepal, but India - ewww. I really had zero interest in going there. From Istanbul, we would fly to Bombay, travel in India, cross by land to Nepal, exit back into India, and leave from Delhi. It was agreed.
Because I had caved in on India, Brian had to acquiesce to one of my requests. Strangely enough I really wanted to go back to Singapore for a few days. I have no idea now why I was so insistent on it, and Brian just rolled his eyes and said, "ok, ok". Delhi to Singapore - we added a stopover in the Lion City for a few days.
The next stop was easy - we both agreed to Indonesia. Brian had visited on his SE Asia trip with our mutual friend John Moore a few years before. In fact, John and Brian's trip inspired me to make my own trip through SE Asia just a few months after them - but I didn't make it to Indonesia. Brian said it was his favorite country of the entire trip. Given he had inspired my own travel to the region from Japan with my friend Masaaki, and I also fell in love with SE Asia, it was easy to sell me on Indonesia. The only compromise was that Brian had seen a lot of Java and Bali, so he didn't want to repeat those places. I told him since I hadn't seen ANY of Indonesia, it really didn't matter much to me where we went. The flight plan included Jakarta, actually Singapore - Jakarta - Singapore. Two cities in the future we would fly between countless times. How often events in my life presaged others!
We could get one more stop on the way back and we both had lived in Japan. Even though the country was expensive, I still had contacts there (I had lived there longer than Brian) and we figured although it would be January, it would be worth a nostalgic stopover.
The route was set: New York - Istanbul - Bombay (overland to Nepal and back to India) Delhi - Singapore - Jakarta - Singapore - Tokyo - New York.
As soon as Brian took the bar, we decamped from the Washington Heights apartment (and stored our stuff at my parents' place in PA) ,got packed, and were ready to go!
PREPARATION (early summer 1991)
As part of his break from the bar review course, in addition to finding the best ticket deal, we needed to prepare for a five and a half month trip. I had to buy a new backpack (Brian had one). We purchased the requisite Lonely Planet guides for each country (at the time, with no internet, they were the most reliable). However, what eclipsed all other preparations was acquiring the things necessary to trek in Nepal. Getting ready for that took up a lot of time. A water purifier, hiking boots, moleskin, a serious first-aid kit - we wanted to be prepared for everything. Then, of course, we needed malaria meds for Indonesia since we were travelling to the outer islands. In retrospect, I am not sure if we were overprepared or not? In 1991 most of the places we travelled besides European Turkey, Singapore, Jakarta, and Japan would likely NOT have been easy countries to source things we took for granted from the USA. We might have overthought the trip a little too much, but we would be prepared for just about anything!
TURKEY (August 1991)
A constant state of vigilance
Istanbul was lovely but it was also a den of thieves and scam artists just waiting to relieve us of as many lira as possible in one sitting. That theme set the tone for virtually the entire journey. We got to be expert in so many things very quickly and being ever vigilant against being ripped off was first and foremost. It was draining and at the end of our stay, we were ready to move on. A pattern that was to be repeated.
Every restaurant had a "table fee". All the travelers complained about it. Part of it was cultural and part of it was a rip off. I only learned that later in Duhok, Iraq (smack next to Turkey) where most meals were served "Turkish Style". That meant one ordered only the main dish, but it came with an array of free salads and mezze that were absolutely free and bottomless. I cannot be sure now looking back if in Turkey EVERYONE paid the "table fee" or just gullible tourists. One of my first recollections of Istanbul, the "table fee" rankled. The moment we sat down to eat anywhere, we already incurred a charge.
In the tourist areas people hassled us non-stop. There was not a moment's peace just to enjoy the beauty of all those ancient monuments. No matter how much I thought I was prepared for the assault on the senses that was Istanbul, I really wasn't. This was another preparation of things we would experience further east in Asia - crowds and hassle. One could never "stop" lest a crowd formed and someone appeared to offer their services as a guide or to entice us to buy something.
Aya Sophia
The thing to see in Istanbul was Aya Sophia, the mother of all cathedrals. Even into the modern age its 537CE dome was still one of the world's largest. Luckily, we saw it as a museum and gloried in all the details both Islamic and Christian [see: Aya Sophia]. The place was breathtaking, literally. My next visit years later was to a place transformed with scaffolding and coverings - a mosque once again. I was lucky to visit when I did.
Aya Sophia
Aya Sophia
Sultanahmet Mosque
The other great structure to see on that mall outside of Topkapı Palace was the "Blue Mosque" built facing Aya Sophia as the late challenger (1,000 years later!) in the mosque competition. The interior lighting with all the stained glass and hanging ornamental chandeliers gave the place its name. It was a prismatic experience when the sun shone through the windows. Luckily, we visited this mosque before Muslims worldwide decided non-Muslims should not be allowed to wander mosques freely. A very sad change in my opinion. The Sultanahmet Mosque remains one of the greatest mosques I have ever entered anywhere. The Ottomans took everything to a new level.
Sultanahmet Mosque
Sultanahmet Mosque
Topkapı Palace
Another fantastic museum/palace in the world is Topkapı or the Seraglio. I recall I was impressed at its size, its detailed interior decorations, its views over the Bosphorus, and its exhibits (even a few hairs from the Prophet Mohammed's beard!). Even if I didn't know much about the place besides what our LP guidebook divulged, I was impressed. The Roman emperors found a great location and those who occupied it over time just embellished and embellished that royal residence. The grounds alone were huge, taking up a big part of the Sultanahmet district and reaching down to the Bosphorus. I think after Aya Sophia, Topkapı Palace is one of my best memories of Istanbul.
Topkapi Palace View
The night of 1,000 mosques
We met Mustafa. I can't even remember where but he spoke great English and had a brother in Chicago (supposedly). He seemed legitimate given his level of English and his understanding of how tired we were of being accosted in the street by carpet sellers and guides. We chatted for a while and then he said he would take us on a tour of some lovely mosques in Istanbul. Brian was extremely dubious, but I said "come on, let's go". We drove all over Istanbul for hours in a taxi seeing mosques. They were truly beautiful but we were getting tired. The tour continued until the time was late enough for us to end up in Taksim Square where Mustafa wanted to take us into a restaurant/bar owned by one of his friends. We flat out refused. This was one of the biggest scams going in Istanbul where foreigners were brought to bars and then charged outrageous prices and even beat up if they didn't pay their bills. We were steadfast...no bar. Mustafa suddenly bolted from the taxi (we were never sure if the taxi driver was in cahoots with him or not) and then the driver demanded the fare. We just got out of the taxi and found some "tourist police" nearby (thank God) and explained what happened. After being rebuked for going somewhere with a total stranger (very true), we were sent on our way and the taxi driver stormed off cursing in Turkish. That "near-miss" experience colored most of the rest of the trip. Whenever we met someone overly friendly for no reason, we immediately looked at each other and said "Mustafa". It actually led to "Matt and Brian's Travel Maxim": There is an correlation between English ability and the chance someone is trying to rip you off. In short, anyone who spoke very good English and appeared incredibly helpful was to be avoided and any poor soul who could barely make themselves understood probably was the real deal. The maxim worked, too. We avoided any similar problems the rest of the trip thanks to a lot of luck and our "Night of 1,000 Mosques".
View over Istanbul with Mosque
After the bad experience with Mustafa and the generally hassly, rip-off nature of Istanbul, we wanted to head out of town. We boarded a bus and headed for Selçuk. We would be riding Turkish buses for the next month, one of the saving graces of Turkey was its excellent bus system. The ticketing was also transparent, so we never got cheated on price. Riding buses around Turkey was one of the easiest parts of the trip that we increasingly came to appreciate as we roamed the country.
THE LAND OF THE GREEKS
Holy Places
Little Selçuk was a breath of fresh air. We found a clean, cheap room and the town was quite sleepy - it was also in the middle of nowhere. We were just happy to be out of Istanbul especially after the "Mustafa Incident". Not a tout nor carpet seller in sight! We were in little Selçuk, "The Gateway to Ephesus". Ephesus - just wow - that was Ephesus like, the Book of Ephesians in the Bible. On that theme, right outside of town were the ruins of the Basilica of St John the Apostle.
Not much is left of the church and there was little explanation on site other than what the LP "Bible" told us. Apparently, at its peak, the church was a major pilgrimage point because after writing the Book of Revelations over on nearby Patmos in exile, St John was pardoned and came back to Ephesus for his last years. Legend has it that St John was assumed into heaven because when his tomb inside the original church was opened it was empty. The current ruins are of a great religious space built by Justinian, based on the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople, in its day one of the most important churches in all of Christendom.
What struck me about the place? There was a little sign that a lot of the restoration of the church was sponsored by some church "in the middle" in America (like Iowa or Kansas). Brian and I just laughed. Selçuk was about as Muslim as one could get in Turkey and there wasn't a church nor Christian community anywhere nearby. Here on the barren land outside of touristy Ephesus were the ruins of a basilica that were slowly being restored by some church in the Great Plains of the USA. The ridiculousness of it hit me hard. Why would anyone restore an old church in Turkey that no one would ever visit except occasional tourists? How did that further the cause of Christianity?
I also recall nearby was one of the places Mary, Mother of Jesus, lived her last days. Although everyone agreed that the Apostle John was in and around Ephesus, Mary was just anyone's guess. Her final resting place (or place she was assumed into heaven) was claimed all over the Middle East. Nonetheless, we were impressed to be in a place that had seen so many heady religious events!
The Basilica of St John the Apostle, Selçuk
On location in the Bible
Ephesus. The bar set at the end of my first round-the-world journey at Cape Sounion had just been challenged [see: Beijing to Athens]. Ephesus meant ruins as far as the eye could see in various states of decay. Ephesus was also mobbed with tourists. Even in the days before cruising became popular, people were taking cruises in the Mediterranean and stopping off at the port of Kuşadası and ships were disgorging hundreds (instead of today's over a thousand) of passengers to visit the site. Our visit to Ephesus was unfortunately at one of those times. The site was large enough to absorb everyone, but it was mildly disappointing to have it crawling with cruise ship passengers at the exact moment we arrived.
We roamed the site taking photos of the Library of Celsus (which these days has become the "meme shot" of Ephesus) as well as the ancient theatre which could hold up to 24,000 spectators. This was the Ephesus of biblical fame:
Ephesus was the recipient city of one of the Pauline epistles; one of the seven churches of Asia addressed in the Book of Revelation; the Gospel of John may have been written there; and it was the site of several 5th-century Christian Councils (see Council of Ephesus).
(Wikipedia)
The visit finally gave a little context to a religious name I had only heard growing up. This was the intersection of actual history and faith. It made far more sense to me than Middle America's restoration of the Basilica of St John.
Ephesus had one big effect on our trip and that was our desire to explore Hellenistic and Roman ruins in the region. LP Guide in hand, we set forth to see the remains of the Greek classical world.
Ephesus
Ephesus
Ephesus
Library, Ephesus
Library, Ephesus
Herodotus lied
Hence, stoked to see the glory of ancient Greece, we realized that on the edge of sleepy little Selçuk was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Temple of Artemis. ...described in Antipater of Sidon's list of the world's Seven Wonders: I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots, and the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the colossus of the Sun, and the huge labour of the high pyramids, and the vast tomb of Mausolus; but when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels lost their brilliancy, and I said, "Lo, apart from Olympus, the Sun never looked on aught so grand". (Wikipedia) Wow, Antipater of Sidon, my expectations were off the chart. A wonder of the world that was THAT superlative? However, we could not ignore history - the place HAD been destroyed most unfortunately: In 268 AD, according to Jordanes, a raid by the Goths, under their leaders "Respa, Veduc and Thurar, laid waste many populous cities and set fire to the renowned temple of Diana at Ephesus."; the extent and severity of the damage are unknown; the temple may have lain derelict until its official closure during the persecution of pagans in the late Roman Empire, Ammonius of Alexandria comments on its closure, perhaps as early as 407, or no later than the mid 5th century. After closure and after the city had become Christian, the name of Artemis appears to have been erased from inscriptions throughout Ephesus. (Wikipedia) The temple did have a solid five century run - not bad in a place filled with earthquakes and wars. The reality of it was as pictured. This was the first "Wonder of the World" I ever visited. An open pit with a column reconstructed of mismatched marble pieces was all that remained. Brian and I just looked at each other - "you have got to be kidding?!" was our joint reaction. Our newly kindled excitement for the ancient Greek world had just been dealt a severe blow. Little did we know that Ancient Ephesus in its advanced state of decay was among the best preserved Greco-Roman ruins in the world and anything we were to see after would be just a pale reflection of it.
Temple of Artemis
Another Wonder of the World, a castle, and a disco
After seeing all the sights in and around Selçuk it was time to move on. Next stop, Bodrum. After staying in a sleepy little town near old Greek ruins, Bodrum was absolutely boisterous. Bodrum was enough to make us change our whole world trip plan right then and there. It was August and filled with young European holidaymakers. The town was party-central. After such serious living in New York for three years, we were ready to have fun. The place was NOTHING like hassly Istanbul. Nearly everyone was European walking on the street. Bodrum itself was a huge bay that was made up of two adjoining crescent beaches with a huge crusader castle on one end. Europe's largest outdoor disco at the time, "The Halikarnas", literally floated over the water in the center where the two crescent beaches met. I had never seen any place like it! Bodrum seemed to be all British when we were there and we learned from the locals that different little towns up and down the coast were specific resorts for different countries. Bodrum was British. A few towns away might have been German or French. We had never experienced anything similar - whole towns given over to holiday makers from one country. Whatever the case, Bodrum was the biggest town and everyone eventually came there to sightsee, drink, and party.
Bodrum Castle Bodrum Castle is a historical fortification located in southwest Turkey in the port city of Bodrum, built from 1402 onwards, by the Knights of St John as the Castle of St. Peter or Petronium. A transnational effort, it has four towers known as the English, French, German, and Italian towers, bearing the names of the nations responsible for their construction. The castle was completed in the late 15th century, only to be taken over by the Islamic Ottoman Empire in 1523. The chapel was converted to a mosque, and a minaret was added. The castle remained under the empire for almost 400 years. ... The construction of the castle began in 1404 under the supervision of the German knight architect Heinrich Schlegelholt. Construction workers were guaranteed a reservation in heaven by a Papal Decree of 1409. They used squared green volcanic stone, marble columns and reliefs from the nearby Mausoleum of Halicarnassus to fortify the castle. (Wikipedia) The views from the bastion over Bodrum's harbor and beaches were spectacular. And hey, the construction workers who built it got a ticket to heaven. We read about the history of the castle in LP and in the museum itself. I was sadly disappointed to learn that the rise of the castle actually contributed to the destruction of the remains of the famous Mausoleum. We would find out soon later, that even though there was more to see at the sight of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus than the Temple of Artemis, it was still an utter disappointment for being a "Wonder of the Ancient World". We had only missed the Wonders of the Ancient World by a mere 1,500 years.
Bodrum Castle View
Bodrum
an architectural archetype
Bodrum Castle being so superlative, the site of the famed Mausoleum, which I saw repeated in modern neoclassical architecture worldwide, was a letdown. At least it was better than the totally forlorn Temple of Artemis which might win the prize as the worst classical ruins visited, ever. There wasn't a lot to see at the old Mausoleum site either; however, there still was an abundance of carved decorative stones that made the visit slightly noteworthy. Nonetheless, Herodotus would have been saddened to know that the only Wonder to make it into the modern world intact was ironically the oldest one, the Pyramids of Giza. Our love affair of Greek ruins still not totally diminished, we wanted to see more.
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
Ancient Wanderings
In spite of the total-bust ancient Greek sites encountered since Ephesus, we were still game to see more. High on the list were Miletus and Didyma. Miletus was an incredibly powerful port city in Hellenistic Anatolia and remained so until the Romans shifted the center of power to Ephesus. Most amazing (and proof of early Anthropocene ecological disaster) was that Miletus had been a PORT and now sits 10km from the sea. What happened? Cutting down all the trees sure didn't help. The soil washed into the creeks and rivers and silted up the Meander River until Miletus was no longer even near the sea. Ancient Miletus' claim to fame for the Greek-ruin-loving-tourist? Its wonderfully preserved theatre.
The Roman theatre of Miletus was built by the Roman emperor Trajan (98 -117 AD) over a much older Hellenistic theatre. While the previous theatre had 5,300 seats, the Roman building was designed for around 15,000 spectators. From the very beginning, the theatre was also designed for gladiatorial and animal fights. The location of the theatre, which was unfavorable in many respects, was chosen for practical reasons in an existing hollow of the natural ground elevation. Only the third, upper tier was given a vaulted construction as a substructure.
http://www.tuerkei-antik.de/Theater/milet_en.htm
The Miletus site was not as impressive overall as Ephesus although historically it was equally as important. The theatre did impress and the entire site might have attracted as many tourists as Ephesus with its lovely Library of Celsus façade had the Germans not carted off the gorgeous (and intact) "Market Gate of Miletus" to the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. On my trip to Berlin four years before, that market gate and the Ishtar Gate were the two highlights of the museum [see: Beijing to Athens]
We moved on to Didyma, home of the Oracle of Zeus. In its time it was second only to the Oracle of Delphi in Greece. The remains of the Temple of Zeus, larger than the Parthenon, but still smaller than the nearby Temple of Artemis, were the star attraction.
...south of the ancient port city of Miletus on the western coast of modern-day Turkey, the Temple of Apollo at Didyma or Didymaion was the fourth largest temple in the ancient Greek world. The temple's oracle, second in importance only to that at Delphi, played a significant role in the religious and political life of both Miletus and the greater Mediterranean world; many rulers, from Alexander the Great (356-323 BCE) to the Roman emperor Diocletian (244-313 CE) visited or sent delegations to this oracle seeking the guidance and favor of Apollo. The oracle played a significant role in initiating the “Great Persecution” of Christians under Diocletian and the temple was later converted into a church during the 5th or 6th century CE.
https://www.worldhistory.org/article/640/the-temple-of-apollo-at-didyma/
The Temple of Zeus was a LOT better than that lone, ill-preserved column at the Temple of Artemis. We gave it high marks for "feeling like a Greek ruin", e.g., columns, steps, and random carvings scattered about. Things were looking up! Perhaps the Greek ruin quest was not going always to be a bust.
Finally, before we left the Aegean coast, on a separate journey we took a small boat over to the Datça Peninsula from Bodrum to the oft overlooked ruins of Knidos. Brian and I were always intrigued by places that were far-afield that few people visited. The ferry ride was beautiful with views of Bodrum, Datça Peninsula, and little Greek Kos Island which in later years would become famous for refugee passage due to its close proximity to Turkey. It was so close it literally looked swimmable. Many unfortunate souls found that NOT to be true.
We took another short boat ride to the ruins. These days land travel is possible it seems, but when we arrived in Datça we were surprised we had another short boat ride down the peninsula ahead of us. The ruins themselves were mostly a bust, nothing to see except a small theatre, a few foundations and column bases. We didn't care though - the whole trip there had been glorious AND we were on a small tour so the site felt empty.
Knidos was a major hub for trade routes, but the city also became a center for culture and the arts. One of the town’s most famous areas was the Temple of Aphrodite, attracting notoriety for the first life-size statue of a nude female form created by the famous 4th Century BC sculptor, Praxiteles. He actually created two versions of Aphrodite, one clothed and one unclothed, and gave the citizens of the nearby Greek Island of Kos the option of a first pick. They chose the clothed version, which meant that the nude statue was offered to the Knidians. The statue is no longer here, it went to Byzantium (modern day Istanbul) before disappearing.
The tip of the Datça peninsula is the geographic meeting point of the Mediterranean and the Aegean. The Mediterranean runs along the southern coastline of the Datça Peninsula and the Aegean runs along the northern coastline.
https://www.bodrumpeninsulatravelguide.co.uk/ancient-knidos/
Aphrodite of Cnidus was Praxiteles's most famous statue. It was the first time that a full-scale female figure was portrayed nude. Its renown was such, that it was immortalized in a lyric epigram:
Paris did see me naked,
Adonis, and Anchises,
except I knew all three of them.
Where did the sculptor see me?
(Wikipedia)
Not sure if the story about the two statues is factually accurate but it was related to us by our guide that the naked Aphrodite of Knidos was indeed famous.
The Knidian Aphrodite has not survived. Possibly the statue was removed to Constantinople (modern Istanbul), where it was housed in the Palace of Lausus; in 475, the palace burned and the statue was lost. It was one of the most widely copied statues in the ancient world, so a general idea of the appearance of the statue can be gleaned from the descriptions and replicas that have survived to the modern day.
(Wikipedia).
Well, Knidos was a ruins bust, but a history-fest. Even if that famed statue were lost to history it had, in fact, been a piece of art that influenced all of Western art! Add to that, it was just a glorious boat ride in the Aegean. We were happy.
Didyma
Didyma
Miletus
Knidos
Knidos
Pamukkale! Pamukkale! Pamukkale!
From our arrival at Selçuk and ever onward in that region we heard one thing at the bus stations - Pamukkale! What was this place that was so popular every bus in the region seemed to be heading there? The LP "Bible" said it was not to be missed so after our fill of Greek ruins on the Aegean we boarded a bus for "Cotton Castle".
In brief, a calcium-rich hot spring on a mountain top spills down over one side and has created a series of dazzling white pools filled with turquoise water (reflecting the sky). Hands down, it is one of the most amazing geological formations on earth. It looked like something from deep inside a cavern except it was in the open air. During the day it was dazzlingly white and at sunset it became magical, reflecting the sunset. If I were to pick one thing for people to see in Turkey outside of Istanbul, it would be Pamukkale - it really was that good.
The hot springs of Pamukkale were of course famous since ancient times, so the Greeks had even built a resort town on top complete with a great theatre. The Greek town was called "Hierapolis" and unfortunately was not treated well by time. Even in the modern age the Turks allowed the ancient city to be built over by hotels and such. Luckily, Pamukkale was named a UNESCO World Heritage site and a lot of the modern structures were torn down and some effort was made to preserve the ancient city.
The Hellenistic spa town of Hierapolis (was) founded by the Attalid kings of Pergamom at the end of the 2nd century B.C. at the site of an ancient cult. Its hot springs were also used for scouring and drying wool. Ceded to Rome in 133 B.C., Hierapolis flourished, reaching its peak of importance in the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D., having been destroyed by an earthquake in 60 A.D. and rebuilt. Remains of the Greco-Roman period include baths, temple ruins, a monumental arch, a nymphaeum, a necropolis and a theatre. Following the acceptance of Christianity by the emperor Constantine and his establishment of Constantinople as the ‘new Rome’ in 330 A.D., the town was made a bishopric. As the place of St. Philip’s martyrdom in 80 A.D., commemorated by his Martyrium building in the 5th century, Hierapolis with its several churches became an important religious center for the Eastern Roman Empire.
https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/485/
Also, the flood the tourists visiting the travertine terraces started to degrade, so they are now off limits to let them restore themselves through the natural process that created them.
As for our visit, we stayed down in Pamukkale town below the terraces and not in the nice hotels on top (which are now all gone anyway). We did get to walk in the terraces before that was forbidden and more importantly paid the fee at the hotel that was built around the original baths to take a dip. That was like something out of a film. Fallen columns in a hot spring. with crystal clear water - basically swimming amongst Greek ruins. The water was also effervescent, so it was like swimming in club soda - a first for me. That swim in the old Greek baths was really a high point of the entire journey and the sunset over the travertine terraces was just as magical.
Pamukkale, Pamukkale, Pamukkale - you were NOT oversold!
Pamukkale
Pamukkale
Roman Baths, Pamukkale
Hierapolis, Pamukkale
Last gasp of Greek ruins
Maybe it was the name or maybe because it came so highly recommended in LP, but we were definitely going to visit Aphrodisias. Pamukkale was nearby and there were tours to the site, so it wasn't that difficult to get there.
Aphrodisias was founded as a city-state in the early 2nd century BC. An orthogonal street grid defines the pattern of the city; only a few structures, such as the temple of the goddess Aphrodite, are not aligned with the grid. Because the city shared a close interest in the goddess Aphrodite with Sulla, Julius Caesar and the emperor Augustus, Aphrodisias came to have a close relationship with Rome. It obtained a privileged ‘tax-free’ political status from the Roman senate, and developed a strong artistic, sculptural tradition during the Imperial Period. Many elaborately decorated structures were erected during the period of Roman rule, all made from the local marble. The Cult of Aphrodite was the most important cult of Aphrodisias. The sanctuary at Aphrodisias had a distinctive cult statue of Aphrodite which defined the city’s identity. The Aphrodite of Aphrodisias combined aspects of a local Anatolian, archaic fertility goddess with those of the Hellenic Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty. This identifying image has been found from Anatolia across the Mediterranean, from the city of Rome to the Levant. The importance of the Aphrodite of Aphrodisias continued well beyond official imperial acceptance of Christianity; the Temple did not become a church until c. AD 500.
https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1519/
It was another little white van ride to the dry dusty site of Aphrodisias. The site delivered, too. The monumental gateway to the city was intact (and somehow not carried off by the Germans) and the ruins of the Temple of Aphrodite were better than most others. The two stand out ruins were the Bouleuterion
(A) meeting place of the city’s administrative council (the Boule), and as a multi-purpose indoor theatre, concert hall and assembly space.
and the stadium
The stadium measures approximately 270m by 60 m. With 30 rows of seats on each side, and around each end, it would have had a maximum capacity for around 30,000 spectators. The track measures approximately 225m by 30m.
As the stadium is considerably larger and structurally more extensive than even the Stadium of Delphi; it is probably one of the best preserved structures of its kind in the Mediterranean.
(Wikipedia)
The LP "Bible" did not oversell the place, it was impressive (a stadium holding 30,000 spectators!!), but we were not impressed. Finally "Greco-Roman ruin fatigue" had set in. Everything, no matter how impressively preserved, was starting to look the same. Maybe after viewing the natural wonder of Pamukkale we realized Turkey had more to offer than just old Greek columns that had us playing "just imagine" at every site.
We were ready to move on.
Bouleuterion, Aphrodisias
Stadium, Aphrodisias
OTHERWORLDLY REALMS OF ANCIENT CHRISTIANS
Cappadocia. Another Biblical name, but really that's all it was to me. The LP guidebook built it up immensely. The descriptor most often used was "otherworldly". We got on a bus from Pamukkale and headed off to Göreme, the unofficial capital of tourist Cappadocia. Göreme turned out to be touristic, but well-run and not very hassly. After scoring a nice hotel room, we started to explore. Cappadocia was filled with both natural wonders and ancient history.
Uchisar
From Göreme in the distance was a rock, like a small mountain defiantly thrusting itself into the sky. Uchisar was a swiss-cheese like rock that had been carved full of dwellings. It looked as amazing close up as it did from far away. The whole visit in the region felt like we had been propelled into an episode of the Flintstones. For lack of a better word, the region and its strange rock "fairy chimneys" along with the old cave dwellings was just a lot of fun to explore. However, Cappadocia was biblical after all - the place was crawling with old churches, too!
That is when we discovered what we suspected to be true was real. In Turkey, host country to a multitude of civilizations and histories, rarely equaled by any other country, history that was not derived from the Seljuk Turks onward was simply ignored and let to fall into ruin. The Greek ruins were old and were grudgingly maintained (and mostly by foreign universities). We were still surprised how underdeveloped the sites were. Then in Cappadocia we saw all the ancient churches in various states of ruin without any effort to preserve them. It was clear - Turkey was all about "Turkish history" and restoration efforts were only for things Turkic.
Ancient churches
Acts of the Apostles 2 (the Pentecost)
8 And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?
9 Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia,
10 Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes,
11 Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.
Cappadocia of that time was actually a Roman province (a large one at that), and later it became a Christian center with many beautiful churches cut into the volcanic tufa with stunning early Christian art.
So spawned our next great and brief passion - seeing as many of the vestiges of Christianity in that region as our short stay allowed.
There were a few churches in and around Göreme, but the motherload was out in the Ilhara Valley. We got on a tour and headed out to a dead end valley cut out of the same stone as the rest of Cappadocia. The valley had sheer walls into which had been cut a variety of churches in various states of disrepair. In Ilhara it really hit us that the Turkish government was doing nothing to preserve these ancient monuments. It was shockingly sad.
The LP bible said there was one old church/monastery on the edge of the tourist zone that had its best preserved frescoes. Brian and I booked transport to take us out there - we were on a mission. Eski Gümüşler Manastırı was one of the biggest and best preserved of all the churches of Cappadocia with frescoes dating from the 12th and 13th centuries. Compared to the other churches we had seen it was the most intact. We were the only visitors as it was located so far off the beaten tourist trail. We felt satisfied we made the time and effort to go there and it ended up being one of the best historical venues we visited in all of Turkey. We were filled with sadness thinking about its future - would it have one?
Fairy Chimneys seen along with ancient churches, we got on our longest bus ride yet. We were off to Trabzon on the Black Sea coast almost at the border with the Georgian SSR of the Soviet Union, just months away from dissolving!
"fairy chimneys" Cappadocia - Uchisar on the horizon
Cappadocia - Nevşehir,
Ilhara Valley
Ilhara Valley
Eski Gemusler Monastery
BLACK SEA COAST
Trapezous
It was a long ride out to Trabzon - overnight on the bus (yuck). The route took us along the Black Sea coast for the last few hours. The coast was verdant and was a welcome relief to the barren hills of Southwestern Turkey. We arrived in Trabzon and found a place to stay. Somewhere during the Trabzon stay we hooked up the Hans and Hanne, the Germans, and Paul and Jot, the Brits. We created our first merry traveling crew. We were going to need it because Eastern Turkey was a completely different country from the heavily touristed and European-influenced Aegean Coast, not to mention cosmopolitan Istanbul.
Trabzon was small and none of us had much information. Even the guidebooks in those days were sparse in their information. The city had some lovely seaside parks and a couple of old churches. The castled looked to be promising to roam around - alas, it was occupied by the military. None of us could understand how the military benefitted from sitting behind medieval walls, but that was the only part of the castle visible.
Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond in English, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Persia in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast. The Venetian and Genoese merchants paid visits to Trabzon during the medieval period and sold silk, linen and woolen fabric.
(Wikipedia)
Trabzon had an incredible history that it did not capitalize on. Literally EVERY major regional player had been there - Greeks, Romans, Persians, Venetians, Ottomans. It was one of the "ends" of the silk road. The city was the capital of its own country for a few centuries. It should have been far more interesting than it actually was. Our little group finding Trabzon falling flat as a tourist destination, heard the town Hopa by the border with the USSR was an interesting day-trip. We got on the bus to check it out. Hopa was not interesting, but what we witnessed there was.
The USSR was on its last legs, in fact, unbeknownst to us, it would only survive a few more months. The economy had totally fallen apart and the people literally had no money. The Georgians were crossing the border into Turkey to sell their possessions for food. It looked like one huge, desperate yard sale. All of us were shocked and moved by the spectacle. We were witnessing the end of a superpower. The people at the makeshift market were selling EVERYTHING.- the biggest flea market on earth. I realized I needed a spoon for my travel pack so I found a guy selling cheap, aluminum cutlery. I asked him how much for one spoon and he gave me a kind of inflated price, but still not that bad. All these people were in rough shape so I agreed. Little did I know that I had bought the entire hundred piece set! When I realized it, and he managed to make him understand, he gave me back my money and handed me one spoon and just gestured "take it". I still have that spoon, too. It has been with me all over the planet.
Sumela Monastery
(The monastery was founded) around AD 386, during the reign of the emperor Theodosius I (375–395). According to William Miller, two Athenian monks named Barnabas and Sophronios founded the monastery. It became famous for an icon of the Theotokos known as the Panagia Gorgoepekoos, said to have been painted by the Apostle Luke. During its long history, the monastery fell into ruin several times and was restored by various emperors. During the 6th century, it was restored and enlarged by the Byzantine general Belisarius at the behest of emperor Justinian. It reached its present form in the 13th century after gaining prominence during the existence of the Empire of Trebizond.
(Wikipedia)
Just having visited all the amazing churches of Cappadocia, Brian and I were lukewarm to yet another old monastery. The location cliffside, however, was spectacular. How did they gain enough foothold even to keep it from tumbling down the cliff? The building clung to a rock face above a beautiful green valley within a national park. The setting was gorgeous. As with the other "non-Turkish" sites we visited, little to no money had been invested in its upkeep (in spite of being the number one tourist draw for little Trabzon). The state of the frescoes was deplorable, but not surprising, given their age and the history of the monastery.
Trabzon more or less a bust, it was time to explore "the East" with our new travel mates.
City Walls, Trabzon
Sumela Monastery
Sumela Monastery
Up, up , and away
We were on a bus again. We drove out by Hopa one more time and turned into the mountains. We could have been in Switzerland from the scenery. This was nothing like any of us expected. The road wound up endless switchbacks through misty green hills (mostly deforested unfortunately). There were little villages composed of wooden houses all along the way. The road went up and up and up. We honestly thought it was not possible to continue upward for that much time. Were we travelling over some mountain ridge? No, we were traveling up the face of an escarpment. 1,800m later, we finished climbing and were on the dusty, hot, and sunny Anatolian plateau. There was no going down on the other side - we reached our elevation for the next few weeks of the trip! We arrived in Ardahan, Turkey and entered the part of Turkey that used to be Armenian. Ardahan even had an old castle, but we didn't stop. We were headed for Kars.
Leaving Trabzon
ANCIENT ARMENIA
After Ephesus and other impressive ruins in Hellenistic Turkey and then the great cave churches and monasteries of Cappadocia, it was becoming harder and harder to impress us in Turkey. At our recent visit to Sumela Monastery we were already a little burnt out on early Christian frescoes and churches. The LP "bible", however, recommended the abandoned city of Ani outside of Kars. Our little troop decided that was where we needed to go. We were an automatic "tour group" to any travel agent, so in Kars (I assume, I have no memory of that town) we arranged our day-trip to that ancient Armenian capital.
Ani
Ani is a city now situated in Turkey's province of Kars, next to the closed border with Armenia. Between 961 and 1045, it was the capital of the Bagratid Armenian kingdom that covered much of present-day Armenia and eastern Turkey. The iconic city was often referred to as the "City of 1,001 Churches," though the number was significantly less. To date, 50 churches, 33 cave chapels and 20 chapels have been excavated by archaeologists and historians. Ani stood on various trade routes and its many religious buildings, palaces, and sophisticated fortifications distinguished it from other contemporary urban centers in the Armenian kingdom. Among its most notable buildings is the Cathedral of Ani, which is associated with early examples of Gothic architecture and that scholars argue influenced the great cathedrals of Europe in the early gothic and Romanesque styles; its ribbed vaulting would not be seen in European cathedrals until at least two centuries later. At its height, Ani was one of the world's largest cities, with a population of well over 100,000. Renowned for its splendor, Ani was sacked by the Mongols in 1236. Ani never recovered from a devastating 1319 earthquake and, more significantly, from the shifting of regional trade routes, and was abandoned by the 17th century. Ani is a widely recognized cultural, religious, and national heritage symbol for Armenians. According to Razmik Panossian, Ani is one of the most visible and ‘tangible’ symbols of past Armenian greatness and hence a source of pride. In 2016, it was added onto the UNESCO World Heritage List.
(Wikipedia)
Take note: we knew NONE of the above on our visit, which certainly would have improved our understanding and appreciation of the site. We were impressed with Ani simply because of its dramatic setting next to a gorge on the Akhurian River with the Armenian SSR on the other side. The border had only recently demilitarized enough between NATO member Turkey and the USSR's vassal state of Armenia that tourists could travel to Ani and roam around freely without fear of being fired upon by a border guard. Although a shame we missed the incredible significance of the site, we did appreciate that we were bearing witness to an ancient city that had only recently opened to the public after decades of languishing in the no-man's land of Turkey's version of the Iron Curtain. When we looked down in the deep canyon on the edge of the city we saw the remnants of an ancient bridge that just begged for exploration, but the guide said that area was still off limits.
We wandered Ani and were impressed with it all - the elegance of the structures (these were our first Armenian churches), their age, and their dramatic location. We all agreed that since it was a non-Turkish site, it was highly unlikely it would ever receive the attention and funding it needed. Ani just confirmed in our minds even more that anything non-Turkish was simply not history.
Turkey continued to amaze us. We pushed on to Doğubayazıt. We were coming into that uncomfortable border area that Armenians, Kurds, and Turks all laid claim to.
Ani
Ani
WHOSE LAND IS IT ANYWAY?
We booked transport to Doğubayazıt from Kars. I have a memory of our merry crew all in one van, but I am not sure if that was the travel to the area from Kars or one of the day trips we made from Doğubayazıt. I do believe that to make it to that out of the way town, we must have booked our own transport from Kars. We were out of the range of the normal Turkish highway buses by that point. We were riding in the van playing one of my mix tapes when we got the first view of Mt Ararat. We came over the crest of a hill and suddenly there it was. Mt Ararat is a huge volcano with a snow capped peak and is visible from all over the area. Seeing it for the first time is a dramatic experience and it was timed with the finale of Brahms Symphony #1. Now every time I hear that part of the symphony, I think of seeing Mt Ararat.
Ishak Pasha As part of one of the tours we took out of Doğubayazıt, we stopped at this striking old palace in the desert near the holy mountain. Ishak Pasha Palace on the Silk Route near the Iranian frontier, is situated on a high and vast platform of strategic importance on an area of 7600 meter square. It is not at all in the Ottoman tradition but is rather a mixture of Anatolian, Iranian and North Mesopotamian architectural tradition. The traditional model used in the construction of the Royal Palaces in the capital cities like Bursa, Edirne and Istanbul was taken as an example in the design of Ishak Pasha Palace. The western influence in Ottoman architecture during the post-classical period can be observed is Ishak Pasha Palace. https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/1410/ Since we were in the Kurdish region of Turkey (simultaneously claimed by Armenia) our Kurdish guide was quick to point out that Ishak Pasha Palace was designed by a Kurdish architect and was built by Kurds. It may have been, but then again so many people ebbed and flowed over that land. Kurds famously went to Istanbul and became educated and "Ottomanized", so maybe it was true? In any case, our merry band were the only visitors and we all loved the old palace because of its stunning location and simply because it looked quite different from most other things all of us had seen to that point.
Ishak Pasha
Ishak Pasha
Ishak Pasha
The Holy Mountain
The whole point of beating our way out to Doğubayazıt was to see Mt Ararat. Even Jot who was Sikh (but grown up in London) was interested. For Jews and Christians this was the Mt Ararat of the Bible and for Muslims the Quran speaks of "the Mountains of Ararat" (although traditionally that location is elsewhere in Turkey). Nonetheless, the name "Ararat" had meaning even for people believing in non-Abrahamic religions. Like Ani, the region had been a no-go zone during the Cold War because, although Mt Ararat was solely in Turkey, it was right up next to the border with the Armenian SSR and the Russians were not to keen on seeing ANY activity on that mountains in NATO Turkey. From Yerevan the mountain apparently dominates the city skyline. So as not to piss anyone off - Mt Ararat was simply declared off-limits, a kind of gentleman's agreement. At the start of the information age during the Cold War, the prohibition to climb Ararat just fueled the whole mystery surrounding the place.
After Ishak Pasha, we did stop at a strange boat-shaped rock formation that some claimed were the fossilized remains of the ark (although fossils take millions of years to form, not thousands). We had a look and a laugh at something that would end up on the pages of the National Enquirer back in the USA. The views of the mountain all along the route were gorgeous and ever-changing. We drove almost to the Iranian border (we saw it in the distance) and then turned back. We had a nearly full day viewing of the mountain where "the Ark came to rest". I considered myself both lucky and fully satisfied having viewed that famous mountain.
Our tour guide for the day was a young, nationalist Kurd and he was both charming and dashing. Little did I know that was a Kurdish specialty I would come to recognize decades later. He made an excellent tour guide and we all took to him. I remember he said "George Bush lied to us!" referring to Bush (father) making some references to supporting more Kurdish autonomy which the Kurds took as a nod toward independence. The Kurdish militias took on the superior Turkish forces and were beaten back mercilessly. We came about one year after that and the feelings were still raw. Nevertheless, he was probably our best guide the whole time we traveled around Turkey.
Mt Ararat
Akdamer Island
We left the land of Ararat and headed south toward Van and its massive natural lake. We were all a little nervous because our next big city was Diyarbakır, capital of the Kurdish region. The area was just settling down from the recent insurgency, so we had no idea what to expect. We must have overnighted in Van in order to take the tour of Akdamer Island. The journey did not make an impression, nor did the lake - surprising considering its size. The real ticket was the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on the island. I have a clear memory of that old church because it was far more intact than anything we had seen a few days earlier in Ani.
During his reign, King Gagik I Artsruni (r. 908-943/944) of the Armenian kingdom of Vaspurakan chose the island of Aght'amar as one of his residences, founding a settlement there. The only structure standing from that period is the Cathedral. It was built of pink volcanic tufa by the architect-monk Manuel during the years 915-921, with an interior measuring 14.80m by 11.5m and the dome reaching 20.40m above ground. In later centuries, and until 1915, it formed part of a monastic complex, the ruins of which can still be seen to the south of the church.
Between 1116 and 1895 Aght'amar Island was the location of the Armenian Catholicosate of Aght'amar. Khachatur III, who died in 1895, was the last Catholicos of Aght'amar. In 1915, during the Armenian genocide, the church was looted, and the monastic buildings destroyed and in July 1916 the Catholicosate was abolished by the Ottoman Empire.
The church remained in disuse through the decades after 1915. When the writer and journalist Yaşar Kemal visited the island of Akhtamar in 1951, he discovered that it was about to be demolished. Using his contacts he helped stop the planned destruction. The church became a noted tourist attraction in the coming decades. In 2005 the structure was closed to visitors as it underwent a heavy restoration, being opened as a museum by the Turkish government a year later
(Wikipedia)
The most striking details of the church were the biblical story bas-reliefs which encircled the exterior. They had been heavily vandalized over the years, so it is good to know that Turkey is doing something to restore the building. On our visit at the time it was yet one more example of "Turkish first" in preservation of cultural heritage. The place we saw was in bad shape in spite of its lovely island setting. My personal gratitude to Yaşar Kemal for saving the place. Of course, we learned none of this on our visit with a undoubtedly Kurdish guide who was far more concerned with injustices against his own people than against the equally unfairly treated Armenians (with whom Kurds also had a less than friendly historical relationship).
We nervously set off for Diyarbakır .
Akdamer Island
Akdamer Island
travel mates
We were traveling with Hans and Hanne (very go with the flow) and Paul and Jot (very much the opposite). In fact, Jot saw danger around every corner where poor hapless (and moonstruck) Paul just conceded to her every whim. We were a very unlikely traveling group, but circumstances and fate threw us together. Overall, we got along surprisingly well. In the photo, from the walls of Diyarbakır I believe, Jot was pissed off because the Turkish policeman insisted on being next to her and put his arm around her and Paul was oblivious. Brian and I had a really good laugh afterwards.
We were all nervous about spending time in Diyarbakır due to recent Kurdish-Turkish tensions. We found a place to stay that we felt confident about and then set out to explore the city.
Paul and Jot
Black Walled City
The Romans built the walls made from black basalt that still encircle the old city. If ever there was a "Black Fortress", it was Diyarbakır.
The old name Amed is inscribed on the sheath of a sword from the Assyrian period,and the same name was used in other contemporary Syriac and Arabic works. The Romans and the Byzantines called the city Amida. Amit is found in Empire of Trebizond official documents from 1358.Among the Artukid and Aq Qoyunlu it was known as "Black Amid" for the dark color of its walls, while in the Zafername, or eulogies in praise of military victories, it is called "Black Fortress" .
The name Diyarbakır derives from the Arabic The abode of Bakr, which was named after the Arab tribe of Banu Bakr who settled the wider region of Diyar Bakr during the 6th century. (Wikipedia)
The old city "Sur" and the surrounding walls are one of the best walled cities I encountered in my life only to be equaled by Spain's Avila and China's Xi'an. The wall being so enticing, we climbed it and had a walk around. Unfortunately, that garnered attention (there were almost no tourists in the city in those days) and we ended up with a group of people following us which had Jot certain our kidnapping was imminent. More than likely, they were just curious Kurds who wondered how we had stumbled into their lives. We exited the walls and had more of a look around the city, but none of us ever felt completely safe. I am not sure the concern was justified or not. I always wanted to return to Diyarbakır (and I ended up living nearby when I was in Duhok!).
Of course the irony of it all was that Diyarbakır was overwhelmingly Kurdish and even in Duhok, Iraq, the locals claimed it as their capital city even over Erbil. The Romans had made the walls and then the Assyrians lived there for centuries. Later the Turks swept in and only much later did the Kurds claim it. The Kurds were quite proud of Diyarbakır as one of their regional capitals as they were of Amedi and Erbil in Iraq. In all cases, though - the Kurds only occupied a place after someone else had built it. Not that shifting populations is even something unusual in history, but having lived in a Kurdish region, "ownership" of a place became something very important. I don't think any of our group of young travelers had a clue as to how the local Kurds felt in the places we visited.
To this day, I am not sure if Jot's paranoia prevented us from more meaningful encounters with Kurds in Diyarbakır, or if she saved us from some certain uncomfortable, maybe even dangerous situations. I was happy we visited the city, but we were also happy to leave it. We never felt at ease there.
We took one day-trip out of the city to an old crusader castle (so we were told, but I cannot find anything nearby Diyarbakır that matches the description online). I believe it was one of those tours where we were taken to a place and not provided much information. I remember the castle, but nothing about it. We also went to an old Syrian Orthodox Church where a priest showed us old bibles written on vellum. He dramatically crushed an ancient page in front of us to show that they were nearly indestructible. We all cried out when he did it, but he was right, the old page survived (although I wished he would have treated it with more respect).
We had "turned the corner" in southeastern Turkey. We would leave Diyarbakir and slowly head back east - back to a land that seemed far less foreign.
Diyabakir
Bazaar, Diyarbakir
Crusader Castle
Crusader Castle
LOSING MY RELIGION
and then there were four
Maybe all the drama of Diyarbakır did them in or maybe Eastern Turkey was just not what they expected, but Hans and Hanne headed back toward the normality of the "West". I ended up meeting them one more time on "Matt's First Big Trip to Germany" and it was nice to reconnect with them in lovely little Regensburg on the Danube. Meanwhile, the rest of us pushed on and found ourselves in Urfa. Urfa was an old city but it was close to two older places we wanted to visit: Harran and Nemrut Dağı.
Urfa
Urfa was mind-blowingly old.
Biblical history
According to some Jewish and Muslim sources, Urfa is Ur Kasdim, the hometown of Abraham, the grandfather of Jacob whom God named Israel.[9] This identification was disputed by Leonard Woolley, the excavator of the Sumerian city of Ur in 1927 and scholars remain divided on the issue. Urfa is also one of several cities that have traditions associated with Job.
Armenian history
For the Armenians, Urfa is considered a holy place since it is believed that the Armenian alphabet was invented there.
Crossroads of civilizations
Urfa was conquered repeatedly throughout history, and has been dominated by many civilizations, including the Ebla, Akkadians, Sumerians, Babylonians, Hittites, Hurri-Mitannis, Assyrians, Medes, Persians, Ancient Greeks (under Alexander the Great), Seleucids, Armenians, Arameans, the Neo-Assyrian Osrhoenes, Romans, Sassanids, Byzantines, Arabs, Seljuks and Ottomans.
and then there was the great battle:
A portent in the stars tells Nimrod and his astrologers of the impending birth of Abraham, who would put an end to idolatry. Nimrod therefore orders the killing of all newborn babies. However, Abraham's mother escapes into the fields and gives birth secretly. At a young age, Abraham recognizes God and starts worshipping him. He confronts Nimrod and tells him face-to-face to cease his idolatry, whereupon Nimrod orders him burned at the stake. In some versions, Nimrod has his subjects gather wood for four whole years, so as to burn Abraham in the biggest bonfire the world had ever seen. Yet when the fire is lit, Abraham walks out unscathed
(Wikipedia)
We all knew that Urfa was old, but we didn't really fathom all the ancient history that surrounded it. We were on a tour in Urfa or perhaps just following the LP Bible and saw Abraham's Pool. I know all of us thought it was lovely, but we had no clue what it was. Paul and Jot were not religious and Brian and I knew something more than they did, but still we were not familiar with the story of Nimrod and Abraham. As it turns out, it is just a "traditional story" for both Jews and Muslims. The pool is the place where Nimrod tried to burn Abraham and failed (a recurring biblical theme for sure).
Urfa was not our focus anyway. Our goal there was to head south to Harran and see the actual place Abraham was born (well, supposedly).
Abraham's Pool, Urfa
Retrospective Accomplishment
Paul, Jot, Brian and I headed off to Harran because:
Genesis 11
31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.
32 And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran.
KJV Bible
There we saw the famous beehive houses plus the ruins of an old university. The whole area these days is a UNESCO World Heritage Candidate Site.
The old city of Harran is situated in a land through which have run trade routes from Iskenderun to Antakya (ancient Antioch) and to Kargam~s. The city is mentioned in the Holy Bible and in the documents founded at Mari (a city on the Northern Syria) It is important not only for hosting the early civilizations but it is the place where the first Islamic University is founded. The traditional civil architecture, mudbrick houses with conic roofs, are unique.
https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/1400/
What is most interesting for me about this side trip was that we were off in search of biblical history (murky at best) and stumbled upon the ruins of the university there. Ancient Harran University was one of the oldest in the world although at the time I didn't appreciate it. Only later in doing some research, did I come across the name with photos and realized I had actually visited the place. I don't know if I would have felt differently about it had I realized it was one of the oldest universities in the world when we stomped around the ruins or not? Nonetheless it was kind of a kick to find out later in life I had visited a place I came across in some research.
Note: Harran is nominally in the Kurdish region of Turkey and my dear Kurdish friends lay claim to the "oldest university in the Islamic World"
Harran
Harran
Harran
it all started here
We were led to a very holy place. It was an unassuming door into the side of a hill with two entrances (one for male and one for female). This was one of the claimants for the birthplace of Abraham. It was highly revered locally. The place was on a time schedule alternating men and women. Paul, Brian, and I entered first - it was just a stuffy dark room. I only remember feeling claustrophobic and the air being hardly breathable. Then we exited and waited a bit and it was the women's turn and Jot entered (although I really don't know why she was interested especially after we told her there wasn't too much to see).
My first extremely religious place and I have to say I was left feeling let down. Maybe just because it wasn't certain Abraham was born there? No special feeling - just hot and stuffy.
We all were thrilled to hear Syria was just down the road. It felt very exotic, but we didn't tarry. We returned to Urfa to plan our last big daring trip, Nemrut Dağı.
Abraham's Birthplace
OZYMANDIAS
I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.”
- Shelley
Nemrut Dağı
One place we had to see above all others in this area was Nemrut Dağı. It was most recently "back" on the tourist trail after being closed for a time due to restless villagers in the mountains who were known to take pot shots at vehicles going to the mountain top. Apparently (unverified) they were preventing people from going to the site to "worship" the idols. No longer a threat, yet still making the experience a little edgy, we were all excited to go. Everything we heard about the site was superlative.
The Hierotheseion of Antiochos I is one of the most ambitious constructions of the Hellenistic period. Its complex design and colossal scale combined to create a project unequalled in the ancient world. A highly developed technology was used to build the colossal statues and orthostats (stelae), the equal of which has not been found anywhere else for this period. The syncretism of its pantheon and the lineage of its kings, which can be traced back through two sets of legends, Greek and Persian, is evidence of the dual origin of this kingdom's culture.
https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/448/
It required an incredibly early morning small white van ride up into the mountains. It was billed as a sunrise tour, but we got there after the sun was up. The last stretch of road would have been treacherous at night since it was unsurfaced and not in great shape (not to mention no guard rails on a high mountain).
We stopped at an old bridge across a branch of the Euphrates. It was so oddly out of place in the middle of nowhere. Of course, people needed bridges to travel and to ship goods overland since antiquity, but bridges were rarely stand alone in the middle of nowhere. We found it unusual and our tour was transport only so no further information was provided. It was this mysterious lonely bridge in the wasteland.
We finally arrived at the top and we had the site to ourselves. We were not disappointed. The location was on one of the highest points of the Taurus Mountains in the local area so the view was amazing. Then there was the sheer unlikelihood that there would be anything on this mountaintop in the middle of nowhere. Whoever was buried there was making a huge, yet strange statement. Unfortunately, the condition of the ruins was not good having been damaged by both humans and natural events (like earthquakes and lightening). We had a good romp at the top and felt extremely accomplished to visit a place few others were visiting at that time.
Our time in southeastern Turkey was coming to a close. We were almost ready for our next destination.
On the way to Nemrut Dagi
Nemrut Dagi
fed up
Strange thing to remember an argument with a fleabag hotel owner, but I do. Paul and Jot were headed off to the Aegean and Brian and I were going back to Istanbul to catch our flight to Bombay. We had all had enough of Eastern Turkey. First of all, the food. One can only eat so much minced lamb, aubergine, and tomato in endless combinations. Granted, we were not doing any kind of fine dining, but the typical Turkish meal was just getting boring. We loved the food at the start of the trip yet by the end we would be happy to take a very long break from it.
Then there was the CONSTANT annoyance of being ripped off. Wherever we turned in the country we were being cheated. In the East it became pestilential and tarnished a lot of our experiences. We finally hit the roof with our hotel owner in Urfa over the high price and low quality of the accommodation. He just sneered at us and said he was rich by local standards and we were poor by our own standards (painfully true). It was an incredibly nasty exchange and we were happy to leave the east of the country and get back to somewhere "civilized".
We bid farewell to Paul and Jot. Jot actually came to visit us in New York a few times in later years, but we never met Paul again.
ANKARA
We arrived in Ankara tired, read - tired of Turkey. Nothing was very appealing about the capital and my only memory is of Kamal Ataturk's tomb. Having seen Mao and Lenin's tomb, it was more of the same. That is my only memory - a dubious father of one country that trampled three other groups (Greeks, Armenians, and Kurds) to create his nation state. He was never vilified by the West because he knew the magic word, "secularism". He turned Aya Sophia into a museum. He encouraged women to abandon the hijab (veil). He told men to shave their beards. His reward was the West turning a blind eye totally to his nation-building, genocidal excesses. Eastern Turkey had so burnt us out. Turks had worn us down. Seeing Ataturk's Tomb has like the full stop ending to a book we wanted to close and put back on the shelf. We really were ready to leave.
Ataturk's Tomb, Ankara
Final thoughts
We arrived in Turkey clean slate. Neither of us knew much about the country and we followed our LP guide book's ("the bible") recommendations to make our way around the country in a more or less figure eight. Istanbul was interesting but overwhelming. The Aegean coast was full of ancient sites and party towns. Pamukkale and Cappadocia were in a class of their own for geology and then Cappadocia had ancient churches to boot. The Black Sea coast was another world and we witnessed the last gasps of the Soviet Union in Hopa. Eastern Turkey was a totally different country that was hard going and scary at times. We met Kurdish people and came to know of their tense existence in Turkey. We saw an ancient holy site for Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Turkey was a touristic and historical bonanza.
However... we also arrived in Turkey very pro-Turkey's bid to join the EU. We thought the EU was being racist and Islamaphobic by slowing down their accession process. Leaving Turkey, especially after visiting the East, we had had a total turn-around. In fact, we told people Turkey would flat out NEVER be ready to join the EU and the idea was idiotic. Turkey was too "other" - the bulk of the country was in Asia nominally and the Middle East culturally. Just because Istanbul had historical ties to the West and people liked to party on the Aegean coast in the summer was hardly a reason for EU membership. It seems Europe has finally come to that conclusion as well (and so has Turkey).
I lived next door to Turkey (literally) for two years and had no desire to return during that time. It is a shame in a way because I had Kurdish friends in Duhok who could have showed me around to places most people would never see. My experience there was so strong that I never wanted to return. Basically, I never did, except my transit in Istanbul for a few days during the pandemic. I would never say I hate Turkey, but I would also say in spite of its dearth of things to see and do - I have no need to return.
India awaited.
INDIA (part I) (September 1991)
Ganesh Chaturthi
We certainly didn't know what to expect on arrival in Bombay (it was not yet Mumbai), but we didn't plan for the big Ganesh celebration and having the whole city literally be shut down! We had a difficult time finding a cab and our introduction to India was paying DOUBLE the rip-off rate into town from the airport simply because almost no taxis were available.
I remember our nervous ride into town passing through the endless slums that ringed the older center city. I immediately thought we had made a mistake and I had been right all along - who would want to visit India? Finally, we passed the Gateway to India and the old Taj Hotel and I felt more at ease. The taxi dropped us near that old hotel and we looked for something "cheap and clean".
We were in India.
Bombay
Our hotel was somewhere in the neighborhood behind the Taj Hotel. Like the Raffles in Singapore, the Taj was just faded glory in those days and, although out of our budget, it was nothing luxurious at all. Also like the Raffles, it has now been totally renovated and is one of the best hotels in Mumbai.
India was overwhelming - the sights, the sounds, the smells (yuck). There were masses of people everywhere. People literally shat in the street. It was a lot to take in. Luckily, LP had another Bible for us to follow (that particular book was known to be excellent) and we set out to explore at least some of India's economic capital.
Our hotel was near the Gateway of India which looked completely out of place, although very photo worthy. Just behind it were the fetid waters of the harbor and from there we hopped on a small tour boat to Elephanta Island with its temple/caves. That was my first ancient temple in India and I have no memory of it - even when I find photos on the web, no recollection. I do, however, recall the boat ride through that black, stinking water in Bombay Harbor. I said to Brian if we fall in, I think we will die of sepsis before we drown. A few drops splashed onto me as we made our way to the islands - I felt ill.
THAT is my first memory of the trip to India, but we were committed - there was no turning back.
We went to Victoria Terminus (Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus these days) to check out one of the world's busiest train stations. Like the Gateway of India, it stood largely out of place. Since the days of the Raj, it had been demoted to a suburban railway station, but it was still packed. The architecture made an impression. Luckily, I fell in love with the old buildings in India both Indian and British. That old railway station was just the first.
We had purchased "IndRail Passes" for the first few weeks of our journey. I must say, until we learned the ins and outs of train travel, that rail pass saved us a lot of headaches. We made our way to Bombay Central and booked ourselves onto first class AC sleeper. There was even a ticket window just for IndRail Pass holders (which was blissfully empty compared to the HOARDS of people trying to purchase tickets elsewhere). At least something was working right.
Other memories of Bombay? A few modern towers being built here and there looking out of place. Marine Drive and its long, filthy beach left an impression. Like Shanghai before it, I could see glimpses of modern Mumbai rising out of its colonial past. I am certain if I returned today, I wouldn't recognize anything in the city except for the Gateway of India and the old British railway terminus formerly named for a long dead queen.
Bombay did not hold our interest. We were off to Gujurat.
Gateway of India, Mumbai
Victoria Terminus, Mumbai
On the train
Our first long train ride in India turned out to be one of the best. We were AC1 Sleeper, the top class in the trains. The guidebook recommended it and it was correct -- the interior was not luxurious, but it was clean and very cheap. Even though we had to pay a supplement in addition to our rail pass, it wasn't much as India was dirt cheap. We settled in for our long ride to Bhuj - or so we thought.
The first guy we talked to on the train was Parsi. He was only traveling as far as Surat, but I remember it being a fascinating conversation about his small community in India. They were Persian Zoroastrians who fled Iran in search of a more tolerant society. Unfortunately, they were endogamous and their gene pool was already quite weak. He, in fact, wanted to marry and complained about the difficulty of finding a suitable mate. It was a truly interesting start to what was going to be one of the best parts of the trip.
After he left, we met a Member of Parliament (the advantage of being in AC1 Sleeper) and he was an interesting and gregarious man who totally charmed us. Even after the Mustafa incident we let our guard down. He ran a charitable hospital in Gandhidham and invited us to stay at his home a few days. We took him up on it and it turned out to be a lovely experience. The man and his wife were true humanitarians and his work touched both of us. My opinion of India was changing rapidly. It is a shame that all of this was prior to the internet age because it would have been wonderful to have kept in contact with him and his wife. He was a genuinely kind person.
Given that he was an MP he had connections. One of them was that he knew the "Collector" of Bhuj. He said we simply HAD TO look him up upon our arrival. He arranged our transport to Bhuj (Gandhidham was not that far away) and we left for our first real adventure of the trip.
BHUJ, GUJURAT
the collector of Bhuj
Once settled in our hotel in Bhuj, Brian fell ill. Such things must be prepared for so I just made sure he was comfortable and then I headed out to meet "the Collector". I went into a large government office and I was received by a slightly less than middle-aged man who spoke excellent English and was quite engaging. I told him about our trip in India and he was thrilled we had come to Bhuj. I asked him out of sheer ignorance what exactly his job was and got the astounding answer that he basically was in charge of "Bhuj". He was the district magistrate and all people reported to him in the city and surrounding area. I had arrived in Bhuj and directly met the top person! I still chuckle to this day at my ignorance, "What exactly do you do, sir?" "I run Bhuj"
He invited me for dinner (I made apologies for Brian) and had a lovely meal with him and his wife. I explained to him that I had read an interesting NYT article about Bhuj and local handicrafts out in the Rann of Kutch and wanted to have a look. He explained that the area was mostly off limits due to the always tense border situation with Pakistan. The area Brian and I hoped to visit was in fact close to the border. No worries though, he arranged a tour for us and got us all the permissions (since he was "the man" in Bhuj). What an incredible stroke of luck we had meeting the only person who most easily could get us to a remote and "sensitive" part of the country!
Brian recovered enough to have dinner with me at the Collector's house the next day. He explained that the Rann was actually part of the delta of the Indus River and over time it had shifted to the northwest and left behind a scrubland. It was all so fascinating and edgy. We were going to approach one of the most heavily guarded borders on earth. We thanked him heartily for all his help. We would see the Rann of Kutch.
We did also have a brief look around Bhuj at its old palace and Raj Era government buildings, but the main attraction was going to be our trip out into the surrounding villages. Bhuj itself was not very noteworthy as a city.
We traveled in a jeep with a security escort and all kinds of documentation that was needed at many checkpoints. The NYT article was correct. Set in this dried up delta were colorful villages where people were subsistance farmers and women made incredibly beautiful dyed cloth and a variety of handicrafts. My hesitation at having come to India vanished. If this is what India was going to be like, then please bring it on! We had an excellent day out in the Rann and returned to Bhuj satisfied that we had traveled to a place few had ventured. We were saddened years later when a devastating earthquake leveled Bhuj - one of the worst to hit India in decades. The pictured Prag Mahal was severely damaged. I am grateful we saw the region pre-earthquake.
On a high from Bhuj being interesting, we headed to Rajasthan.
Prag Mahal, Bhuj, Gujurat
Aina Mahal, Bhuj, Gujurat
Rann of Kutch, Gujurat
Rann of Kutch, Gujurat
Rann of Kutch, Gujurat
RAJASTHAN
Jaipur
The Pink City. After a miserable start in Bombay, things were looking up after meeting the kindly MP on the train and then the Collector in Bhuj who facilitated our exploring the Rann of Katch. Rajasthan was, however, where I fell in love with India. Colonial issues aside, Rajasthan was the India of Rudyard Kipling. It was a place of crumbling palaces and forts set in a great, near-desert setting. The first city most people visit and, indeed, the most famous was Jaipur.
We took the train from Bhuj to Jaipur (it wasn't overnight) and found a decent hotel. As we started to explore the city (with the help of the LP Bible), we first came across the old city gate. It struck me more than the massive Gateway to India in Bombay. This was the real gate to an old city - not some fantasy gate created by foreigners. We explored the royal palace downtown and saw the famous Palace of the Winds. Were shocked to find it was indeed just a tall facade and most of the windows were false. In addition, it was extremely difficult to photograph because it was on a narrow street and without a wide-angle lens, there was no way to get it all in. We wandered the parts of the palace that were open to the public. I loved the great moustached palace guards. Moustaches were a matter of pride with Rajasthani men and we saw many handsome ones.
Rajasthan was not just the old city center - it also included a small palace on a lake, the Amber Palace outside of town, and a couple of forts guarding it all from above on a mountain. We needed to get there by auto rickshaw. Those contraptions were already the bane of our existence. They hassled us nonstop and then cheated us on price. I was none too thrilled with the drivers as a whole. However, somehow we met a driver who had an old laminated piece of paper in English that was his "tour" of all the palaces and forts out of town. Brian and I haggled with him and then set out. He had a cassette player in his vehicle and played us music along the way.
We visited the palace on the lake. We saw the Amber Palace and climbed the mountain behind it to the forts that overlooked the palace below and Jaipur in the distance. It was like being in some fantasy film set. There was even an elephant in full regalia in front of the Amber Palace and some men washing other elephants in the tank below the palace. I wondered what the British thought when they first came to India and saw all of these things?
As it turns out, Jaipur (for India) is really not that old of a city. It was already built and well-known by the time the British arrived, but it was not ancient in the least:
The city of Jaipur was founded by the King of Amer, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II on 18 November 1727, who ruled from 1699 to 1743. He planned to shift his capital from Amer, 11 kilometres to Jaipur to accommodate the growing population and increasing scarcity of water. Jai Singh consulted several books on architecture and architects while planning the layout of Jaipur. Under the architectural guidance of Vidyadhar Bhattacharya, Jaipur was planned based on the principles of Vastu Shastra and Shilpa Shastra The construction of the city began in 1726 and took four years to complete the major roads, offices, and palaces. The city was divided into nine blocks, two of which contained the state buildings and palaces, with the remaining seven allotted to the public. Huge ramparts were built, pierced by seven fortified gates.
(Wikipedia)
My strongest memory of Jaipur however was our autorickshaw driver/guide. He turned out to be an honestly nice guy and Brian and I really liked him a lot. When our tour was finished we gave him a good tip. In addition, I took his address and promised to send him a mix tape from America with all the latest music after I got home. I fulfilled that promise, too and he wrote back to thank me. Funny how meeting that guy and going on his auto rickshaw tour became the best memory of Jaipur.
We were stoked about Rajasthan and caught the train to the next city, Jodhpur.
Old City Gate, Jaipur
Palace of the Winds, Jaipur
Jal Mahal, Jaipur
Palace guards, Jaipur
Autorickshaw driver in front of the Amber Palace, Jaipur
Amber Palace, Jaipur
View from Nahargar, Jaipur
Jaigar Fort, Jaipur
Jodhpur
Jaipur to Rajasthan was like New Town to Edinburgh city. If you visited that first, you would love Edinburgh and think it was a beautiful old city city that was well planned with stately homes and monuments. Then, in your wanderings, you would reach the old town and think, "Wow, this place just got infinitely better." That was the feeling arriving in 15th century Jodhpur after starting with 18th century (and well planned) Jaipur. Jodhpur was the stuff of films; in fact so much so that it was the darling location of many famous Bollywood movies.
Jodhpur was at the eastern edge of the Thar Desert and centered on a huge rock upon which sat the palace/fort of the old Rajput of Jodhpur. The walled city below the town was painted a stunning blue. The effect was awe-inspiring. Add to the overall setting some old palaces, temples, and gardens and that was Jodhpur. Brian and I were absolutely gobsmacked. I fell in love with India even more and thought Rajasthan could not get any better. I was so happy I let Brian convince me to include India on our trip.
...the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the Kingdom of Marwar, which is now part of Rajasthan. Jodhpur is a popular tourist destination, featuring many palaces, forts, and temples, set in the stark landscape of the Thar Desert. It is popularly known as the "Blue City" among people of Rajasthan and all over India. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Jodhpur district and Jodhpur division. The old city circles the Mehrangarh Fort and is bounded by a wall with several gates. The city has expanded greatly outside the wall, though over the past several decades. Jodhpur lies near the geographic centre of the Rajasthan state, which makes it a convenient base for travel in a region much frequented by tourists. The city featured in The New York Times's "52 Places to Go in 2020"
(Wikipedia)
Somewhere in our time there (in the hotel maybe? or a tour?) we met Jo and Jamie Goodsir who ended up being our travel mates across much of India and even in Nepal. They were on one of those typical antipodean massive journeys that Aussies and Kiwis were wont to do. This was actually their second big adventure and even for Brian and me, they were more experienced travelers. Not to mention they were wonderful and funny people. We loved our time with them and learned a LOT about how to travel in India more effectively from their knowledge.
We visited a lot of the film locations Jodhpur was famous for and hired auto rickshaws to take us around. The places were all amazing. It was difficult to believe such a remote city on the edge of a desert that I had never heard of held such beauty. Jo and Jamie taught us to drink shandy to help save our money (and cool off) with Jamie all the while complaining it was really "a ladies' drink". They showed us how to check the mattresses in cheap hotels for bed bugs and other nasties. We struck up an incredibly close friendship with them very quickly.
One of my worst memories, however, was before meeting J&J. We went in search of some place in the LP Bible and got lost. It was on Brian to find it as he said he was sure he remembered the way without the book. We went out and got hopelessly lost in Jodhpur's maze of streets and I had a near panic attack. Brian thought I was overreacting and perhaps I was. Then again we were lost in a city where no one around us spoke English and we couldn't even explain where our hotel was to anyone who wanted to help us. We might not have even known the name of where we were staying. After that I was sure to bring some kind of map with us (and the hotel business card) even though Brian rolled his eyes at my over-dramatization. I realized then and there I hated the feeling of being lost like a small child in a supermarket who lost sight of its mother. The panic for me was real.
After meeting the super confident Goodsirs from New Zealand there was little chance to be lost again. We let them lead the way as we visited gardens, temples, and palaces. We enjoyed our time thoroughly and Jodhpur for me was going to be hard to top.
It was time to take the train to Jaisalmer. We were traveling in the wake of the Goodsirs.
Jodhpur Fort
Jamie feeds the "holy moo". Jodhpur
Jo & Jamie, Mandar Gardens, Jodhpur
Jaswant Thada, Jodhpur
Umaid Bhavan
Umaid Bhavan
Jaisalmer
Jaipur was wonderful. Jodhpur was mind-blowing and we met our to-be travel friends, Jo and Jamie there. How could things get better?
The four of us took the train (day train) to Jaisalmer across the Thar Desert. It was perhaps the most desolate train ride I have ever taken. Even the Trans-Siberian had trees and rivers - the ride to Jaisalmer was just desert. To add to the excitement, we were in an old steam locomotive! The ride was very dusty and I remember arriving to Jaisalmer feeling dirty and gritty. As we approached the city it appeared in the distance like a mirage. It must be one of the grandest train arrivals I have ever experienced because after hours of nothing this city slowly rose out of the horizon. There were other tourists on the train and we all made our way from the train station to the old city. The auto rickshaws were asking outrageous prices to take us up into the walled city and we balked. I remember one obnoxious Brit kept saying, "oh it's only 50p, who cares?" Well, we cared because by accepting any price they gave just made it all the harder on the next traveler. In the end, we stayed in the lower town, and we were glad we did.
Fort Jaisalmer was old:
Built in 1156 by the Bhati Rajput ruler Jaisal, Jaisalmer Fort, situated on Meru Hill and named as Trikoot Garh has been the scene of many battles. Its massive sandstone walls are a tiny lion colour during the day, turning to a magical honey-gold as the sun sets. The famous Indian film director Satyajit Ray wrote a detective novel and later turned it into a film − Sonar Kella (The Golden Fortress) which was based on this fort. About a quarter of the city's population still live inside the fort.
....
There are seven Jain temples in total which are situated within the Jaisalmer fort built during the 12th and 15th centuries. Among these temples, the biggest is the Paraswanath Temple; the others are Chandraprabhu temple, Rishabdev temple, Shitalnath Temple, Kunthunath Temple, and Shantinath Temple. Known for their exquisite work of art and architecture that was predominant in the medieval era the temples are built out of yellow sandstone and have intricate engravings on them. Jaisalmer has some of the oldest libraries of India which contain rarest of the manuscripts and artefacts of Jain tradition.
(Wikipedia)
Jaisalmer was indeed old and the fort-city on the hill was chock full of old temples with beautifully carved sandstone. The old city was mind-blowingly beautiful. We wandered around taking photos of the old "haveli" (traditional townhouses), the Jain temples, and the fort walls with their fabulous views of the town and desert. One downside - the old city up on the hill was filled with packs of street dogs who were known to be unfriendly. We met some people who stayed in nice lodgings on the hill only to move the next day down to the lower town (where we ended up) because of the wild dogs! Wow. We had to adjust our wanderings in the old town just to avoid packs of dogs. Wild dogs aside, Jaisalmer Fort remains one of the most amazing places I visited in India and perhaps anywhere.
The thing to do in Jaisalamer was a camel ride into the desert. Brian and I were game and then Jo and Jamie advised against it having done a camel ride elsewhere (methinks Morocco?) and said that it was uncomfortable and for lack of a better word, stinky. Camels apparently were known to be flatulent not to mention the hoard of flies that buzzed around them. None of it sounded appealing. Instead we took a brief tour outside of town into the desert to see some old tombs. There we met women getting water at an old well and the color of their saris against the brown desert was incredibly striking. From the tombs we saw the old fortress city floating in the distance. That is one of my strongest memories from India.
Jaisalmer might have been my favorite place in India and is one of my best travel memories from anywhere. A place I never heard of, it exceeded all expectations. Ancient and beautiful but at the same time a little down and out and grungy, I loved it. All the while the town sat in the middle of a desert with literally NOTHING all around it.
By this time I was in love with India and couldn't imagine I had balked at visiting. We were off to our next destination, Udaipur - the polar opposite of Jaisalmer as Udaipur was all about water.
Jaisalmer
Jaisalmer
Old city ramparts, Jaisalmer
Haveli, Jaisalmer Fort
Thar Desert, Jaisalmer
Thar Desert, Jaisalmer
Udaipur
We must have taken an overnight train to Udaipur from Jaisalmer as the distance was just too far. Jo and Jamie were still with us for the delights of that watery paradise after the desert kingdom of Jaisalmer. Udaipur wasn't as old as Jaisalmer and Jodhpur but still older than "new kid on the block" Jaipur. It was built as a pleasure city/trading hub at the southernmost part of Rajasthan. Set to trade with the desert caravans to the west as well as from Gujarat to the south and Delhi to the north, built on a series of lakes and nestled in mountains, the place was very defensible and maintained a great deal of autonomy historically. The "city palace" on the lake edge was massive and then, of course, there was the beautiful Lake Palace floating out on Lake Pichola. We took tours that led us to viewpoints and gardens all over the city. Udaipur was picturesque, no other word for it. Literally everywhere one turned was photo worthy.
Dubbed "the most romantic spot on the continent of India" by British administrator James Tod, Udaipur is a tourist destination and is known for its history, culture, scenic locations and the Rajput-era palaces. It is popularly known as the "City of Lakes" because of its sophisticated lake system. It has seven lakes surrounding the city. Five of the major lakes, namely Fateh Sagar Lake, Lake Pichola, Swaroop Sagar Lake, Rangsagar, and Doodh Talai Lake, have been included under the restoration project of the National Lake Conservation Plan (NLCP) of the Government of India. Besides lakes, Udaipur is also known for its historic forts and palaces, museums, galleries, natural locations and gardens, architectural temples, as well as traditional fairs, festivals and structures. Due to the several lakes present here, it is sometimes dubbed "Venice of the East". (Wikipedia) Memories of Udaipur: Of course, we HAD TO go out to the Palace on the Lake for a meal. That was just de rigueur for Udaipur. When we were there, we spent most of the evening taking the piss out of another tourist who was at this VERY upscale restaurant in his "India purchased" pajamas. Granted, one could get away with wearing them virtually everywhere and they WERE comfortable, it was clear they were not "evening attire". We had a lovely meal there with views over the lake. It was a memorable moment in India. I also remember seeing women washing clothes lakeside and realizing that when we sent our clothes out to a '"dhoby wallah", they were actually taking our clothes to a "dhoby ghat" (like the place name in Singapore) for them to be washed on the edge of a lake or stream. Kind of...ewww, but the clothes at least came back clean. It was better not to dwell on HOW our clothes actually got clean I guessed. We took a few tours to hilltops with different views over the lakes and palaces of Udaipur. It was a photographer's paradise to be sure. I also think by then we had all had our fill of Rajasthan, but not in a bad way. We had seen its "wow" cities and wanted to leave the place on a high note. Jo and Jamie were off to Pushkar, the location of the famous Camel Fair (we were one month too early). Brian and I wanted to see the fort at nearby, Chittorgarh (the descendants of whom founded Udaipur). We all agreed we would meet up again in Agra. It astounds me that without email or phones we could promise such a thing and actually manage it. We did, however!
Best buds, Palace on the Lake, Udaipur
Sahelion-ki-Bari, Udaipur
Udaipur
Lake Pichola, Udaipur
Dhoby Ghat, Udaipur
Chittorgarh
The train ride to Chittorgarh from Udaipur was short. The city was famous for its fort and rightly so. The LP Bible qualified it as one of the best forts in all of India and it hadn't been exaggerated!
The Chittorgarh (literally Chittor Fort), also known as Chittod Fort, is one of the largest forts in India. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The fort was the capital of Mewar and is located in the present-day city of Chittorgarh. It sprawls over a hill 180 m in height spread over an area of 280 ha above the plains of the valley drained by the Berach River. The fort covers 65 historic structures, which include four palaces, 19 large temples, 20 large water bodies, 4 memorials and a few victory towers.
(Wikipedia)
In legend the fort dates back to the 8th century, but the first recording of the place was in the 13th century. Whatever the case, Chittorgarh was OLD.
Brian and I loved exploring the plateau where the fort was built with its sheer drop offs to the plains below. There were old water tanks (reservoirs), temples, and palaces. It was one of the most dramatic settings we had encountered on the trip. We were amazed that we were almost alone visiting (the rest of Rajasthan had a fair number of tourists). The feeling of Chittorgarh was a little less like Rajasthan (it was not in a desert) and more like the rest of India. It made for a good transition. We were leaving Rajasthan for a while (we would return).
So we were off to Agra by train. Now such hands at riding Indian railways, we rode the trains with confidence. We knew with our rail pass we could simply get on the train and meet the conductor and ask for the best possible seat and generally ended up in 1AC or 2AC sleeper class. We could just pay the difference on the train. It was a long journey regardless.
We arrived in Agra exhausted.
Chittorgarh Fort
Jain Shvetambar Temple, Chittorgarh Fort
Chittorgarh Fort view
AGRA
Agra-vation
Agra is perhaps the worst tourism venue I have ever visited in my life. Unfortunately, it also happens to hold a world treasure, the Taj Mahal. Every single part of India that got on our nerves was distilled and magnified by a factor of ten in Agra. It was like Turkey on steroids - a whole city hellbent on extracting as many rupees from us as possible for every breath we took. We were not alone in our assessment, even the ever-positive LP Bible warned tourists about all the rip-offs lying in wait in that city. How we found Jo and Jamie again remains a mystery. Had we all agreed on a hotel from the guidebook? Did we just pick a date and a meeting point? How did we live before email and cell-phones? Whatever the case, we reunited and were mightily happy to see each other. It was much easier for the four of us to stand up against Agra-vation than just a pair. Jo could be absolutely fierce - we were so happy she was on our side. Not only did we have to bargain harder for everything we did, but auto rickshaw drivers would follow us inside every single place we entered and claim a commission for having brought us (even if we had not used their service!). I remember storming out of restaurants and hotels because they were putting the auto rickshaw "commission" on our bill. Of course, if someone led us to a restaurant and that establishment wanted to tip them, that was normal. However, it became entrenched in a system where said tip was paid by the customer. Even worse, if we were on foot, the drivers would rush in and say they had brought us and the restaurant and hotel owners believed the drivers and not us! I have never felt so ripped off. Agra was a constant and horrible hassle. Thank God it was not our first impression of India - I may well have wanted to leave immediately on arrival had it been the case!
Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for being "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage". It is regarded by many as the best example of Mughal architecture and a symbol of India's rich history. The Taj Mahal attracts more than 6 million visitors a year and in 2007, it was declared a winner of the New 7 Wonders of the World (2000–2007) initiative.
(Wikipedia)
The LP Bible recommended multiple visits to the Taj Mahal and it was good advice. We went in the early morning, mid afternoon, and then around sunset and waited for nightfall to see it lit up. The Taj was all about light and shadow and seeing it just once at one time of day was to miss some of its many moods. For all the agra-vation of the city, the Taj complex truly was an oasis of beautiful calm. There were many tourists yet the complex was large enough that it never felt mobbed. Jo, Jamie, Brian, and wandered the gardens and building leisurely - none of us particularly wanted to face Agra and its horrible tourist touts and auto rickshaw drivers any faster than was needed.
The Taj was built in the 17th century and most people know the story. The thing I didn't know about the Taj Mahal (and other Mughal palaces and tombs) was their use of pietra dura:
The dado frames and archway spandrels have been decorated with pietra dura inlays of highly stylised, almost geometric vines, flowers and fruits. The inlay stones are of yellow marble, jasper and jade, polished and levelled to the surface of the walls.
(Wikipedia)
The technique of inlaid stone had been around since the Romans, but the Persians brought it to a new level and then the Moghuls perfected it. Most of the other Mughal architecture we viewed later, especially in and around Delhi, used the same style as the Taj, but all the semi-precious stones had been hacked out of the marble, greatly diminishing the effect. Only the Taj had been spared and those semi-precious stones literally glowed when the light hit them. It was a detail I knew nothing about and was incredibly impressive in person. Parts of the building were literally encrusted with semi-precious stones - wow!
All of us were happy to have visited the Taj multiple times in different lighting and drunk in the peacefulness of its setting. For how shitty Agra was, it was unbelievable the Taj Mahal was so much the opposite. It begged visitors to just sit and relax in the gardens to appreciate the grandeur of its materials and architecture. How could such serenity exist in the midst of such utter chaos?
There was still more to see in Agra so we pushed on, reluctantly.
Taj Mahal, Agra
Agra Fort
The Taj Mahal is so amazing it literally eclipses everything else in Agra. Agra Fort, if it were located anywhere else, would be the most amazing thing to see. However, in Agra it is just an "also ran" that happens to give incredible views of the Taj in the distance. The current fort was built in the 16th century and is massive. It is described as a small city rather than a fort and that is correct. Behind the massive red sandstone walls were palaces, gardens, temples, and mosques. Agra Fort was an incredible structure yet everyone was drawn to do just one thing - get up on the walls and take just a few more photos of the Taj Mahal in the distance. Architecturally speaking, the Fort would have been the smarter of two siblings having "everything needed for success in life" only to be constantly overlooked because of his gorgeous sister, the Taj Mahal. I only remember that I was impressed by Agra Fort' but literally keep no details of the place in my mind. The Taj, however, is deeply imprinted - where I walked and how it looked at different times of day. It might be worth visiting Agra once and giving the Taj a miss, just to appreciate it as the former capital of the Mughals.
The great Mughal Emperor Akbar's Tomb is also in Agra, but again lives in the shadow of the Taj. Akbar was far more important historically than the third wife of Shah Jahan, but his tomb is just a "sideshow" in Agra. Yes, I visited and took some photos, but I only remember the Taj.
Agra Fort
Agra Fort view
Akbar's Tomb, Agra
The importance of water
The guidebook insisted that Fatehpur Sikri was a "must see" if in Agra. We got on a small tour and went to that old royal city not that far from Agra. The visit for me was unexpectedly transformational for my future conception of how the world worked.
Fatehpur Sikri is a town in the Agra District of Uttar Pradesh, India. Situated 35.7 kilometers from the district headquarters Agra, Fatehpur Sikri itself was founded as the capital of Mughal Empire in 1571 by Emperor Akbar, serving this role from 1571 to 1585, when Akbar abandoned it due to a campaign in Punjab and was later completely abandoned in 1610.
(Wikipedia)
The backstory of the city was fascinating stuff. Apparently former emperors had been building pleasure gardens and palaces there before Akbar decided to make it his new capital. The story goes that Akbar's first male heir, Jahangir, was a long time in coming and he was born in Sikri town. Akbar then wanted to elevate the place to capital in honor of his son's birth. Basically, he consolidated what was there, added more fabulous buildings and put a wall around it all and called it his capital. For all of 14 years!
Fatehpur Sikri was huge and abandoned. Even the British were amazed by it and in the days of the East India Company, they set up administrative headquarters in the abandoned city for a time. Due to their efforts much of the site was restored after centuries of neglect. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site very early on when such designations were just starting to be rolled out.
When we arrived in the city I was slack jawed at its scale. We were only viewing the ceremonial buildings of the now defunct capital. These days it is just a small village attached to all these massive old mosques and palaces. It is impressive and it was abandoned - not conquered, abandoned.
They ran out of water.
An entire new capital was built and in 14 years the water supply ran out and everyone moved back to Agra. Akbar couldn't deal with the headache of the place, so after 25 more years it was totally desolate. The impact on me was huge because I never considered running out of water to be a possibility for a CITY. Fatehpur Sikri was not alone. Other cities throughout history have also been abandoned due to failing water supply, but for me 14 years was an incredibly short lifespan. The buildings were just colossal and then "oops, can't live here, bye"
The place always stuck with me after that. Ecological disaster was real and could happen in the blink of an eye. All the doomsday predictions about Climate Change were actually not strong enough. My whole thinking about how the world could change was modified abruptly. What if New York City ran out of water? Imagine Manhattan as a huge, abandoned museum of folly. 200 years of building and then, nothing. Some cities are even slowly being abandoned in my own lifetime. When I looked at downtown St. Louis, visions of Fatehpur Sikri were in my mind nonstop. Would it eventually just be a small town on the Mississippi with monumental architecture that people would visit as tourists? It already kind of is.
Fatehpur Sikri might be the best place for Mughal architecture photography. An abandoned city never has many people. The place could bring in thousands of tourists and it would still absorb them. I walked through the cavernous palace enclosures and the great Friday Mosque courtyard and felt amazed. The old city swallowed us up.
The dynastic architecture of Fatehpur Sikri was modelled on Timurid forms and styles. The city was built massively and preferably with red sandstone. Gujarati influences are also seen in its architectural vocabulary and decor of the palaces of Fatehpur Sikri. The city's architecture reflects both the Hindu and Muslim form of domestic architecture popular in India at the time. The remarkable preservation of these original spaces allows modern archaeologists to reconstruct scenes of Mughal court life, and to better understand the hierarchy of the city's royal and noble residents.
(Wikipedia)
The tour ended and we went back to Agra. I had learned something huge and shocking that would stick with me for the rest of my life.
....
Finally, it was time to leave the dreadful state of "Agra-vation" and get on with it. We were headed to Gorakhpur where we would do a side trip to Kushinagar, a Buddhist holy site, and then grab the bus to Nepal. Jo and Jamie left us to go to Delhi, but we promised to meet up a few weeks later in Pokhara at the end of our trek in the Annapurna region. Amazingly, without email or phones, we met up yet again!
Rang Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri
Masjid Sharif, Fatehpur Sikri
KUSHINAGAR, UTTAR PRADESH
My second Theology class at Georgetown was Pathways in Buddhism and Hinduism with Father Reddington. Gaelle, a freshman year friend, and I LOVED his theology class and decided to take his upper level Buddhism course as an elective. We were the lone undergrads in a course meant for Graduate Students, but Fr. Reddington loved us. We were actually the only students who wanted to be there. I learned a LOT about Buddhism at Georgetown, so when we ended up travelling in India, I convinced Brian to make a stop at the "Big Four" Buddhist holy sites. The first we visited was ironically the place where the historical Buddha died. Gorakhpur was unmemorable. We had just travelled by train over a lot of Western India and by the time we reached Gorakhpur from Agra, we were already "experts" in South Asian travel. We easily made our way out to Kushinagar, a sleepy little town in Uttar Pradesh which had a large number of Buddhist Viharas from all the major Buddhist nations of the world. The actual holy place was just a mound of earth, itself the remains of a ruined stupa built over the place where Buddha was cremated. Even though he forbade it, devotees did pick through the ashes afterward for bits of bone and teeth which became highly venerated relics. The "Temple of the Tooth" in Sri Lanka has mythical powers, all based on one tooth gleaned from those ashes. My memory of Kushinagar was the quietude. Tourists didn't visit. It was just a sleepy little Uttar Pradesh town that hosted an abnormal number of Buddhist monasteries. In a way, it was a bust - a not interesting location with great historical significance. Even Brian appreciated that it was an important place that the world, but even Buddhists themselves just never visited. We didn't stay long, but I remember the sunset from there and even discussing with Brian the nature of Indian sunsets and how they were always different from sunsets back home. I attributed them to the perpetually dusty air in the dry season. We had one final glorious sunset in Kushinagar where the orb of the sun hung yellow and full just above the horizon in an orangish sky and then made our way back to Gorakhpur. We were booked on a bus through to Nepalganj, Nepal the next day . We had had enough of India - we both couldn't wait to explore one of the countries we planned for the most and looked forward to it excitedly. We were on our way to Nepal!
Buddha's cremation site, Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh.
Continued .....