We finished our big walk and bussed back to the town we first arrived in. We had left a bag of gear there so it was wonderful to wear some different clothes! We caught up with a few friends and made some new ones. All good fun!
A very interesting experience was getting John's hair cut. I only wish I had realised how entertaining it was going to be and had taken more photos!
For a Turkish shave and haircut, first use an old-fashioned brush and soap to lather up the beard. Shave it with a cutthroat razor. Yikes!
Next trim the beard with clippers (the trend apparently is to shave it shorter at the sides and longer at the chin). Then apply a mud mask to the face! (Wish I'd got a photo of this one.)
This next step is where it gets really interesting. The barber lights a burning thing on a handle then quickly taps it into ears and anywhere where there are annoying hairs that need to be singed off! (You can't quite see the flame in the photo.)
Next the barber actually cuts the hair. This is followed by a hair wash then the hair is brushed and blow-dried to look like Kenny Rogers! Then there is a finger-pulling and almost whip-lashing massage before the performance is finished.
This is how he ended up looking but we went straight home and wet his hair down and it looked fine then!
We were sad to leave Antalya. It was a lovely place.
Our next destination was a lakeside town up in the mountains. It was starting to get quite hot near the coast and it was time to escape. We had a 3-hour bus journey to get there. The buses are amazing. Every long-haul bus has a host who hands out tea, coffee and snacks, just line an airline host. Also like a plane, each seat has a screen with movies, games etc. I thought I'd pass the time by trying out Angry Birds (I figured I didn't need to understand Turkish to play it). I couldn't get past level 15 of the first level!
Here's a pic of a large bus company name. It makes us laugh every time. (It means Camel Coach)!
We arrived at the lakeside town of Egidir and the view from our place was superb!
One hitch though was that they had a plague of mosquito-like bugs. Fortunately, they didn't bite but you couldn't leave windows open and they were just annoying. There were millions of them!
We went there to walk and had a really wonderful walk one day. We joined two English girls, one of whom lives in Egidir with her Turkish boyfriend. After slogging up yet another hill we had a superb view from the top. The walk down the other side was lovely and green.
The two English girls were staying at a pansiyon in the next village for the night so they stopped for a break. While we were saying goodbye to them we were joined by Jose, a Puerto Rican staying in our hotel, and the three of us headed to the next village together. There were no shops there so we asked the lady at the pansiyon to make us some lunch. She there turned out to be fantastic. She couldn't speak a word of English but she babbled away to us as if we could understand her. She was so bright a bubbly. We all sat down on cushions on the floor, Turkish-style, and she cooked us up an amazing spread.
The two English girls joined us later and one can speak Turkish. She learned that the lady had left school when she was young and had spent her life being a wife and mother. She milks cows and grows fruit and vegetables. She and her husband also grow roses to sell the oil for perfumes. They have 4 children and they have worked hard to put all the children through school. All the ones that are old enough have gone to university but the lady was very sad when her eldest daughter decided to get married at 18. She showed us a photo of her kids. The girls were absolutely stunning. They could have been models. They were modern kids in western clothes.
This woman seemed really intelligent and I suspect she has done everything she can to give her kids a better life than she has had. If she lived in Europe, Australia or the US, I'm sure she would have a really good job herself. I suspect she was probably quite lonely and she was certainly very excited to have us all there. It really makes you appreciate the opportunities we have in a first-world country.
We sadly said goodbye and had a fantastic walk to the next village. The walking here was soooo much easier than on the Lycian Way. We were walking on dirt and grass, not rocks! At one stage we came to a steep descent and we hesitated about which way to go. This wonderful old man pointed the way. He then proceeded to show us all the herbs en-route, picking them so we could small them and explaining that you make tea with them.
He carried an old gunny-sack and at one stage he produced a loaf of bread from it and offered it to us. We didn't accept but it is typical of the incredible hospitality of the Turks. He led us all the way down to the village then pointed the way for us to go when he left us. He was so sweet - and so sure-footed! We slipped and slid down the steep path but he didn't stumble once. I wonder how many people at home could do the walk that he just did at his age?
We wandered through the village. Typical of old villages, houses were always falling down while others were being built. The Turks don't seem to like renovating old places.
We got a bit lost going through the village but, as always, someone was more than willing to help. This guy was a character. He led us through the village showing us off to people! We had a lot of laughs with him and bought him a tea at the end.
There was a festival happening the next day so we joined in. The format was very similar to the last one we went on - everyone walks to a destination where activities happen and a lunch is served. The walk to the top of a nearby mountain was superb but it was really hot. Thanks goodness we stopped the Lycian Way when we did - I'm no good in the heat.
We could see the peninsula we were staying on in the huge lake.
People gathered in one place in the lovely green oak trees. It was a gorgeous setting.
It was some sort of kids' sport day and the main thing we saw was a competition that was a bit like apple-bobbing but it involved sticking your face in what appeared to be some sort of porridge. The kids got covered in it. It was entertaining for everyone!
We all had lunch but, just like the last festival, most people just threw their rubbish on the ground. It was heartbreaking to see.
We enjoyed just sitting there people-watching. This photo shows a typical mix of dress you get in the women. One woman has the black coat on that is the most conservative dress here. (You very rarely see a full chador here - that's more a middle-eastern thing). The lady on the left has conservative clothes on - full coverage and headscarf. The teenage girl in the centre is dressed like any westerner, although the Turks usually wear jeans not shorts or short skirts. The little girl is totally hip in her Frozen t-shirt!
We often see ladies with very different levels of Muslim dress together in one group like this. Two girls can be walking down the street together and one will have full coverage and headscarf and the other will be in 3/4 pants and a t-shirt. Everybody just seems to accept everyone else's personal choices.
We were supposed to head west next but John found out that a favourite singer of his, Yasmine Hamdan, is playing at a music festival in Cappadocia so we are heading there next instead!
Gule gule! (Bye!)
Heather
