Travel

Ephesus: a look back into the past.

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We slept well but the call to prayer at 5am and the local roosters crowing made it an early start.

Breakfast of ripe tomatoes, an egg and delicious fruits in the lovely garden was a good start to our day. It’s such a healthy breakfast.

We got a ‘taksi’ to the top gate and started our tour. We decided we wanted to move at our own pace and had an audio guide – which is always a good way to go.

Amazing view of the ancient city

There were a few tour groups there but not enough to bother us. It got very hot as we moved around so we hovered like cows under any available tree as we listened to history being brought alive.

What a story is Ephesus. It’s truly amazing to see. The Temple in Agrigento Sicily was great, as are the Roman forum, the Parthenon, Pompeii – but this is altogether amazing. A walled city being rediscovered. The way people lived was described and you could see evidence of the houses, the spa, the latrines, shops, library, amphitheatre, workshops. Everything.

This was one of the most important cities of the ancient world. It was on the Silk Road which made trade so important. It was ruled by Roman, Greek, Byzantine and taken by the Arabs who destroyed it.

We walked for around 2 hours and exited along the promenade of trees to the car park.

Back to Selcuk and the bus station to plan our trip to Canakkale tomorrow when sadly Betty leaves us. It’s been wonderful having her along on this swim trek adventure but she’s heading home to LA.

We returned to yesterday’s restaurant for lunch as it was so good.

Then the Ephesus museum gave respite against the middle of the day heat. It’s a wonderfully curated museum with many examples of the items people of Ephesus used in everyday life – pottery bowls, utensils, weapons, coins along with statues and busts of famous people.

The carpet men of Selçuk.

Walking back to our hotel we passed a carpet Emporium. It looked good and quiet so we went in and met a very nice man who explained the techniques of weaving – .they are keeping these traditional ways of weaving alive as they are a centre for weaving workshops. It was so interesting.

We got talking about styles – Kilams, wool on wool, wool and cotton, silk.

I started thinking about our house and where I could put a Turkish rug. We have one already but to buy a beautiful one here and get the story would be special.

Betty has a kilam hanging on her wall at home. She’d bought it for $US259. She had a photo of it and the master historian was able to explain the meaning behind the symbols.

We ending up loving a hall runner. It has stripes, running water and tree houses – which really appealed as Steve is about to build one for Oliver! It also has tied off fringing which indicates it’s a dowry rug.

So we bought it – to be shipped home. Hopefully it arrives. But I did feel confident. The men were not at all pushy. – not like when we’d been in Istanbul! We accepted their hospitality and had drink with them.

We had another BBQ in the garden at Paradise. Such a great day, our last with my wing woman Betty.

From Kas to Ephesus

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Our last breakfast was more a series of goodbye hugs than food. Hard to grasp that it’s all over!

Those not leaving early went for a last swim and arrived back for final goodbyes.

The staff at the Hotel Linda were great. It’s a good place to stay with a group like ours though there’s no shortage of hotels in Kas.

I left a note and small gift for our friend Yves who arrives at the end of the week. We met him through swim trek a few years ago and have stayed friends every since. He took us to Vanuatu last year (check back here for posts on that trip.)

Into the van with Steve and Betty for our 5hr trip to Selcuk – our base for visiting the world heritage site of Ephesus. I’ve wanted to visit here for ages so this is our chance. A change of tempo! No swimming just walking in the heat no doubt.

Our driver Ali from Wilsue travel had some French and enough English to make communication good. We were going to get the bus but decided as we were 3 we would cut some time and get a car transfer.

We made one stop for coffee and made it to Selcuk by 1.30.

The scenery along the way was great and it was interesting to see the huge areas devoted to growing produce. Large covered areas growing all sorts of veg and fruit.

We did a detour winding up the road just before entering Selcuk . We wanted to visit Holy Mary’s house now a Chapel. History tells us that Jesus had asked his St John to take care of his mother and when he moved to Ephesus she came with him.

We arrived at the top and and walked the path to the Chapel. It’s touristy but really very simple. We took the holy waters, saw the wall of prayer intentions and wondered if history was correct. Several Popes have visited the area which seems to give it authenticity.

Our small hotel – the Ephesus Paradise – came highly recommended by Booking.com

It was perfect. Lovely old style house. Big rooms, aircon! , nice manager and a lovely garden to have a drink and the house BBQ dinner in the evening.

Also close to the things we would visit.

We headed out for lunch – we’re getting used to delicious Turkish mezze plates and salads and the Efes beer is easy to drink on a hot day.

Discovering Selcuk was easy. We found our way to St Johns Bascillica – set in a walled area overlooking the town toward Ephesus. It’s being reconstructed stone by stone – it would have been one of the biggest churches in the world.

We climbed further up the hill to the fort. It is also being restored and the walk up and back was a little rough walking over slippery marble. The views were magnificent and the breeze cut the high temperatures.

Outside the gates we met (yet again) a man selling ‘ancient coins’. He identified us as Australians and sent up the cry “Aussie Aussie Aussie” – they truly love Australians here.

We headed down hill towards the mosque and were rewarded with a photographer capturing a bride and groom on the entrance steps. She looked beautiful. And so composed in the heat.

Entering the mosque not only did we have to cover our head but cover our body in a a long and very hot robe.

We were given some free information on discovering Islam and Steve struck up a conversation with a lovely young man – a former Turkish AirForce helicopter search and rescue team member.

By now it was nearly 6 so made our way back to the Paradise Hotel, a cool shower and enjoyed a drink in the garden. We met fellow guests from Holland. The tall man sported a freshly broken leg! He had slipped on the steps at the St Johns Bascillica. I thought they looked dangerous!

He’d had to visit the small local hospital. Luckily it was a clean break and he didn’t need surgery- well not yet. He had a cast and was waiting on his insurance company to get home home. End of holiday.

Tomorrow at Ephesus we shall be extra careful!

Day 5. Last day in Turkish Paradise

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The heat was fierce as we walked to the boat on our last morning. We were a little later than usual and we felt it.

Ten minutes on the boat and we were ready to jump in.

We swam a short distance and came to a cave opening. Eoin went in with the torch. Five at a time we followed. It was dark, eerie somewhat scary. But looking back out the water was blue.

The water colours here are amazing aqua, turquoise, cerulean, aquamarine, azure. When they invented paint charts they got the blue colours from the waters here.

We swam along as a group and found a tunnel. Diver Diana was the only one to swim down and through. She has the scratches to prove it.

Nearly 3 km later we swam into a gorgeous blue bay and boarded the boat for our usual tea ceremony.

Waiting for lunch gives a chance to relax and chat but some, notably B1 & B2, got back in the water for more swimming. A few butterfly strokes, a bit of backstroke a dive or two. Boundless energy.

Once again a delicious lunch. And then siesta time. After lunch activities include Noirin giving Eoin some Pilates instruction. Some muscle work. It was interesting to watch that’s for sure. Eoin is a Brad Pitt type ( in his younger days) and was putting on quite a show. Sweetie Helen, fish spotter Ali and I watched. Mmmm

The energetic took to diving – off the top of the boat, the walkway, the front of the boats. Screams of laughter and encouragement led to a competition and videoing session. All was good until ‘they broke the boat’.

The ropes holding the walkway with the shower pulled away. Mustafa, Zeynap and Effie came running and the show was over. No more silly antics!

The last swim on a trek is always rather special. We cruised along. Everyone was very pleased they had made it to the end.

The traditional swim trek awards were made. Each swimmer gets a tailor made comment on something noticed about them during the week. I got the ‘Blogtastic’ award, Steve the Jolly Swagman, Betty the American Nightingale, B1 the Clown Prince, B2 the arrow ( swims so straight!) Noirin Drama, Rachel the most improved , Pam the Mother, And so it went. Lots of laughs. Steve spoke for everyone to thank the boat crew, Mustafa, Zeynap and Effie. He did it in Turkish!

And we all sang Happy Birthday to Zeynap.

It was bittersweet saying goodbye after a week of fun swimming and making new friends.

We did the ‘fit the smallest person into a bathing cap trick!’ Poor Betty was lifted into a water filled cap. Then it broke!

The last afternoon saw us having a cocktail, visiting room 211 for a G & T and finally heading to Pebble Beach for dinner.

With our singing nightingale Betty.

Sunset at Pebble Beach Steve, George and Vanessa

What a way to finish! Magical.

Special thanks to our wonderful guides Eoin and John. They made a team from 16 swimmers from different places with different abilities.

And to our fellow swimmers – thank you.

Day 4: Swimming Greece to Turkey

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Around day 4 we all start to get a little tired ! Lots of swimming, sun, dinners out, talking , walking, not to mention the odd Gin & Tonic. It all adds up.

In fact, instead of Swim Trek, Ali and Helen call it Gin Trek! Love it.

Sensibly, Swim Trek have built in a rest half day. Knock us out with a big swim in the morning, great lunch, then an afternoon off.

Perfect.

Our goal today was to swim from Greece to Turkey. See the map above.

Looking out from Kas, in the distance you can see an island. It’s actually a Greek island and we are going to swim from it towards Kas. Two crossings from island to island then along the coast to a lighthouse.

We set off at 8.30 and the conditions were perfect. Calm waters. Barely any chop. We motored across from Greece.

Pink group first, then the mighty orange group followed by the yellows ( the fast swimmers!) The idea is we all catch each other and finish together.

Off we went. We touched the rocks of Greece and set off. It was perfect.

The swim went according to plan and we all more or less finished together. What an exhilarating feeling.

But not everyone rested!

Free diver Diana gave B1 a lesson on how to free dive. She’s amazing in diving deep. Pam lost her googles overboard and Diana was the only one able to go deep enough to rescue them.

Today we had not only a beautiful lunch but a beer ! No swimming this afternoon.

Eoin produced a brochure for a spa not far from the hotel. Who was going to have a Hamam? A Turkish spa treatment! Yes said 9 women.

Something to look forward to.

After arriving back at the Marina, Betty and I walked to the Friday markets. Good idea, until we got a little lost and walked further than we should in the searing heat. Finally we found it and were impressed by the variety of beautiful coloured fruits and vegetables.

I bought a Turkish towel and some Turkish delight and we made our way back to the hotel to prepare for our 3pm spa Hamam.

Four of us left together Sth African Pam, US Betty, Irish Noirin and myself. The others were coming later.

The spa was in a modern building near the marina. We were greeted and shown to the change room and then into the sauna wrapped in striped Turkish towels. Ten minutes was more than enough for me.

Next was the wash room. Two marble slabs awaited Pam and I. Onto the slab in the buff and the exfoliating began. She had on what looked like a pair of Brillo gloves. It was harsh! Then came the cream wash and lots of buckets of water. Next was the bubble treatment.

Not us! Photos from the brochure.

A large bag was filled with water and then swung around and emptied onto you until you were covered with bubbles. The massage continued until ……… I felt her grab my ankles and pull. Wow. I was as slippery as an eel and flew along the marble slab. I thought I’d end up on the floor. Then she pushed and back I flew the other way. This happened three times. I screamed I’m not sure why! But it was fun! And scary.

Next step was being helped up and sat next to the fountain and having containers of water sloshed over my head.

Next Pam & I were shuffled out under a bucket of icy water which was tipped all over us. Brrrr.

Recovery time on a lounge wrapped in a towel was a treat from the trauma.

Next up a great massage and face mask. Much more restful though she found my poor aching swimming muscles.

What an experience. When in Turkey try a Hamam. You will be refreshed and entertained all at once.

An hour of recovery time at the hotel before regrouping and heading off to a beach bar for dinner.

Last swim day tomorrow

Sunday in London

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We woke to grey skies. Well hello London! Where is the blue sky of yesterday.

The man on the door assured me that there was just going to be a sprinkle.

I took his advice and left without an umbrella just a light jacket. Mmm

We walked to Hyde Park and strolled whilst others cycled and ran.

We passed the new Queens Gates.

We passed the Australian Memorial and walked toward Buckingham Palace. The crowds were out and so were the umbrellas! But not for us!

It started to rain. There were only trees to shelter under so on I went getting wet.

We headed for Guards’ Chapel for the Sunday morning service. It has beautiful singing and a band who look as good as they sound. Beautiful red uniforms!

I sat and dried out and shivered. Steve kindly gave me his jacket to warm me up.

By the time we left the sun was out so we made our way across to St James Park and wandered along in the sun looking left toward Buckingham Palace and right towards Horse Guards.

Coffee at the cafe in the park warmed us and gave plenty of opportunity to people watch. There are many tourists from all over the world all strolling peacefully through the beautiful gardens.

We then zig-zagged our way back to the hotel passing some familiar sights.

The sun was out but it was time to catch a train to the airport for our next adventure. A swim trek in Kas, Turkey.

The train was fine, the airport busy but our flight was something else.

I have never been on such a noisy flight. English families going on a beach holiday. Steve likened it to a school excursion! The noise!

Two rows in front of us were two big guys with more tattoos than teeth. They and another mate and children, the odd wife, and newly made friends stood in the aisles or knelt on their seats facing the rows behind telling jokes that only they thought were funny.

It went on and on for four hours. There was a wedding announcement which everyone applauded. There were multiple drinks and crisps purchased, a baby being passed around like a parcel and constant loud chatting! It was funny and awful all at once.

Four hours later we landed in Dalaman (to applause from the passengers!) and one of the men – Mr Yellow t-shirt –  gets up while the plane is still taxiing in and starts handing out luggage from the lockers. The hostess asked him over the loudspeaker to sit down and put his belt on so he joked around and sat in the aisle!

When we finally were allowed off, he pushed and ran to immigration and then called all 12 members of the group to jump the queue to be with him. What happened next was just and fair!

He went up to the immigration window. Next thing the officer is on the phone. The last we saw he was standing on the side waiting for someone to let him into Turkey! . Hopefully they sent him home!

We met up with Lesley, another swimmer, and Betty our friend and found our driver and made it down the coast to Kas by 2am!

A big sleep-in is called for before swimming starts!

Lovely London

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The first day of any holiday is exciting. Things to discover, sights to see.

We had a good night’s sleep on the 8th floor of the Victory Services Club – off Edgeware Rd near Hyde Park Corner.

It’s a big old club, quite grand from the exterior with good sized rooms and a very good breakfast for about 150 pound – quite a bargain in expensive London.

Steve headed off early to find a laundry to wash our travel clothes and I went walking. We are staying near Connaught Place and the little village nearby had some beautiful shops and fortunately the summer flowers still remain.

After breakfast we crossed Edgeware Rd and explored Marylebone and Fitzrovia before heading toward Regent St and popping into Liberty.

This is always a must when visiting London. We found the coffee shop on level 2 and thoroughly enjoyed our $15Aus cup of coffee each!

London is looking good. It’s clean and despite the woes of Brexit and the cricket not going well, it seems happy. Lots of tourists.

At midday we made our way to Rovi.

https://ottolenghi.co.uk/rovi

Check it out.

It’s an Ottolenghi restaurant- one I’ve been keen to try.

Back in 2012 we were in London staying with friends in Islington. We went to dinner at their ‘local’ restaurant. I hadn’t heard too much about Yotam Ottolenghi then. But I loved the restaurant, the food, the atmosphere and have been a fan every since. He’s from Israel and does fresh Mediterranean style of cooking.

He now has several restaurants in London and ROVI is in Fitzrovia. It’s very stylish. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable and the food is designed to be shared.

Today we were sharing with Nick and Yumi Young. We’ve known Nick since he was a little boy – he’s the son of good friends in Brisbane.  He and his lovely wife are living in London after a few years working in banking in Oman.

We started with a cocktail – for me a Rovi with Pink Gin and a few lovely ingredients. Then it was onto the shared plates. Mussels with chilli, beef carpaccio and burrata – all done well and so tasty.

Next it was a lovely Pinot to accompany a shared beef and a salmon dish. All delicious.

The afternoon slipped by until it was time to walk! And we did ….. down to Covent Garden, which was hopping. I checked out The Petersham – a superb garden shop and cafe. Beautiful things everywhere.

https://petershamnurseries.com

We wandered across the Enbankment Bridge to The Archduke and met up with swim trek friends Bill Murie, Lexie and Betty – my swim buddy from LA who is coming to Turkey with us for a week of swimming.

Here we shared some wine and lots of stories and felt pleased that our swimming adventure in Galapagos, a few years ago, has given us such wonderful friendships.

By now quite late we felt we’d had a great first day of our holiday. No time for jet lag. My advice …. Just hit the ground running. Preferably taking in a little sun!

First Stop Doha

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We landed 🛬 in Doha at around 6am after a 15 hr flight. We were pretty comfortable in business class and Qatar Airlines was very good. I’ve decided it’s probably better to get the long haul over with first and then do the shorter haul second. But it will still be a long day.

We made our way to the lounge and it is huge. After a shower and a cup of tea we went searching for the Qatar City Tour desk. It had been recommended as a good way to fill in the hours of waiting.

It meant leaving the airport and joining a group to explore this big, new looking city.

Like Dubai it’s full of big shiny buildings, lots of palm trees, oversized public buildings, sand coloured public buildings and a distinct lack of people. They are all inside out of the cruel heat.

We arrived on a Friday which is like a Sunday over here. Everything in the city seemed to be closed. We didn’t get to go inside the Islamic Art Museum or the big mosque. We did get to the bazaar but it was mostly closed and had no atmosphere. And the heat!

Us in the heat with the Islamic Art Museum behind.

It was 40 degrees plus! Way too hot to do anything much. Our air conditioned coach took us to various landmarks and we wandered in the heat trying to be interested. I failed I think. I walked around with a scarf over my head to provide shade.

Doha was renowned for its pearls.

A small mosque in the cultural part.

The massive amphitheatre in the cultural village. Seats thousands. In the sun!

I don’t know how the city will cope with the Soccer World Cup here next year. It’s going to be at this time of the year. Our guide said they were going to roof and air condition six stadiums! There is plenty of money around, thanks to oil and natural gas. So it will happen, but the poor tourists getting out and about in the heat will be a challenge.

We continued onto the the souk. Very interesting but as it’s their holiday very little atmosphere and people and nothing much open.

We arrived back at the airport by lunch time and only have another two hours up wait until our London flight.

We’re looking forward to meeting up with friends and enjoying our few days there before the Turkey swim trek.

First stop Sydney

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Welcome back to my travel tales.

We’re off again!

This time London , Turkey and back to London.

But first a mini stay in Sydney as Steve has a board meeting before our flight tonight.

Last night we met up with my sister Catherine and David, nephew George and niece Helen.

Today a gorgeous ferry ride to Double Bay to visit my sister at her school, Double Bay Primary, where she works as a teacher librarian. So no lunch with her!

Then lunch with nieces Pip and Clare and little Max. We were so busy talking I forgot to take a photo.

But the ferry ride was wonderful so lots of photos. It’s a world beater ride. The views in the sunshine are breathtaking.

I haven’t been to Double Bay in years. It’s still has it’s Village feel but there are as many Beauty bars as espresso bars.

The little beach next to the ferry wharf is a beautiful place to chill.

The public Library is another place to spend time. It’s so inviting. Libraries are not dead!

I’m waiting on the ferry back to Circular Quay , meet up with Steve then out the airport. A Qatar flight to London.

So follow along for the next few weeks as we rediscover London and swim along the coastline of Turkey. Another swim trek based in Kas.

Sight & Sounds of NYC.

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Finally made it to The Whitney Museum. It’s at the start of the High Line walk in West Village.

Unfortunately 3 floors were closed due to installation of the Biennial due to open on May 16. Get there if you can.

Having limited floors to cover actually allowed us to take our time and really enjoy the exhibitions.

So what we saw were 2 great exhibitions:

I love the work of Edward Hopper and Georgie O’Keeffe and they both featured in the ‘Where We Are’ Exhibition.

Leaving the Gallery we headed uptown to Mykonos Blue in 29Street. We met friends Lynn Sherr and Lois Dubin from our Galapagos swim trek two years ago.

Such great ladies who have become great friends. Both still involved in their professions – Journalism and Landscaping. Lois did the landscaping on Roosevelt Island several years ago. It’s worth a visit.

Walking down 29 street we noticed many trees and flower shops. Turn out it’s one of the main wholesale place for larger trees and planets. The hydrangeas the lillies and the orchids were fantastic. There was also every accessory imaginable for arrangements. Ribbons, vases, coloured sands. Etc etc.

NYC is great for walking if you have the stamina. It’s set out in a grid system so easy to follow and you just count how many blocks you have to walk. We decided to walk back along to the High Line. It’s like a spine running along the east side of the city for about 20 blocks. The sun was out and so were the walkers. It was crowded.

We started at the Hudson Yards. It’s newly finished with it’s new sculpture feature. The Vessel.

It an amazing honeycomb type gold copper type material. It has steps going up and down like a maze. It reflects what is going on around it.

We didn’t climb it. 2.500 steps if completed it. That would be too many! So we viewed it from the new shopping centre. It’s all shiny and filled with big brand names.

We enjoyed the walk in the sunshine and couldn’t help but comment on the building projects and street works going on.

We are staying right near Chelsea Market so got off there and explored the markets. Lots of great eating places and great little shops. It’s an interesting area to stay if you’re wondering where to base yourself in NY. It adjoins West Village another terrific area to stay. If you watched the TV series Friends then this is where the apartment is set. And Magnolia Bakery is here. It’s smells delicious!

In the evening we made our way to Time Square. We all had tickets for the The Temptations. We collected the tickets and had a drink nearby. We got back to the theatre and found like all the theatres here, there is no real foyer area so the line forms outside on the footpath. Somehow everyone gets into their seat on time.

We had great seats in the balcony but so close there was no room for legs!

The show told the story of how the Temptations formed with all their ups and downs. There were something like 42 guys making up the Temptations over a 25 year period!

Interval came and we decided on a quick trip to the restroom and boy did we get a laugh out of that. The queue went zig zagging up and down stairs with at least 100 in it.

Elizabeth and I decided we were chatting anyone so we’d try our luck. The lady who we christened the ‘toilet monitor ‘ was directing with all the energy and authority of a NY Police officer. Perhaps more because you wouldn’t want to cross her!

Sure enough they managed to get everyone through when the bells rang. Perhaps it works the other way round. They don’t ring the bell to return to your seat until all the ladies have been through the restroom!

The night finished with us all dancing and singing all the way home.

Staten Island, Brooklyn and the East River

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You need to plan your days in NY. There are so many things to do and see.

Today we made our way down to Battery Park. The Lady Liberty looks small from the park so we decided to get the infamous Staten Island ferry for a closer look.

If you are wanting to take this ferry you’re in luck. It’s free! And it only takes 30 minutes over and 30 back. You have to get off the ferry at Staten Is and then re board it. It’s a good way to rest the feet!

We arrived back and walked along Water Street then Fulton’s Wharf area towards the Brooklyn Bridge. there’s some great street art.

We walked through Dumbo and stopped at the little beach near the children’s playground . It’s an oasis.

Wandering around this area is always interesting but we thought seeing it from the river would add a new perspective.

The East River commuter ferry came along so we jumped on and continued up the river towards Williamsburg.

We had 5 stops before getting off just near the United Nations at 34th St.

And then we walked. Through mid town and across town past Union Square and into Chelsea. We only just made it ready to go out for dinner!

Jordan has booked Buddakan. https://buddakannyc.com

If you’ve watched Sex and the City, it’s the restaurant that Carries and Big celebrate their engagement.

We had a beautiful dinner. It’s Asian fusion style and our group of 6 had the $75 pp banquet. It was delicious.

It’s big and showy and very dark!

There’s a big stairs where you can make a dramatic entrance- and hopefully not fall down it and really make an impact.

Elizabeth & Peter McGregor and Pippa

Three of the desserts!