Gobble Gobble Gobble - Turquoise Coast

Apologies for the complete and utter lack of updates but I was so distracted by Turkey's delights (pun intended) that I had a hard time justifying computer time to update you all on my happenings. Despite being a month behind I was so enamored with Turkey that I'll provide posts on her sights before getting into my current locale of Bulgaria.

I arrived in Turkey about a month ago now and this amazing country was truly the highlight of the trip thus far.Arriving in Turkey via the Greek islands may seem like a hop, skip and a jump but these two neighbouring countries do not make cross-border tourism exchange an easy feat. By way of over-night ferry from Santorini I made it to Rhodes (Greece) for a few days before taking a day cruiser over to Marmaris. As the only fella with a backpack on this little ferry I realized long before our arrival in Marmaris that many Greek tourists pop over to get a Turkish stamp in their passport and hopefully some cheap goods in duty free. If that's the kind of Turkey trip you're looking for I hope you enjoy it but I would strongly encourage anyone interested in visiting to go further afield than the coastal tourist destinations or just Istanbul for that matter.
Anywho, after a 3 hour bus ride from Marmaris I arrived in my first Turkish destination of Fethiye where I signed up for my back-packer's cruise of the Turkish Turquoise Coast. Fethiye was a interesting little town but much like Marmaris it is a coastal tourist hub so bear that in mind. The culinary highlight of this jaunt was their fish market where you can choose your fancy from one of 10 stalls or so including prawns and crayfish so fresh they're still moving. The market is enveloped by dozens of restaurants that will cook up your purchase for a small fee and include salad and bread. We enjoyed the experience so much the first night we decided to return for round 2 and more prawns our last night there.

Prior to boat departure I teamed up with a pair of fellow Albertans for a hike up to the ghost city of Kayköy. This former town is a vivid memory of the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in the 1920s. Entire Christian communities ın Turkey were exchanged with Muslim counterparts in Thrace. The result was this haunting shell of a former vibrant community.

The following morning we headed down to the port to depart on our cruise from Fethiye to Olympus along the Turquoise. Before my departure a number of people recommended I partake in one of these Blue Cruises and all raved about the experience and in no way was I disappointed.
I learned there are a number of factors critical to any trip at sea including: your shipmates, adequate supplies of Efes, contraband Turkish vodka and Ugandan gin and of course the weather. We went 4 for 4 on these benchmark factors as 5 Canadians and 5 Australians travelled halfway around the globe to enjoy an extraordinary four days at sea with several follow-up days on dryland in Olympus and Cappadocia.
I have nothing but fond memories of this trip and several new friends to visit across Australia and Canada. It's a difficult experience to describe you've been on a güllet but I have a few key memories that will stay with me forever:

• Sleeping on deck under the stars and setting sail before dawn under a brilliant full moon hanging low on the horizon with a stunning reflection sparkling on the water;
  
• Climbing waterfalls ın Butterfly Valley (although there was a serious absence of butterflies up in there);
• Laughing until it hurt every night as we participated in the great traveller's cultural exchange;
• Euchre, Club 500, Sh*thead and Asshole (Bottoms) - and yes, those are all card games;
• Contraband Ugandan gin, Turkish vodka and that lighter fluid - paint thinner mix the Turks call Raki;
• Jumping from the boat into the crystal clear waters of the Turkish Mediterranean at least four per day (and Justine's cheating at swim races);
• The amazing cooking of Fatma and her incredible talent to turn 4 simple ingredients into culinary gold.

To Marcus, Orit, Jeff, Nelly and Justine (the Aussies) and Mark, Joanna, Carly and Emma (the Canadians) thank-you all for the memories and the trip of a lifetime. I know I'll see you all again soon and next time we won't look for excuse to make it longer, we'll just plan a month or two from the beginning.