OOPS! Forgot about Spain.

Barcelona

That goes to show how much of an impression it made on me... Yeah, the Europe leg of the trip actually began in Spain. We were lucky enough to have a friend back in Santiago who owns a schmicko apartment righ smack in the middle of all the action in Las Ramblas, Barcelona. So that's where we went!

The place was packed out with tourists, it was hot and humid (my hair suffered as a result), but quite pretty. We checked out the local sights... the Gothic quarter was very cool, the architecture was really amazing. Once we got that out of the way, I insisted we visit the Dali Museum, a good 3 hrs away by train, but TOTALLY worth it.

Being a huge Dali fan, i was sooooo in my element! Lots of fantastic artwork on display, some of which was interactive. I'm attaching my fave pics of the place for your enjoyment.

Another little perk of the 5 day trip to Barce was that we managed to catch up with lil old Kate May, who was on a stopover from Turkey to Germany. We got all the goss on what to do in Turkland and also got our hands on the Turkey Lonely Planet, which turned out to be an absolute must. Thanks katey!

So, thanks a million Bryan for letting us crash at your pad. Katey May, tops to have seen you there, and my love to Salvador Dali.

Maz xxx

Turkey Adventure - Natural Wonders

Cappadocia

Our last official stop-off in Turkey was Cappadocia, an incredible place with weird and super cool landscapes. This area is surrounded by 3 volcanoes, all of which are still active. Over time and many eruptions, different layers of rock were deposited, some softer than others and thus more easily eroded. End product - weird fairy chimney-like structures all over the place. These rocks are so soft in places that people in the past carved into them to make their homes.

We visited an underground city, where christians took refuge from raids, also saw fairy chimneys and visited Love valley (because of the penis-shaped structures erected there). Made our way around on tour bus and scooter. Fun fun fun!

And the best part was, as we were driving around i saw a volcano erupt (mind, it was only steam coming out, but it was an eruption nonetheless!!!! Woo hoo!!!)

Excellent way to wrap up Turkey. I give it 5 stars.

Maz xx

Turkey Adventure - Takin' it Easy

Gallipoli, Selçuk & Blue Cruise

We did a tour of the Gallipoli battlefields with TJ, a guy who is famous around these parts for knowing all there is to know about Gallipoli. He claims to have read about 95% of all literature on the topic, and he knows his stuff. It was very sad and eye-opening. We even saw trenches in their original state. I can now better understand the Aussie pilgrimage every April 25th...

After this, we visited a FANTASTIC place called Selçuk, about 7hrs away from TJ's. We stayed at a backpackers place called Atilla's Getaway, and that in itself made it a very worthwhile place to stop. We had planned to stay 2 nights and ended up spending 4 here. Awesome facilities, friendly people and excellent food. It was here that a fellow Aussie told us how to cheat the system and get free air con without the use of a remote (saving us $10 a pop). Niiiiice! (mainly because we need air con, bloody hell it's hot!). We have been putting his good advice to use since then. From Selçuk we visited Ephesus, one of the oldest places to have ruins still standing in Turkey, and the house of the Virgin Mary, where it's believed she spent the last few years of her life.

Anyway, we then moved on to Fethiye, 6hrs south, where we got on our Blue Voyage. 4 days crusing the mediterranean... clear blue skies, warm turquoise waters, snorkelling, sleeping, reading and relaxing. What a hard life! The mozzies loved me. But bushman's came through as usual, as long as i remembered to put it on!

Next stop - Cappadocia and then off to the greek islands! Woo hoo!!!

Turkey Adventure - City Life

Istanbul

What a great city this is! We spent 4 days exploring this little gem (more like MASSIVE), checking out temples, mosques and bazaars. People everywhere spotted Grant and guessed where he came from (calling out "Hey Aussie! Goo-Day Mate!" amongst other things).

Highlights included the Grand Bazaar, where we were invited to drink tea and buy their carpets. We picked up some pashminas, jewellery and clothes. Very cheap stuff. I heard a lot of "Can i ask you a question? Can i help you spend your money in my shop?". I was offered 4 bottles of (imitation) perfume for $10 AU. Bargain! But since we're not exactly travelling light i had to decline. Bummer.

At the very old Spice Bazaar we also got to sample the very best of turkish delights!! YUM! we tried some with pistachio nuts, some with walnuts inside covered in coconut shavings, some chocolate ones, some made with honey instead of sugar. Easy to go nuts. EFES beer was also a highlight, as was Apple Tea! Gotta love it.

I went all out and dressed the part when we went to see the Blue Mosque (what an awesome sight), covering arms, legs and my hair, even though they are pretty easy on the female tourists and don't mind if they're showing hair (on their heads that is). We also smoked a massive water pipe (got a bit sick after puffing for a while) which was apple scented and chatted to endless carpet sellers who wanted to ship their product off to chipping norton for us. Happy to report we did not buy any carpets. At all.

Next stop- Gallipoli and Selçuk.