A Chance to See Beyond Oneself

The Story

Europe, what a splendor. It has all of the old roads, narrow alley ways, historic sites, and assortment of rather expressive individuals you can ever want.

Turkey

First off, this blog entry is way over due as I have been out of Turkey for a while now but I figure better late than never. This entry will be a little rushed and lacking in details because I am also working and writing the details for my more current travels.

After flying from Bahrain to Istanbul, Turkey, I took some buses and subway connections to meet the couchsurfers I was staying with in the city. We spent the night talking about traveling and life in Istanbul, nothing too profound. The next day I met up with Hakan, a friend and professional tour guide I traveled with in Laos. He gave me a fantastic private tour of the highlights of the city explaining the history significant to each location we visited. It was probably one of the most informative experiences I have had in a city thus far. Between that day and the next I visited the beautiful Hagia Sofya, the Topkapi palace, the grand blue mosque, the vast grand bazaar, a trip up the Bosphorus river (which divides Asia from Europe), as well as a number of other mosques and important sites that probably weren't too important to me because I don't remember them now...but I suppose importance is relative....

The Hagia Sofya was once an early church, then became an eastern orthodox church, then a mosque and now a museum. For hundreds of years it was the largest enclosed space in the world. In the Topkapi palace, where important rulers once lived (there is so much history it is difficult to keep it all straight after a while), I saw the preserved arm and a piece of the skull of John the Baptist as well as the spoonmaker's diamond, which is the 5th largest diamond in the world. The grand bazaar is the largest market area I have ever seen (perhaps one of the largest in the world), it consists of over 4000 shops; quite easy to get lost in the maze of tiny shops/stands. I quite enjoyed Istanbul, it has a very european feel while still including some elements of asia. Great food and fun loving people, not to mention a unique night life scene.

From Istanbul I took an overnight bus south to the town of Izmir where I stayed with another couchsurfer. Izmir doesn't really have much to see but it is the best place to take a day trip to see Ephesus - one of the best preserved ancient cities in the Mediterranean. It was amazing to imagine what it once looked like while strolling along the old roads and gazing at the marble pillars and remnants of stone houses and large amphitheaters. I also visited the house Mother Mary died in and a quaint hill village that is known for its wine making. After the day of sites, my friendly and hospitable couchsurfing host took me to see some turkish folk music at one of the many laid back bars.

The next day I took a bus south to the sea side town of Marmaris (I traveled pretty fast through turkey because I was eager to get to greece and I am on a tighter schedule to attempt to balance breadth and depth in my experience of europe). The town of Marmaris was a nice enough sea side town (more of a bay actually) that most people use as a base to take day trips to Rhodes (Greece). But little did I imagine the pristine day that awaited me. I found out that the ferry to Rhodes left only on certain days so I had to leave the next morning to Greece - that gave me one day to see the area around Marmaris. I quickly checked into a cheap hotel and rented a scooter to head out to see a combination of natural sites that would lead me to conclude it was one of the most beautiful days of my travels thus far.

After riding through a few small towns, I made my way up over the pine tree covered hills curious to see what was beyond. I descended to a road that winded along a series of peaceful bays and small towns. The rays of the sun kept me warm from the cool ocean breeze, the road was fairly empty, and I was progressively getting more excited about what was to come. After riding over a few hills I arrived in a completely different environment. The pine trees gave way to pasture filled farm lands with scattered rolling hills all about. The sea provided the background as well as small villages and farms. It was a breath taking view too witness. After riding through several small picturesque towns, I stopped for a few small walks along the ocean side - it was incredibly peaceful. I then headed out into the isolated country roads not really knownig where I was going but enjoying ever moment of it. I decided I better start making my way back Marmaris as I had return the scooter by a set time. Since none of the towns really had any signs I didn't know where I was on the map and pretty much picked what seemed like the best road and asked people along the way simply pointing with my finger and inquiring "marmaris?" (not many people in turkey speak english, especially outside of the large cities).

I started to head back up into the hills. As I came over a pass leaving the farm lands behind me, I arrived at a grass and rock covered plateau that closely reminded me of the Irish countryside. I couldn't remember a time I had such a large smile on my face for such an extended period of time. It was such a happy moment. I was alone in the middle of this beautiful scenery, long flowing grass and large oddly shaped rocks, on a small country road, surrounded by complete serenity. After this I was further blessed to arrive back at the forest covered mountain tops to look down on what looked like villages from the alps nestled in the mountain sides. I never expected to see such sites in Turkey, my expectations were quite wrong but I was over-joyed with the experience. The next morning, I would have to say goodbye to this fascinating country I was just getting to know.

The Reflection

While in Turkey I was pressed to soon make a decision about graduate school. It really brought back the reality of a life with responsibilities. Traveling for such an extended period of time makes one forget about all the work that it took to save to get the point of being able to travel. At times when I think about returning to life in California, I can become slightly depressed wondering if I will find as many occasions for happiness as I have found on this trip. I love the accomplishments that arise out of the settled life but I also enjoy the uncertain events of living one day at a time while traveling. I decided about a week ago I would attend San Diego State University to attempt to obtain my masters in Communication Studies. As I feel incredibly blessed to have the opportunity for graduate school, it is still difficult to know how I will adjust to normal life. I suppose one can get used to all things even if it is difficult at first.

I am continuing to explore the topic of mysticism as I have found that many of my views have naturally developed into that of a mystic without even being very aware of mysticism. Is that not a sign of truth when one develops in a direction that is unknown to oneself but has been vastly explored and named by others? But perhaps truth is relative to each person's experience and just because one finds their way to similar beliefs of others does not mean there is anything universally true about it. Alas. I am reading another book on the topic called Exploring Mysticism which I just happened to find in a used book store - is it perhaps fate that my eyes have several times landed upon books on the topic of mysticism during this trip? I am also reading Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust (the first two books - it is a 7 book novel) who has now became an absolute favorite author of mine. He reminds me, through his power of his words, how language can be such a beautiful art form that can inspire in so many ways.

Oh yes, and an unfortunate bit of info, my Camera broke while in greece. It can still take picturse, but the screen is cracked so I can't: tell how many pictures are left, see how a picture turned out, turn off the flash, see the batterly level, etc etc. Give me your pity. Life goes on. Hopefully I can share some pictures soon. I will try to finish my update on Greece soon and then I will add some info about Bulgaria where I am currently traveling.

To infinity and beyond!
Karl