Trifter

As I have mentioned many times before – there are vacations and there is travel. Turkey is definitely in the travel category. It is one of the most interesting nations you will ever visit. For you history buffs, this nation rivals Greece, Iran and Israel with its historical sites and artifacts. (Exquisite cuisine – outstanding landmarks –friendly people – and, yes, those carpets, of which I have one in my bedroom.)

Turkey is big – for Europe. Nearly 75 million people. And, it straddles two continents. Is it Europe or Asia? Read the quote below from World Atlas:

“Turkey is geographically, politically and officially part of two continents – Europe and Asia. The smaller northwestern portion (Thrace) is part of Europe, while the larger portion (Anatolia) is part of Asia.
 
Founded in 1923 after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Turkey is home to spectacular mountains, superb beaches and antiquities of all descriptions.
 
This fascinating country is a very popular tourist destination and one of the most intriguing countries on the planet.”

I spent three to four weeks in Turkey (I don’t remember.) It wasn’t supposed to happen that way. I was living in Korea and decided to take a vacation. I flew to Greece in the middle of the night – and had intended to stay in Greece about three weeks and then, possibly, visit Turkey for a week.  Things changed.

Greece was too hot (Kangaroos couldn’t take that heat.) I left after three days. I went to the water’s edge and caught a small cruise ship. I sailed, amazingly, across the Mediterranean Sea (the bluest water you have ever seen) and I landed in some small –obviously, coastal – town.

I saw the home, they claim, of the Virgin Mary (see photograph 1.)

I saw amazing landscape and learned more about our world than I have on any other trip I have ever taken.  I honestly didn’t want to leave. But, alas, all things come to an end. I finished my trip in the big city: Istanbul (formerly Constantinople before the empire fell.) I arrived by bus — unlike Mark Twain – who said the only way to arrive, in Istanbul, is by boat.

Istanbul offers visitors the confident locutions of a people and place not linked to history, but is the very definition of civilization’s beginning. The Greeks and the Egyptians will scoff at that statement, but I don’t care. (see photograph 2)

You cannot compare this nation to the United States. Ours is a young nation (Turkey has buildings and paintings older than this country). America is a great experiment – this Democracy thing may or may not last. Turkey exudes certainty. It is the type of nation that I would strongly encourage the recent college graduate to go teach English in for a year or two. I have not been back to Turkey since my first and only visit, but I will return. What a comfort to know it is there and that it has always been there.

Without question, it tops the chart as my most favorite destination.