26. Side, Turkey
Waiting for the train at Lime Street I finished my coffee and looked for a waste bin. I’d become used to places like Bucharest, Rotterdam and Istanbul where in the metros, tram terminals and train stations you can dispose of litter in bins. (In Berlin, they even had recycling bins on the station platforms). I’d also got used to airports in major cities where you can drive right up to the door of the terminal.
I guess these privileges are something you have to live without, when your country unjustifiably (and illegally) invades another and thus makes its own citizens vulnerable to terrorist attacks.
In my original plan, I’d scheduled “a week of reflection and evaluation - on a beach somewhere”.... That beach was located in the south of Turkey in the ancient city of Side (pronounced ‘see-deh’), home to the Temple of Apollo where Mark Antony proposed to Cleopatra. It’s a stunning part of the Mediterranean region. I came here some 15 years ago. Since then they appear to have widened the promontory to accommodate more clothes and jewellery shops, built a new harbour and erected more ruins.
They’ve also lost the knack of cooking Turkish food. Thanks to foreign tourists, the menus boast All Day English Breakfast, Schnitzel and Pizza. To my despair, I read the board outside one restaurant: Today’s Special - Liver, Bacon and Onions with Mashed Potato. Eavesdropping a conversation between two English couples I was amused to hear them rave about the quality of the Steak & Kidney Pies served at the Britannia and Red Lion restaurants.
I visited Asia Minor’s best preserved ancient theatre at Aspendos which is just awesome. I also visited the beautiful waterfalls at Kursunlu, (where they filmed the Timotei Shampoo advert) and the ancient city of Perge. It’s a remarkable site, even though only 30% of it has been excavated. My imagination re-created the hustle and bustle of the city 2000 years ago. But these images were shattered by the noise of planes taking off or landing every 10 minutes. And I wondered why they built the city so close to the airport...
This day of culture was sandwiched between days of evaluation and reflection - evaluating which shade of brown on the Dulux colour chart I’d achieved, and watching the reflection of the sun on the sea...
Unfortunately there was no beach where you can throw caution to the wind and your buns to the sun. The photo caption here has the same words as one I used earlier in the year. In Dubrovnik the caption was: “No tan lines”. In Side the caption is: “No! Tan lines!”
I guess these privileges are something you have to live without, when your country unjustifiably (and illegally) invades another and thus makes its own citizens vulnerable to terrorist attacks.
In my original plan, I’d scheduled “a week of reflection and evaluation - on a beach somewhere”.... That beach was located in the south of Turkey in the ancient city of Side (pronounced ‘see-deh’), home to the Temple of Apollo where Mark Antony proposed to Cleopatra. It’s a stunning part of the Mediterranean region. I came here some 15 years ago. Since then they appear to have widened the promontory to accommodate more clothes and jewellery shops, built a new harbour and erected more ruins.
They’ve also lost the knack of cooking Turkish food. Thanks to foreign tourists, the menus boast All Day English Breakfast, Schnitzel and Pizza. To my despair, I read the board outside one restaurant: Today’s Special - Liver, Bacon and Onions with Mashed Potato. Eavesdropping a conversation between two English couples I was amused to hear them rave about the quality of the Steak & Kidney Pies served at the Britannia and Red Lion restaurants.
I visited Asia Minor’s best preserved ancient theatre at Aspendos which is just awesome. I also visited the beautiful waterfalls at Kursunlu, (where they filmed the Timotei Shampoo advert) and the ancient city of Perge. It’s a remarkable site, even though only 30% of it has been excavated. My imagination re-created the hustle and bustle of the city 2000 years ago. But these images were shattered by the noise of planes taking off or landing every 10 minutes. And I wondered why they built the city so close to the airport...
This day of culture was sandwiched between days of evaluation and reflection - evaluating which shade of brown on the Dulux colour chart I’d achieved, and watching the reflection of the sun on the sea...
Unfortunately there was no beach where you can throw caution to the wind and your buns to the sun. The photo caption here has the same words as one I used earlier in the year. In Dubrovnik the caption was: “No tan lines”. In Side the caption is: “No! Tan lines!”
