We got away early around 6.30am and reached the border some 4 hours later for a late breakfast. The crossing took around 1.5 hours, but we gained 30 minutes by putting our clocks back. No hassles on either side of the border. Most of the time was spent queuing up for duty free goods, where I picked up a bottle of Scotch for USD4.
It was a long drive (over 500 kms) into Erzerum and we didnt arrive until 7pm. The countryside most of the way was semi and rocky wastelands, with mountains constantly in view. From Agri through to Erzerum, we had a number of climbs that took us up into the snow line, which was really pretty when it had the sun shining on it. We passed quite close to Mt Ararat (15,000 ft) just after crossing the border – it seemed to just rise suddenly out of the plains. We also got pelted with stones by some children – that would have made for a great photo if we had stopped. Mud huts and apple blossoms added further to the scenery, and we also saw quite a lot of army activity, especially just on
The at the Hotel San was quite good, with the room containing a heater and a hot shower. Dinner at the Atlanta was quite expensive at 27 lira (about 2 bucks) for meatballs, veges, rice, yoghurt and beer, but at least it was good tucker. Erzerum looked to be a quaint little town and it was a pity we didnt get a chance to look around.
The next days trip through to Sivas saw us travel through similar terrain to the previous day – mainly rocky, desolate, area. Much of the way was covered with snow, and we saw a number of really streams (whitewater rafting, anyone?) passing through the valleys. For a period, the road followed the beginning of the River Euphrates. The villages were starting to look a bit more contemporary but were still very picturesque. The Turkish people in the countryside looked similar to what I visualised the Russian peasants would look like – long coats and ‘burglar hats abound. They didnt seem overly friendly toward foreigners, and as usual, not too many women were seen wandering around.
Sivas, which was pretty cramped and had no showers. We had dinner at a small cafe across the road, and it looked as though dinners in Turkey were going to be a real treat. You were shown into the kitchen, advised of all the meals on the stove, and then asked to make your choice. There were two small disadvantages – the meals were not that large (you often required two meals) and you never knew the price, although in general they were great value for the money.
It was a shorter drive to Urgup the next day through rather monotonous, desolate, rocky countryside. It certainly showed some improvement as we neared Goreme Valley, where we got an initial indication of the cones, pinnacles and rock formations we could expect on our visit there the next day. We stayed at the Paris Motel outside Urgup, which was good value for the money. The afternoon was spent washing clothes and the bus, before an impromptu game of soccer. At night, we went to one of the big hotels for a night of Turkish dancing, by some oldies from a Penn Overland tour. The local dancing (6 men) was okay,
but the discotheque atmosphere later fell a bit flat, and wasnt cheap either. To conquer this, I had my first taste of Raki, a kind of Ouzo, and it clearly had the desired effect as I slept well that night.
It was great to have the following day without any travel. We spent a leisurely day taking in various aspects of Goreme Valley, which in general resembled a moonscape. The area appeared to have erupted at some stage in the past, and a giant, surrealistic hand has clutched the area, squeezed it, and twisted it into bizarre forms, unnatural pyramids and cones. I couldnt have said it better myself!
We first checked out the rock churches area, where we visited several chapels, most of which contained impressive frescoes. We then progressed on to Zelve, an interesting site where funnel shaped rocks are hollowed out into houses.
