“Kaş has the high mountains and sparse covering of undersized scrub that impressed me when I first saw the Turkish coastline back in 1990. Unlike then I am not afraid when I look up at the distinctive rock formation known as the ‘Sleeping Giant’ that lies across the range, encircling the town. Instead I marvel…
It’s still dark when I arrive and make my way slowly up a steep path on Mount Nemrut. Although I can hear voices it feels like I’m an intrepid explorer on the edge of an enormous discovery. Once I reach the top I stop to catch my breath. All I can see are murky, shadowy…
Normally I’m too busy trying to make sense of the things I see, do and experience in Turkey, to write about places. However, after a wonderful holiday in Selimiye, in the Marmaris region of Turkey, I couldn’t resist putting pen, and photos, to paper. Well beyond the pink and white assault of English and Russian…
Read on to find out what happened on my Eastern Turkey tour with 52 students who sang, danced and ate the whole time. There was very little sleep to be had! “… We were headed for Harran, a small town in famous for its beehive shaped houses made from dried mud. Disappointingly, when we arrived…
Turkish shoe shine men are only one of what I call my little men, the service providers essential in my life, no matter where I live. In Kayseri, where I worked as a teacher for two years, the Turkish shoe shine men were easy to spot, just not where you might expect. Read on to…
Back in 2004 I worked at Erciyes University in central Turkey, Cappadocia. When some of the final year students approached me to be a chaperone on a four day three night trip touring Eastern Turkey I jumped at the chance. This is an excerpt from a longer complete story. “As instructed, we arrived at the…
For many people, Turkey stops in Istanbul. Drawn here by the chance for adventure, work schedules and low wages mean a lot of foreigners don’t get an opportunity to see much of the country. Over the years I’ve been lucky enough to travel to Eastern Turkey several times, first with my now husband, and later…
Those of you who have been on holiday on the west coast of Turkey may never have experienced the magic of a Turkish winter. Although it may be cold, the scenery is often breathtaking. Here’s a selection of my favourite scenes from Turkey in Winter. On the road to Antalya, February, 2004 On the balcony,…
When I arrived in Goreme for the first time, it was high summer. Nestled in the Anatolian heartland, Goreme was a traditional farming community like any other in Turkey except for its spectacular landscape. The arid countryside, already aged and yellowed over thousands of years, glared harshly under the heat of the day. My head…
The following is an excerpt about Kocek Dancers from my first collection of stories. One Saturday last summer I was on the phone chatting with my 94 year old auntie in Australia. She and I love to talk and can do so for hours but this time I was distracted. The sound of drumming was…