Çeşme!

At last! A trip that justified leaving İzmir and spending two hours en route! George and I got up and headed to Çeşme (Chesh-may) around 9am. We caught a city bus, then a private coach type bus, then, once we got to Çeşme, a dolmuş (a hybrid taxi / bus sort of thing) that took us to our beach: Altinkum. Since it's October, and Bayrum is over and everyone is back at work or in university, Altinkum--which is known for being crowded since it's so divine--was virtually empty. We shared it with approximately five other people throughout the entire afternoon. Though my Professional Photographer Brother could probably nitpick, I think some of my photos belong in a calendar--without people they're so picturesque!



It was practically Cloud 9. The water was so blue, the sky so clear, the waves so soft and warm and beautiful on the golden sand, the wind just enough to keep us from getting hot while we baked in the sun. I got a little too much sun, but my face didn't burn and I look way better than George with his raccoon tan around his eyes from his sunglasses...

It was an expensive trip as far as bus fare goes (from my door to the Aegean's shore and back cost 28YTL, which is a considerable chunk out of my meager first pay check), but it was worth it. It was an amazing day for it, and with the weather bound to turn cooler soon, I can justify the splurge. After a couple hours we sent a text message to our Director of Studies: "Sorry. George and I decided to quit and open a language shack on Altinkum Beach. Sondra can have my White Out."

Out of Izmir and Back

If I had known that we were going to Tourist Land, I probably wouldn't have wanted to go to Kuşadası for 2 nights. You can check out the pictures in my album. Basically, I stopped taking pictures once we got there because it wasn't as amazing as I had hoped. It was an expensive two days and cruise-goers clogged sidewalks, identified like cattle with their neon plastic wrist bands. There was one total downer--on our way back to town after going out to Panucak Beach, we saw police hanging around what had been an accident sight. A body was on the ground, covered with newspaper. I guess they were waiting for the ambulance (or hearse or whatever?) to arrive? It was pretty sobering.

There were 9 of us altogether (7 women... yikes), plus a little toy-like dog named Nippy. Everyone was from work, except for a Turkish woman who is married to one of the men at work. I'm glad to be home. *sigh* I uploaded a some photos to my site, and explain a lot in there but here are the...

Highlights and Redeeming Experiences:

--- I finally found postcards. I've been in Izmir for WEEKS and hadn't found a single postcard. They were practically everywhere in Kuşadası.

--- Spending some quality time with the Aegean Sea:




--- Getting a snippet of the end of the Call to Prayer. Notice that everyone does not stop what they're doing (disassembling the massive tents/bazaar that had been going on all day long):




--- Finding something authentic. Much to our surprise, George and I managed to find actual Turks in Kuşadası. As we trailed through some endless shopping district last night, he heard music being played. He followed it and found a tiny little hole in the wall type restaurant venue where a traditional Turkish band was setting up. Though the others wanted to hang out and drink first in an Irish pub and then some bar called Golden Oldies where they met Turkish break dancers, George and I split off to watch a four-person band (a singer, a clarinet player, a violinist and a drummer--all male) and Turks dance to their hearts' content. Pretty awesome.

Moral of the Story
Though I was glad to get away for a couple of days and lay on the beach, I think next time I get a few days off work, I'm going to plan them more carefully...