Bodrum/Turkey
Trip Start
Oct 13, 2005
1
9
26
Trip End
Ongoing
Bodrum,
Turkey
Sunday, November 6, 2005
I started out quite early to visit the old windmills
that stand on the top of one of the hills above Bodrum harbour. It
was sunny and after last nights cold wind I thought quite warm. I was
though the only person in shirtsleeves, everybody else was wearing
jackets,coats and scarves or all three.
Up at the windmills it was windy, an ideal situation.
Sadly all were in a poor state and, where not barred closed had been
used as latrines.
Outside though, beautiful views, skylarks singing and
lizards basking. On the windward side there were several small
trees, one alone festooned in bits of breeze blown plastic. On
closer examination I found it had been decorated by people and not
by the hand of nature. There were literally hundreds of small pieces
of cloth, plastic or paper tied onto the twigs and branches. They
weren't even particularly nice bits of cloth or plastic either. They
were obviously some sort of lucky charm though and put me in mind of
witchy places in Cornwall and other places I had visited. I found a
sheltered place to sit and enjoyed the view and the sun.
My thoughts were predominantly about how lucky I was and the passing
of poor Sean. Thinking too of Roz. Her birthday today so
I remembered so many past ones. Happy days.
Music started in the town below, reaching me in waves when it was
not grasped by the wind. It sounded like the mosque drummer and his
flutist, but playing a much more racous tune. After a while I
descended the hill to find the start of a wedding. There was a huge
male Bactrian camel decked out in colourful finery including a
massive padded and seemingly comfortable saddle along with a huge
bell round its neck which would make an Alpine cow green with envy.
The musicians were going at it hammer and tongs and large
numbers of people were turning up with wrapped gifts. The muzzled
camel was staked front and back as well as having front feet chained
together. He was then put into a sitting position and his knees tied
tightly together. They then brought out a huge heavy polished chest
and tied it to one side of the beast and an equally large and heavy
basket to the other side. He was then allowed to rise and lead the
procession followed by the musicians, people with gifts and then
cars with ribbons hanging from the wing mirrors. No-one was dressed
in any sort of finery. I'm not sure at what stage of the wedding
this was. I guessed they were off to woo and collect the bride.
Several young girls clapped from the rooftops. This interesting
little event went unnoticed by all apart from the immediate
neighborhood.
I spent an hour or so working on ZooNews Digest and
answering a mass of mail.
I walked towards the back of the town to visit the
Mausoleum which I failed to reach yesterday. Somewhere I went wrong
and wandered through the back streets. It was here I noticed the
chimney pots. In the castle of St. Peter's museum's erotic section
yesterday it mentioned about these being phallic symbols connected
with fertility. I thought at the time, just where do they get these
ideas? But here it was obvious, these were most definitely phallic
in every sense of the word. Possibly a new line to be carried by
Anne Summers? Some were more staid and looked to be a new line in
the barbeque and roadside shrine line. I eventually reached the
ancient theatre and then doubled back round towards the town
centre buying some green tangerines for lunch (greengerines?).
Delicious. I sat and people watched on a bench in the harbour
before retracing my tracks to find the elusive mausoleum. This time I
found it. Described by Pliny as one of the seven wonders of the
ancient world it is now not much more than a hole in the ground. It
is however, interesting. Originally planned as a tomb for the man
himself, Mausolus. It stood intact for nineteen centuries till the
crusaders tore it apart in 1522 to be used for building materials.
There are excellent graphics and those together with the signs,
lying stones and bits in the small museum you get an idea of what it
was like. I particularly liked the Amazon frieze, the original of
which is in the British museum I believe. Saw part of the Manchester
United vs Chelsea game in the restaurant I was in. I was just
getting in to it when they turned over to a Turkish game. Can
hardly blame them really.
