Ruins and more ruins
Trip Start
Nov 09, 2007
1
29
92
Trip End
Feb 03, 2008
Troy,
Turkey
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
First stop was the Assos ruins. Halfway up the hill from the harbour is the theatre so we pulled in to check it out. There were signs indicating the path that Saint Paul took from the theatre down to the harbour. I imagined Aristotle studying and teaching there. We drove a little further up and explored the ruins of the Temple of Apollo and other areas of the ancient city. There is not a lot left, but it is situated in a wonderful location with outstanding views up and down the coast and across to Lesbos.
We decided to take a back road to Troy, which passed a number of archaeological sites along the way. The road was windy and narrow, but provided interesting excursions through small rural villages and glimpses of the beaches and cliffs along the way
The theatre at Assos
.We didn't have time to stop at all of the ruins but chose Alexandria Troias because it sounded intriguing. What we found was a ruined city that as yet has had virtually no excavation at all. We wandered around the parts of the city that are showing and wondered what lay beneath. The girls and I agreed what fun it would be to dig in the soil and come across ancient artefacts. What priceless treasures might we find?
On we went to find the ruins of the city of Troy. Time for some food first, so we found a café offering a 'documentary about Troy'. We were interested so we pulled off the road. As we did so a man came running out of the front door like a scared rabbit. He was the proprietor keen to ensure that we stopped. We got out of the car and passed by his amazing range of trashy souvenirs on our way to our table. 'We have kofte and chips' he informed us. 'Can we see a menu?' I enquired. 'Ah, no menu. Kofte and chips.' It appeared that this was the only thing on the menu, but as we sat thinking about it, he came up with 'Chicken and chips'. We ordered two. Towards the end of our meal, he trotted out some toy wooden horses that he had made himself. He was really proud of them but unfortunately they were awful. It was quite touching and tragic (and awkward too) to watch him show us the different sizes that he had made and the hand-burnt decorations on each one. We told him that 'maybe' we would call back
Assos Temple of Apollo
. And fled.The ruins at Troy are quite well set up, with good explanation signs and a well marked path to follow. At the entrance stands a 'replica' wooden horse three stories high that you can climb inside. We all made the pilgrimage to the top and pretended to be Greek soldiers ready to sack Troy.
Maggie found a cat friend as we entered and picked him up and carried him around the entire path. The ruins of Troy are fascinating. In truth there is not a lot to see, mainly fortification walls from the various 'Troys' over the centuries. The city was built and rebuilt nine times, each one on top of the previous. It was a revelation to see the site that has inspired so many legends, so many stories and movies.
By the time we arrived in Canakkale it was already dark. Jess did her best to navigate us to the harbour, but without a street map it was mainly following our noses. As we traversed narrow back streets Jess spotted a sign for our intended abode, Hotel Kervansaray. Although this has the same name as our accommodation in Assos they are not part of the same business. It is recommended in the Lonely Planet guide so we didn't hold out a lot of hope. It also looks reasonably grand so we thought it would be too expensive. It wasn't. For 80 lira we got a three-room suite with breakfast included and even off street parking for our car. Jess had jumped out of the car while I circled the block. Recognising a bargain when she saw one she quickly snapped it up for two nights. We have the fortune to be staying in the Sultan Suite. With what remained of the day we took a walk along the waterfront and in the streets around our hotel. There are a lot of cafés, restaurants and bars here and the Australian presence is quite pronounced, with 'Boomerang' this and 'Anzac' that in the names of the businesses.
