3am wake up call and Mt. Nemrut
Trip Start
Sep 18, 2008
1
9
50
Trip End
Dec 07, 2008
Friday was another long bus ride!!! We started at 9am then stopped at the supermarket to buy food cos we were going to have a picnic lunch as there were not many clean eating places on the way to Khata. Then we drove and drove and drove. It was better than our other bus rides though cos we had a different bus and more room. It was still impossible to get any sleep though. The picnic was nice and 2hrs later we stopped for icecream. I thought I was getting strawberry but it was a really dark red and it tasted more like plum - it was very nice though. We arrived into Khata at 6:30pm, very tired and not looking forward to the early start the next morning.On the way to Khata we saw the aftermath of 2 really bad car crashes and Ilhan told us a story about the Kurds and how there is always trouble with them. I don't know if it was because of these two things but I had a really uneasy feeling about Khata. It could also have been Ilhan telling us all not to wander the town by ourselves. Anyway, we had tea at the hotel and then went straight to bed. We got up at 3am and layered the clothes and then headed off to Mt. Nemrut. The road was very hairy and not a very pleasant drive. We got to the start of the climbing path and it was cold!!!!! We started the climb and it was supposed to take 15mins but it was really steep and rocky and not a very easy climb. We got to the top - I wasn't last, and then we sat in the cold and the wind and waited for the sun to rise. I took my sleeping bag up but because of the wind I thought it would be too difficult to take it out and put it back in so it stayed on my bag. Mt. Nemrut was the site of tombs from the Greek-Persian era and all that is left are giant heads of the gods (on the ground) and then the rest of the body up on the cliff. The heads were pretty amazing. The sun finally rose and we all cheered and were immediately ready to head back down. This time I was first cos I'm strange and going down the mountain is always easier for me than going up. After today I don't think many people are going to climb Mt. Sinai. We drove back to the hotel and were hoping we might get a hot breakfast but it wasn't to be - more cucumber, tomato, bread and hard boiled eggs. We then started the drive to Urfa. Hoping I would find a market in Urfa cos I have no clean clothes left but it wasn't to be. We arrived in Urfa just after lunchtime and well done to our bus driver Mehmet who just squeezed the bus into the narrow street that our hotel is on. Lunch was nice, I had a doner sandwhich which is kebap meat in a roll and then Ilhan showed us around, sorry he showed Stuart, Hawke and Keira around and the rest of us tried to keep up and not get hassled. The bus driver again was outstanding by looking after the rest of us and making sure we were ok. Am really looking forward to Syria to get rid of Ilhan and Keira!!! The main site that we saw was where King Nemrut tossed the prophet Ibrahim from the Kale fortress into a large fire. At the last moment, Allah turned the fire into water and the wood into Carp to cushion Ibrahim's fall. The site is now a pilgrimage spot and everybody feeds the carp so they are very fat fish. Locals say that if you eat carp while in Urfa you will go blind. We also saw the cave that Ibrahim was supposedly born in - went in and had a look after having to wear a cloak, couldn't see much and cos it was so hot we didn't stay long. After that we made our own way back to the hotel which was a bit unnerving. Urfa is kind of like Khata - you feel like everybody is going to try and rob you. Once again we have a really dodgy shower with no hot water so you can never feel truely awake. We then got ready for our last dinner together as a group. Ilhan took us to a place mainly cos they served alcohol and straight away I didn't feel comfortable, our group were the only women in the whole restaurant, and even though I wasn't wearing anything revealing I was continually getting stared at. I don't usually mind cos I remember that from Egypt. We had our meal which was quite nice even though our glass of wine tasted like vinegar and we were getting ready to leave when I noticed that the main guy who had been staring at me was trying to take my photo on his camera phone. I thought - uh hang on a minute! and quickly ducked behind the waiter. I thought that he would stop after seeing that I had noticed what he was doing but he didn't. I grabbed my scarf and tried to cover any exposed skin that I was showing and they still didn't stop. Then the other guy at their table treid to pretend that he wasn't taking my photo by turning his back and holding his camera around his body. I got up as soon as I saw this and told Ilhan why I was leaving and all he said was oh ok!! Little idiot!! (trying to be polite). I was so angry that 1: Ilhan would take us to a place that women clearly don't go to, and 2: that he did nothing about it. However when Dan came out he said that Ilhan had words with the staff about the behaviour of their patrons. That was good but we still shouldn't have eaten there. Tomorrow we drive through the border to Aleppo Syria and I can't wait!!
