Mt. Nemrut, Mardin, Savur

I just came back from a week in Eastern Turkey and it was absolutely stunning. I was quite surprised to hear warnings from many western Turks about traveling to the East alone. But all the other travelers that I spoke with, said that the east is not to be missed. I started in Mt. Nemrut from Capadoccia, a 12 hour bus ride. I tell you, I'd take a 12 hour bus ride in Turkey over an hour in an Indian bus any day. They have bus attendants, similar to flight attendants that serve beverages, cake and ice cream! But my ride did suck because I had to sit in the jump seat next to the driver for almost the entire overnight journey. So I got to Khata and was totally jacked. I stayed in a little village called Karadut about 12km from the top of Nemrut. The pension owner told me to find the Karadut Market and talk to Mustafa and he'll help me get a minibus (this is the local transport) to Karadut. Ok, so İ'm a little nervous and skeptical about this, but quickly realize that this is the old me thinking. İ consciously change my energy and wouldn't you know, I meet Mustafa right away and end up having breakfast with him and his son at the shop. We took a ton of pictures and he gave me the shop address so I can mail them to him. İ am constantly amazed at what happens when İ stop to think about the energy that I put out into the world. It doesn't happen like a wish, but rather, it is something that İ truly feel in my heart. Sometimes İ think that İ'm thinking positively, only to realize that my thought is really negative and İ'm just 'hoping' things will work out. Funny how life has a way of discerning these things.

So, Mt. Nemrut has these massive statues at the top of the mountain, but the heads have fallen off and now they sit at the feet of their bodies. İ didn't get many pictures b/c the batteries in my - camera died - damn it. But İ did watch an amazing sunset in the desert.

From Mt. Nemrut I headed southeast, I think I was 70km from the Syrian border, to Mardin. What an amazing little town. Kurds, Turks, Arabs and Christians all live peacefully in this beautiful place. For 2 days I sat in a chai shop and looked out at the honey colored desert that stretched to Syria. It was a surreal experience...the desert is mesmerizing.

One more minibus ride and İ was in the sweet town of Savur. İ splurged on a place to stay b/c it had an amazing view of the valley below. There is a river that runs through the valley, but you can't see it because of the trees that grow around it. So from my perch all you see is a river of green snaking through the mountains. The town is smaller than Mardin and they don't see many tourists, especially women travelling alone. But after being stared at for a good long while (İ have just come to accept this - with my big sunglasses, short hair, height.. and lets face it, İ'm damn cute, well: people stare), İ was welcomed into every tea shop. The family İ stayed with treated me like a long lost relative and it was good to be looked after for a night. And let me tell you, İ needed a good night's sleep because İ was about to embark on an epic bus journey that would last 30 hours....