If this is Tuesday, it must be Turkey

After all the festivities in Toronto, we were off to Zurich for a one-night laundry binge and re-pack, and then...to Turkey! First stop, Istanbul.

Let's talk about the Ayasofya, or the Hagia Sofia, for those Greeks in the audience. From 360 (!!!) to 1453 it served as the Cathedral of Constantinople (except for a brief period between 1204 and 1261, when it was Cathedral of the Latin Empire). But in 1453 Istabul was taken by the Ottoman Turks, and Sultan Memed II ordered it converted to a mosque. Now it's a museum, and an amazing combination of architectural styles and religious iconography.
Of course, if you're a Sultan, you can't be outdone by stuff that happened a thousand years before you came into the spotlight. Nope -- you've got to build your own rival mosque across the street! Hence the creation of the Blue Mosque (aka Sultan Ahmed Mosque). Personally, we think the outside of the Blue Mosque is more striking, and the building definitely dominates the Istanbul skyline, but the inside of the Ayasofya just can't be beaten.
Night life in Istanbul...very busy, very friendly, and complete with...Christmas lights? Is that a Santa you see? Yup. An inexplicable Santa in June...in Turkey? Yes. Also spotted on the street was the filming of a music video (the band members were riding camels), and British hippies playing awesome klezmer music. Quite the cultural mix!

After the hustle and bustle of Istanbul, we took a few days to beach it up outside of Bodrum in the town of Güllük. If Istanbul saw us walking everywhere and eating nothing, Güllük saw us walking nowhere and eating everything. This picture pretty much sums it up. Imagine us on some beach loungers and you've got the idea.
Then it was off to Cappadocia, one of the most amazing places we've ever been! (And we get around!) We stayed at Museum Hotel, a luxury cave (!!!) hotel and museum that hosts royalty from around the world. While we were there, it hosted Martha Stewart (a sort of royalty?) for dinner. No, Ray, I did not offer her your potato salad recipe. It is one of my lingering regrets.

As you can see, the weather was a bit dramatic upon our arrival...
Um, okay, can we check out that view again? Wowza. Click to embiggen.
Here is Uchisar Castle......which Swiss Mister conquered, so triumphantly! The castle dates from the Byzantine period, when the region was at war with the Islamic Caliphate.

Speaking of all the warring and marauding, it could be pretty risky to be a Christian in these parts, so many of the faithful took to hiding out in incredibly elaborate underground cities that housed thousands of people at a time! Here are Swiss Mister and Miss at Kaymakli, one of the largest cities in the region.
Ibrahim was our most awesome tour guide -- we like to think of him as a Turkish Inder, with a PhD in Cappadocian history. We learned so much from him, and we had an excellent time. Thanks, Ibo!
So, what would the cave-dwelling Christians do with their enemies and other such rabble-rousers? Bring them to the meeting hall and crucify them, of course. Swiss Miss is not so pleased.
What would a trip to Turkey be without a Turkish carpet? After our crummy experience at the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul (during which a slimy dude tried to sell us a carpet we didn't like for 9,000 Euro), we were relieved to meet Taner and Bulend at the Ala Turca Carpet Shop! We spent about 7 hours there, eating, talking, drinking...and eventually looking at carpets. Then we went back the next day for dinner...and got taken to a Turkish wedding, where we danced with the bride! Great guys, great carpets, great fun.What's with the hats? Yes, the traditional "you have bought a carpet" hat (aka the "make fun of tourists" hat?). And that's our carpet! We're sitting on it! It looks as good as I remember it! Right now, you see, memories are all we have, as TNT accidentally shipped our carpet out of Zurich to MEXICO CITY, where it has languished in Mexican customs for the last week or so. We remain ever hopeful that one day we will be reunited...

In addition to its underground cities, Cappadocia is also famous for its fairy chimneys. I'll let Wikipedia explain the geological process behind them. Instead, I'll just show you how awesome they are. And, I'll let you in on a little secret, Bloggership: these here fairy chimneys are gonna make Swiss Mister and Miss rich! How? Well, Swiss Miss has come up with a genius idea for a tourist t-shirt: a silhouette of some fairy chimneys with the slogan "Cappadocia rocks!" It's so genius, I can't believe it's never been done before! The chief problem, aside from all the logistics of making and selling t-shirts in Cappadocia (though Ibo is on board with the plan...), is one of graphics: the fairy chimneys are a little...suggestive, especially in silhouette. While the guidebooks say these structures look like mushrooms, I'll leave the Bloggership to its own opinions.

Cappadocia is one of the ballooning capitals of the world! There's no better way to see the sights than by balloon at sunrise. Here you can see the town of Uchisar -- remember Uchisar Castle? There she is, from above!
Our balloon pilot was an incredible hot dog -- getting down to less than ten feet off the round, getting so close to caves you could have reached out touched the pigeons therein... A really wonderful experience for our last day in Cappadocia.
But where have we been since? And who is the next reader of the week??? Stay tuned, and bring your appetite for pierogies...