Turkey,  April 2004

While it wasn't originally high on our list, we found ourselves in Turkey for Julie's work and were amazed by the history and culture.  Starting out in Istanbul we spent several days walking the city and checking out the mosques, markets and Topkapi palace.  Heading south we followed the dardanels through Gallipoli, crossed the straights at Cannakkale and on to Troy.  Troy was interesting, but rather unimpressive-- especially compared to Ephesus and Pergamon in the south which were fantastic.  We set up camp in Izmir (Smyrna) for day trips to the ruins and then caught a flight out to Capadoccia (valley of the fairy chimneys) where the houses and churches carved right into the rock formations were mind blowing.  Only thing cooler was the underground cities they built to house thousands for months at a time.  A couple days there, an overnight bus complete with a breakdown and a dubbed Turkish copy of the movie Airplane and we were back in Istanbul.
Go to the pictures

Istanbul :: Gallipoli :: Canakkale :: Troy :: Izmir :: Ephesus :: Pergamon :: Capadoccia :: Istanbul
Turkey Map
          

Obligatory Overview Stats
Area: 779,452 sq km
Population: 68.1 million
People: Turks (85%), Kurds (12%), 3% other Islamic peoples, Armenians, Jews
Language: Kurdish, Arabic, Armenian, Greek, Turkish
Religion: Muslim (Sunni)
Government: republican parliamentary democracy
GDP: US$183.7 billion
GDP per capita: US$2,490
Annual Growth: -5%
Inflation: 26%
Major Industries: Textiles, food processing, tourism, motor vehicles, mining, lumber, petroleum, construction