We joined Nina and Ira for a goodbye lunch on the beach and we are excited to see them again as I am sure we will travel to Munich someday! The world is so connected with social media now and it feels so easy to be able to keep in touch. Although I am sure we are missing something by no longer writing letters and sending post cards, I sure appreciate how instantaneous communication is; it makes the world seem smaller and more connected so that when you meet people like Nina and Ira that you click with, it's so easy to keep in touch.
The pension we stayed in was lovely but I found it a bit difficult as we were practically the only people there, and although the intentions were good, I felt a bit suffocated. One funny story is that Suphan wanted us to try a cactus fruit where you can only eat the middle and stated that the outside was "bad." He put the plate down and naturally Josh picks up the fruit with his hands and I follow suit to have Suphan running back saying, "no, no, no" then he ran off to grab a bottle of olive oil and doused my hands in it and stated that I couldn't wash them for one hour! So there I am, with my oiled up hands, having no clue why I am subjecting myself to this. Any way, it turns out that the prickles get imbedded into the skin but my hands seemed fine and I washed the olive oil off immediately much to Suphan's dismay. Very comical really.
As mentioned before, we met a German family (with Turkish roots) at our pension and we shared the cost of a van to Antalya instead of taking the bus (very luxurious!). Yasmin is traveling with her mother and her 18 year old son, Dominic and we are having a great time getting to know them. We arrived at our cute pension (Sibel pension) which is owned by a French-Turkish couple so we are making a small attempt at remembering some of our French! It is perfectly located in the old quarter of Antalya, called Kaleici.
Kaleici is beautiful and instantly charming. Also referred to as Old Antalya, it was originally a Roman town protecting the Roman Harbor as an important outpost and you can see the gates that lead into the city and the large walls around to protect it. Eventually it became an Ottoman town and this influence is seen with the narrow winding streets and the houses that are so close together they overshadow each other. The streets are lined with boutique pensions, stores, and bazaars to get lost in and we are feeling so relaxed, having cappuccinos and shopping (Josh will say I am dragging him but I leave it to you to decide if that's the case ;) ).
We went out for drinks and dinner with Yasmin and her family and we had the best time. We stole out of the old quarter to avoid the touristy food and found a great restaurant. As Yasmin enjoys to do so, we let her arrange the meal and we tried a lot of delicious new dishes and learned a few helpful words from Dominic. It can be pretty tiring to say the whole, tesekkur ederim (thank you) every time! We ended the evening with some live music and beers which was perfect.
I find it so irritating, but again we had to argue over the bill, twice. Once at the restaurant and once at the lounge. I thought since Yasmin and her family are Turkish and speak the language that it wouldn't happen to them but apparently they always have to check the bill as well. It is so frustrating because it is always such a big to do with everyone in the restaurant listening and coming over to investigate. It's not even about the money exactly, it's just about being treated with respect. It's almost as if you need to check the price before, during, and after! I will admit to hating this one part of the culture.
Josh and I woke up early today, had a lovely breakfast with freshly squeezed orange juice, and started our day with a cappuccino by the harbor. The views are just spectacular with sparkling water, a mountain landscape, and picturesque fishing boats sailing through. We have so enjoyed getting lost in the winding streets, poking into the little shops, and listening to the antics of the salesmen and women. We excitedly bought a few things today; I bought a beautiful dress the colors of the Mediterranean sea and a sunset and I am excited to wear it!
Shopping in Turkey is somewhat of a skill with the bartering. I think it akin to poker always wondering, will they really let me walk away? I don't think I am any good at it really but the prices seem reasonable to me! Today a woman and I played a game of bartering for practically the whole day. I found a dress I liked for 50 TL but I could only get her down to 30 TL (I wanted 20 TL), even pointing out a flaw in it to prove a point although she quickly grabbed one that was unflawed. I felt sure that if I walked out the door she would concede but nope, no luck. Having called my bluff, I had no choice but to return hours later and laugh when she handed me the dress, still waiting for me behind the counter because she was that sure I would return. She looked pretty pleased with herself!
Although we already have to leave tomorrow, I would definitely come back to Antalya. The old quarter is beautiful, the pensions are lovely, and the atmosphere is very upbeat and lively! We are even thinking about going out dancing tonight even though we leave tomorrow; it is so vibrant here, it is difficult not to partake in all the fun!
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