A Tale of Three Cities

Kurban Bayram means Sacrifice Festival. This Muslim holiday honors Abraham's obedience to God and is celebrated 70 days after Ramadan each year.

While many of my students bused to their hometowns in various corners of Turkey, I bused to some of Turkey's most important and beautiful cities. During this short vacation I ventured east with a fellow Fulbrighter (Check out her blog here. She'll have more details and pics than I do), and on our journey we saw the iconic "fairy chimneys" of Capadoccia, the sacred fish of Balikli Gol, and tasted Turkey's best baklava in Gaziantep.


At 2 a.m. on Saturday, Kara and I left Afyon's otogar and head to Konya. In Konya, we caught another bus to Nevsehir. And in Nevsehir, we got on a smaller bus and finally made it to Goreme. Cappadocia is a region of Central Turkey, and Goreme is a popular tourist destination for those looking to explore the amazing rock formations.

Early Christians lived in these cave dwellings.

Fun Fact: Cappadocia means "Land of Beautiful Horses."

We stayed in a cave hotel and made the most of our time by participating in an all-day bus tour of the area on Sunday. In addition to these crazy-cool cave dwellings, we also explored an underground city used to escape enemies during times of war. What amazed me most was that all this stuff was so old (we're talking 11th century) and they allowed us to climb all over it. It's a seven-year-old's dream Hide and Seek location. Meeting up with a few other Fulbrighters was another highlight of my time in Cappadocia!

Flinstoning it.

Group shot.

Kara and I departed Goreme and headed for Sanliurfa. What the Internet told us was a 4-hour ride was actually a 9-hour ride. Bummerama? YES. But, instead of complaining, we made ourselves comfortable and enjoyed the ever-changing manzaralar (landscapes) and dozed in and out of sleep. We were later transferred to another bus, but the unpleasant surprises kept coming. Our bus ran out of gas. MULTIPLE TIMES. Now, I'm no mechanic, but my eyebrows were raised. And if my Turkish wasn't elementary beginner, I would have been demanding some answers. Instead, I took my cue from the rest of the bus passengers and patiently waited. I still regret not starting a "Yeni! Otobus!" chant, though.

Balikli Gol

If you catch one, you go blind!

We arrived in Sanliurfa later than expected, but it was worth the wait. Balikli Gol translates to lake with fish, but these aren't you're average fish. The story goes that King Nimrod attempted to burn Abraham at the stake, but God intervened. God turned the fire into water and the burning coals into fish, thwarting King Nimrod's scheme. Now the lake is a pilgrimage site and a park. Peaceful and quiet, this place was my favorite of all my Kurban Bayram travels.

The traveling dream team.

The final chapter of this adventure brought us to Gaziantep. Famous for its baklava and pistachios, we allowed ourselves to indulge in the culinary offerings of the city. The Zeugma Mozaik Muzesi was brand-spanking new and amazing. Adding to our Antep euphoria was the fact that our Fulbrighter friend graciously allowed us to stay in her apartment (Thanks, Didem!), so we were more than comfortable for the last leg of the trip.

Four different types. All delish.

The trip was a success. We ticked off all the items on our itinerary, and the hiccups we experienced were minor ones. I'm looking forward to future travels with Kara! And seriously, check out her blog. It's way more thorough than mine.