Tidying Up
Okay. Git 'er done.

So Delos was amazing. I highly recommend it. It's a small island near Mykonos, and its ruins are very extensive. One of the best aspects is that it's not very busy, so it's great for some secluded exploration.

Sorry, I feel like my language is stilted because I cna't help half-listening to the table next to me. We've just had dinner, and I'm now drinking tea made from leaves that a Turkish guy here picked. I sort of missed the name of it, since it was Turkish. He said it meant something-island chai. It's quite fragrant.

Anyway, I don't really know what to say about Delos, now that I'm chock full of other subsequent memories.

Mykonos Town was nice. It's very much a resort town, but quite appealing. The streets are maybe 6 to 10 feet across, and they crisscross at all sorts of angles. Apparently, they were designed to confused marauders, but they operate to slow tourists down. It's nice, because you can't really try to get anywhere; you just go.

I did end up making it briefly to Super Paradise Beach, but it was a let down. The wind was so strong that lying on the beach was kind of painful, with the flying sand. Plus, it was neither more gay nor more nude than Paradise Beach. So I didn't get to sunbathe nude. I did strip down to my briefs, though. In my defense, I think I would have done it, but no guys were nude. The extent of it was a handful of topless women.

That night, I made it to some bars, but I was exhausted. I had two birds in hand, but they were tourists, and I was really after, you know, Greeks. So I ended up with nothing. But the meat market was incredible--all but impossible to move. But by that point, in a huge crowd on a tiny street with sweat and smoke in the air, I got close to vomiting. Well, also I'd had a gin and tonic (which tasted great). So I left Mykonos getting no action, which probably means no action for my entire trip, given where I'm headed.

One weird thing I've encountered on this trip is that everyone seems to be traveling for much longer than me--generally for over a year. Kind of insane. I really thought 4 weeks was kind of long! Maybe it's an American thing to not take traveling sabbaticals; I really haven't met many Americans so far.

Anyway, so I went from Mykonos to Selçuk, connecting through Samos and Kuşadasi. Selçuk was a nice little town. I stayed at a place called Australian New Zealand Guest House. The staff was a great resource, but my mattress was terrible--all springs. Interestingly though, all the other travelers were staying in rooms, so I was the only one in the dorm.

It was just around the corner from Ephesus. Ephesus was impressive--especially the restored façade of the Library of Celsus--but I think the take-away was that going early to beat crowds simply does not work. The better strategy seems to be late afternoon. But now I feel kind of over ruins now. At least Greco-Roman.

Ooh, souvenirs. I've been foolishly buying breakables. At Ephesus, there's a mini souvenir tourist trap, where I Picked up some small bowls. I think I overpaid, but they're hand-painted. And I don't think they look like typical tourist schlock--you'd only know if you went to Turkey and saw them at all the stores. ...or if I just told you.

Wandering around Selçuk, I met a ceramics teacher, selling her wares. She may have been lying, but she emphasized how she painted everything herself, didn't copy designs from anyone/anything, and made her own shade of blue paint. Apparently, the French coined the term "turquoise" after visiting Turkey and seeing their extensive use of turquoise. So I bought two circular turquoise plates for my mom, with a raised design, painted two shades of blue. But I kind of want to keep them.

In Mykonos, I spent about $200 on three glass panels. They're curved so they stand upright, and they could conceivably be placed in front of votive candles (but I'll probably stand them alone). The perimeters are a reddish orange, with flecks of gold leaf. There are black trees painted on the front, with flecks of black and orange on the back, like leaves (all three pieces are the same design, but I got one big and two small). It's autumnal, and it's kind of redder than what I was hoping to use in my future kitchen, but I'm hoping to put them there.

Okay, break.

Labels: bar trip, Delos (GR), Mykonos (GR), Selçuk (TR)

- posted by roger @ 9:43 PM