Kas to Bodrum

We were up early in order to get a head start on another long, hot travel day. The trip to Bodrum took seven hours, which included a stop at a very local restaurant along the way for lunch. It was hot, and the "air conditioning" in the bus was little more than a fan blowing around the hot air...

We eventually arrived in Bodrum and got checked into our hotel, which had a lovely pool that we took advantage of. We got changed and headed to enjoy a drink as the sun set, and then had a delicious dinner. Bodrum used to be called Halicarnassus in ancient times and was home to one of the seven ancient wonders of the world, the Mausoleum of Mausolus, which is now no longer in existence thanks to the crusaders and Knights Templar who decided the stones from the ancient structure would better serve as a castle for them. So they tore it down and made a castle. Thanks, Knights Templar...

We had two full days here of rest and relaxation, and after the hectic travel days and long days we've had in the past week, I took full advantage of. Our days typically started with a sightseeing venture after breakfast, followed by lounging at the pool during the heat of the day. It was hot, hot, hot and there isn't much relief as for whatever reason, the Turks have not quite gotten the latest AC technology. One morning we visited the castle and nearly sweated to death. The castle is now an underwater archeology museum, housing hundreds of artifacts that were discovered from ancient shipwrecks.


After the visit to the castle (and the dungeons, which really disappointed the group...), we headed back to the hotel and ate by poolside. We eventually got fed up with the prices of the drinks at the pool, so we went by a local market and bought some vodka and Cappy, a local fruit-drink-blend. We named the new mixed drink the Turkish Rosebud. They were delicious. Late that afternoon, we ventured out into the heat once more to the local market, which sold every knock-off you could ever want to find. Here is a picture of us returning to the hotel (notice we are all walking in whatever shade we can find).


The following day, the morning activity was a visit to some gay guy's house. Apparently he was the Turkish equivalent to Liberace. I didn't go, as I preferred to sleep and stay out of the ridiculous head. The afternoon activity for some was to head to a local beach, while for others it was another afternoon around the pool enjoying Turkish Rosebuds. The last night in Bodrum was an early one, as we had to be up very early the next morning to hit the road again!

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