Wednesday, October 1 –

Another transition day. Earliest departure yet, so I had to get in my workout even before the first call to prayer. One thing I did notice this morning. Those muscles that are usually sore or tight when I get up? They felt great! There must be something to this massage stuff–who knew??

Quick breakfast, then we were on our way.

Lots of driving in the AM with just a couple of bathroom breaks before lunch. Lunch was a group meal in a very cute, open-air restaurant. Tons of food and friendly, fast service. They were setting up for a wedding that was happening this afternoon

We departed before the happy couple had to worry about having some random Americans in their wedding snaps.

After lunch, we spent an extended time at Aphrodisias, an ancient Hellenistic city that was part of the Roman Empire roughly 1-2c AD.

People actually maintained cottages here into the late 1950s, when major excavations started taking place. The area is vast, encompassing baths, a theater, a stadium, areas devoted to the arts, and a temple dedicated to Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love.

Even with our long visit, we probably just scratched the surface of really understanding all that it contains, but as with many museums, there is a point at which the brain stops effectively absorbing information. I think we all reached that point.

After that, it was onto our hotel in the city of Pammukale. We had a little downtime, so I took a walk into the shopping area of the city. Very basic, lots of local people, not a lot of English spoken. Guess this area is famous for textiles, so I saw lots of clothes, towels and linens.

Early evening, we went to see the Whirling Dervish ritual. While some may assume it is a dance performance, it’s actually a type of prayer, very solemn. We were asked not to take photos, that there would be a time at the end for that. So, of course, as soon as the lights went down, we could see a woman across from us with her phone on.

It was especially delightful when she accidentally put on the flashlight and blinded me. She videoed the whole thing. One, that’s just plain rude, this is a somber ceremony, and they specifically asked us not to do that. Two–seriously, you think the folks back home are going to watch that? I wish they had confiscated her phone.

When we got back, it was another group dinner at the hotel. Another huge buffet, but also a huge crowd of people. Most lined up politely, then this one old guy just starts cutting the line. Several of us point to the line of people waiting, and he responds by going to the other side of the buffet, trying to swim upstream like a salmon. I lost track of him, but I hope he got beaten by someone with a hot serving spoon–why does anyone think that is OK??

Let’s all remember, I have made very few pithy comments about tourist behavior this trip, but today, we definitely went past our limit. However, it did not dampen my enthusiasm for the day or the trip.

Tomorrow, it’s on to the final stop on the tour…hard to believe.

16,618 steps

7.7 miles