Turkey May 2005 - Konya, Egirdir and Termessos
We piled back on the bus the next morning, and headed across the Taurus mountains, via Konya (origin of the Whirling Dervish sect), the Egirdir in the Lake District, then on to the Mediterranean via Termessos, an amazing ruined city at the top of a mountain.  

We left Cappadocia and headed to Konya, a very conservative town that was the home of Mevlana, the founder of the Whirling Dervish sect. We arrived in Konya at midday, and had lunch (Iskender Kebab for me - really tasty lamb in tomato based sauce with pide bread and yoghurt). We were then given an hour to go round the museum - the museum has the bodies (in sarcophagi) of Mevlana, his disciples and family members, and there are pilgrims there praying at them. It felt a bit rude to be just wandering round taking Photos. There are some interesting illuminated books in there, but you can see the museum in about ten minutes, so afterwards we wandered the streets for a while.

Egirdir

First thing in the morning, we set off in the bus again, heading over the mountains toward the coast. We drove through some beautiful scenery - all snow caps and conifers. We got to Termessos at about noon, and climbed the hill to get there - a pretty steep hike but definitely worth it. The amphitheatre is stunning - set right on the edge of a cliff, with amazing mountains all around it.

Mevlana Museum

We then got back on the bus and headed up into the Taurus Mountains to Egirdir (pronounced Ay-uh-deer), a beautiful lake. We arrived at 6:30, and stayed in a hotel overlooking the lake - unfortunately lunch had disagreed with me, so I spent most of the evening either lying comatose on the bed, or throwing up.

Termessos