This is it, the trip to complete our visits to the new 7 Wonders of the World. Beginning with 10 days in Turkey (Istanbul, Cappadoccia, Pamakkale, Izmir) and followed with a leisurely drive through the deserts of Jordan to visit the rose red city of Petra. Excerpts and pics from our trip will appear here every few days, stay tuned :)
14 hours from Calgary to Istanbul, cool and rainy for the first 3 days. We couldn't let that dampen our adventures to the Blue Mosque, Ayasofya (formerly a church/mosque, now a museum) Basilica cisterns built in the 6th century as a water supply for the Topkapi Palace (now a museum as well) Got our shop on at the Grand Bazaar and the Spice bazaar, got away cheap there but made up for it at the Turkish carpet stores.
We're off to the the city Goreme in the Cappadocia region and...YES! The weather cleared and we were able to get up in a balloon for one of the most truly incredible experiences, an early morning flight above the unique landscape and rock formations of the area! (us and over 100 other balloons lifting off at roughly the same time)
While the balloon flight was definitely the highlight of our stay in the Cappadocia region, we visited a number of other natural and historical sights...the Ihlara valley (Turkeys second largest canyon), Selime castle/monastery (carved out the mountainside in the 13th century) and the Derinkuyu underground city, built in the 5th - 6th century BC. used as a hide-out for local populations when invading armies arrived. Between 20,000 – 50,000 people and their domestic animals could live in the city!
We're out of the Cappadocia region and off to the city of Denizli and the local attraction of Pamukkale, home to the ancient city of Heiropolis and the hot springs with their travertine step pools. A very unique location, almost looks like a glacier, but the water pouring down the hill is warm and the minerals in the water create these formations :)
A few parting pics from the Aegean port city of Izmir, Turkey...archeological ruins from the original city destroyed by an earthquake in the 1st century, port panorama and a stroll through the local markets. Next stop...Jordan!
We're outta Turkey, arrived Jordan after a brief layover in Cairo. Rental car for the next 7 days, no problems navigating traffic so far. Staying in Madaba, the city of mosaics, some dating back more than 2 thousand years, the most famous being the oldest known map of the Holy Land in the St. George church. The great part is, we've had a lot of the historical sites to ourselves...an apparent lack of other tourists everywhere we go :) Side trips to Mount Nebo (where Moses first saw the promised land) and to the Dead Sea for a float at the lowest point in the world.
Petra, Jordan: the reason for our adventure to the Middle East. After seven years, the completion of our quest to see all of the New 7 Wonders of the World. A night walk introduction to Petra on arrival and then a full day crawl all over the site including an hours climb up the 800 step donkey trail to see the Monastery! An absolutely IMPRESSIVE day trek and fully worthy of its 7 Wonder status!
