CHAPTER 35: WEST TURKEY

 35.2
kms, Sept 1, 2010


The
Traveler has crossed Turkey. Right up ahead is the Bosphorus Strait,
a narrow seaway that separates Asia from Europe. But the Traveler
knows that his exploration of Turkey is far from over. There is much
more to see in this country than just the Black Sea coast.


So
for this next Chapter the Traveler will head deep in land... and
encounter what will be his most fascinating discovery on the entire
planet.









The
Anatolian Plateau



The
landscape quickly changes as you head inland from the coast. Gone
are the dense forests of Mt Uludag, and the highway continues on to
the drier open fields of the Anatolian Plateau.


Kestel
is a quiet little town...
Inegol is a midsize
city where the Traveler manages to get lost and goes in circles. As
most Turkish and towns, they have few distinctive features or
historic character.


Up
the road, though, is a city the Traveler is looking forward to
seeing. Eskishehir is
the largest city of his trip through Turkey so far, surely it will
have a lot of history and culture in it. Eskisehir literally means:
“Old City”



He
arrives at the large bus station where he is greeted by a welcome
sight: a sleek, modern tramway that goes into the city. Tempting...
but no... he chooses to walk. He heads north, towards what he thinks
is downtown... only to find himself in a hilly neighborhood with
grimy hardware shops and monotonous housing. He pulls out his guitar
in a shabby little plaza with only stray dogs around. He has half a
mind to just give up on Eskisehir and continue on to the next town.



But
he decides to give this city another shot, heading east this time.
Suddenly, just as the sun is setting, bathing the city in a golden
glow, he finds the “heart” of Eskisehir, and it is beautifully



No,
it does not have a historic district where the 4,000 year history of
this city has been preserved. This is clearly a rebuilt city. But
unlike many other Turkish cities, here the government has really,
really tried to make this place unique and beautiful



Everywhere
you go, you find sculptures. Lots of sculptures. And not sculptures
of great warriors and politicians. Instead you see statues of
ordinary people—a fisherman pulling in his nets... A fellow in a
bushy mustache, selling something in a bucket. The one that sticks
with the Traveler is statue of two women on a park bench chatting...
one wearing a headscarf, the other not. A symbol of a religious and
secular people just getting along?


Next
Morning



The
next morning the Traveler heads out to wander and take pictures in
daylight. With a stretch of imagination, you might almost call
Eskisehir the “Venice of Turkey”--or more like a Disneyland
version of Venice. There are canals crisscrossing the city with
beautiful bridges crossing them and a couple of gondolas... fountains
with leaping horses or beautiful deer.



It
does have an artificial, theme park feel... but the Traveler enjoys
it all nonetheless. After wandering through so many Turkish cities
where little or no effort is being made to make the city charming and
beautiful, this place is a breath of fresh air.



Will
Eskisehir be Florence in a couple hundred years? Probably not. The
statues do not look like they were created to last a long time.
Right now they are all shiny, gold painted. But that gold paint is
not going to last very long.





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