When European visitors hear the word Turkey, they generally conjure up a slew of clichés: Mediterranean or Aegean resorts, all-inclusive systems, sweets, romantic balloon rides over Cappadocia, or strolls through beautiful Istanbul, complete with its sites. However, there is another Turkey, one that not even all Turks are aware of or are acquainted with. It is located on the Black Sea coast and is surrounded by the coolness of green trees and waterfalls, attractive mountains, meadows, and caverns with stalactites and stalagmites, and other natural wonders. A Russian journalist for traveled to such locations and reported back on what it's like to live in a section of the country that few visitors visit.
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| Tourism in Turkey |
"The Lord of the Rings should have been filmed here"
In order to produce films about hobbits, filmmaker Peter Jackson was had to go to this location. "Our views are in no way inferior to those of New Zealand, and they are also many times less expensive," the Turks who live on the Black Sea coast frequently exclaim when showing tourists the Geraster plateau, which is 1,35 thousand meters above sea level and a popular tourist destination. Paragliders from all over the globe go to this location to practice their sport.
The view is quite breathtaking: everything is painted in vibrant green hues. It is difficult to take your eyes off it. This would be a fantastic location for filming. Here you will discover raging rivers with thundering waterfalls, rolling hills that seem like they have stepped out of a picture, and serpentine paths that run through forests of centuries-old trees and dozens of various flowers and plants.
The main drawback is that you have to start early in the morning to ascend to the plateau. After half past eleven, a blanket of snow-white clouds begins to swiftly engulf the landscape, obscuring all of its splendor. The valley is already completely obscured by thick fog at precisely noon.
Skiers flock to this location in the winter. There are just a handful of these Turks, who are largely foreigners. The summer months are the most popular time for locals to visit these locations to get away from the oppressive heat and blazing sun. It is not uncommon for the temperature to not get over 24 degrees Celsius in the highlands along the Black Sea coast at the height of the daytime.
There are no notable hotels in this area; instead, the majority of accommodations are small family guesthouses. When taxis or buses arrive at a certain location, you must ascend the steps yourself; bags are transported upstairs via a special cable. The inside is clean and pleasant, and everything has a family-like feel to it. The proprietors offer traditional Turkish food for visitors since the Turks do not recognize any other cuisine.
They make fun of the fact that when they go to other countries, the first thing they search for is cafés and restaurants that sell kebabs or at the very least doner. So there's a lot of meat to choose from here for meat lovers. Vegetarians will also like the food available in the area. In the case of chikefte, a snack made of bulgur and spicy spices that is often wrapped in pita bread, the locals are huge fans. This is referred to as durum, which means "wrapped" in English.
Apart from that, tiny bowls of fresh olive oil, cucumber, tomatoes, honey and different kinds of jam made from mulberries, figs and other fruits such as strawberries, apricots, cherries and raspberries are always available on the dining table. You may also sample several varieties of cheese, scrambled eggs, and a traditional Turkish omelette - menemen - which is spiced with tomatoes and served with bread. Fresh fragrant bread or sesame buns - simits - are served with all of the above. However, every Turkish area advertises that it is here that the greatest simits are made, and this is true to some extent. Turkish savory cuisine donuts are a popular meal in the country. They're often served with kaimak cream and honey on the side.
A variety of soups, including meat, vegetable, and yogurt-based varieties, are available at these establishments, as is the country's national dish, mashed red lentil soup, which must be seasoned with lemon juice to be considered authentic. When it comes to Turkish food, there is plenty of bread for those who like it: gozleme, bereki, thin open flat cakes with fillings (pide), or lahmacun, which is a kind of Turkish pizza made with minced meat, vegetables, and spices (lahmacun). By the way, the Turks themselves make an effort not to purchase veggies and fruits from supermarkets, preferring instead to go to the market. Everything is less expensive, more fresh, and more infused with the taste of the region.
Rustic breakfast is a particular pleasure of the Turks who live in these locations. This is a family tradition: on Sundays, they can sit down at the table for breakfast in the morning and go out for dinner in the evening without recognizing how breakfast seamlessly transitioned into lunch and finally supper.
Views in the morning, dancing in the evening
In the evenings, it is mandatory to perform Turkish music and dances. Tourists who would like to sit in a corner and do not have time to glance back do strange pirouettes with their feet, as if they were participating in a circle dance in an environment of general goodwill and good humor. The horon is the most well-known of these dances. It is played to the accompaniment of a tulum, a Turkish hurdy-gurdy, and a three-stringed Pontic lyre known as a kemenche (or kemenche). A blend of Caucasian dances and Greek sirtaki may be found in the local dances of the region.
Ankara and Istanbul-based Turks are fond of imitating the peculiar accents and mannerisms of the people who live on the Black Sea coast, and they also enjoy making fun of their musical preferences. The Turkish romantics cry their eyes out when they hear poetic melodies about unrequited love performed in two different places. Despite the fact that Chernomorians like unadorned tracks that are not burdened with particular significance, these songs quickly brighten their spirits.
There is a similarity between Caucasians and Laz Turks (as the residents of the Black Sea coast ) in that they are tall and have prominent noses, as well as light eyes and hair. They have a reputation in Turkey for being very foolish and innocent, and as a result, they are often the subject of jokes and memes. The guide recounts a joke in order for us to get a sense of the local character.
"Somehow, two climbers find their way to America, where they stumble upon a banner advertising a major performance being organized by a well-known pianist. We made the decision to attend and listen. There is a standing room only crowd in the hall, and the maestro is on a roll, to the delight of the audience. After the event, we approached the pianist to express our appreciation for his accomplishments.
And you're one of our own, Laz! - Hey, brother, and you're one of our own!
For a long time, the pianist disputed the allegations, claiming that he has lived in the United States since infancy and has never visited the Black Sea region. Then he went ahead and confessed anyhow.
"How did you make your guess?" "I speak English well and without an accent!" But the fact of the matter is that when regular people sit down at the piano, they bring their chair up to the piano; only we, the Laz, move our piano up to the chair."
The Turks of the Black Sea are not upset by this. A variety of souvenirs, including mugs, plates, and T-shirts with the phrases Bezdum ("Enough with me") and Darlandum ("ZadAlbalo") – the name of which is a play on the local dialect – were created in reaction to this. It's as if there were a slogan on T-shirts in Russia that made fun of the rolling letter "g" used by residents of the country's southern regions, or with an emphasis on the letter "o" used by residents of the country's northern regions, or they would single out the letter "shn," as in the Moscow dialect in the words "buloSHNAYA" and "enough."
On the coast of Turkish Ceylon
The province of Rize is yet another interesting destination (where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is from ). Because it is famed for its tea plantations, you get the impression that you have arrived on the island of Ceylon: burning heat, pure blue sky, and green bushes reaching into the distance. Since the mid-1940s, the Republic of Turkey has been cultivating tea. Have you ever heard of the renowned Turkish plantations?" says the author. The guide inquires of us. They didn't do it, of course. "We don't have anything to export since we consume everything ourselves."
It's hard to think that Turkey is the world's leading consumer of tea, but it is. Turkish families prepare a huge teapot full with tea and place it on top of a second teapot filled with hot water. The Turk consumes three or four glasses of wine in a single sitting. Many locations, including workplaces and many other establishments, have an official role known as chaiji, or tea vendor.
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| Turkish Tea |
Tea is offered with a selection of sweets. Turkey is uninterested in our traditional cakes and sweets, preferring instead to make their own versions. If many types of Turkish baklava, such as baklava, kadaif, and lokum, may be found in different regions of the nation, the Black Sea coast of Turkey is known for chekme-helva - halva that crumbles as soon as it is touched - and pishmaniye - a blend of halva and cotton candy.
The word "repentance" is translated as "writing." No, not for the extra pounds acquired, despite the fact that this light and fluffy sweetness contains a lot of calories. In exchange for dessert, people express their desire to be reconciled. An aspiring confectioner fell in love with his next-door neighbor's puffy beauty and in her honor produced an airy delicacy that he named shishmanie, which means "dumpling" in Russian. The couple got married, but they didn't have a very happy marriage. The woman repeatedly sawed her husband, who ultimately fled the scene. He nicknamed the desert in remorse for the years he had squandered.
House for the gnome
Trabzon is the next destination on the itinerary. On the Black Sea shore, the city is referred to as "the pearl," as well as "the capital." The house-museum of Mustafa Ataturk, the creator of the modern Turkish state, is located here in a beautiful mansion that was constructed towards the end of the nineteenth century. Although the first president of the Republic of Turkey only visited the property a few times, the residence maintains a meticulous archive of domestic furnishings and other objects associated with his visit.
One of the three Hagia Sophia churches (the other two are in Istanbul and the province of Bursa) is also situated here - a landmark of late Byzantine architecture, in which many Orthodox paintings have been conserved - as also the Hagia Sophia Museum. As of 2006, the cathedral has been converted into a mosque, and women are required to cover their heads with a scarf or head covering before entering.
We get out of the city. Our eagerness to stare at the magnificent scenery had grown ingrained in us throughout our voyage, it seemed. However, what was shown this time was really remarkable. Every year, thousands of Turks descend to Gelintyulu waterfall, which is considered to be one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Thundering planes do not deter bold selfie enthusiasts from taking their pictures. The water slope rises to a height of many tens of meters above the surrounding land.
There are several caverns in the surrounding mountains, one of them being Karadzha Cave. For the past 15 million years, there has been a significant amount of activity in the karst processes.
We get out of the city. Our eagerness to stare at the magnificent scenery had grown ingrained in us throughout our voyage, it seemed. However, what was shown this time was really remarkable. Every year, thousands of Turks descend to Gelintyulu waterfall, which is considered to be one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Thundering planes do not deter bold selfie enthusiasts from taking their pictures. The water slope rises to a height of many tens of meters above the surrounding land.
There are several caverns in the surrounding mountains, one of them being Karadzha Cave. For the past 15 million years, there has been a significant amount of activity in the karst processes.
Water trickled through the weakly soluble calcareous rocks, drop by drop, for miles and miles. Stalagmites and stalactites may be found within, which took thousands of years to build. But the reality is that they develop exceedingly slowly: a fraction of a millimeter each year, or one centimeter every 250 years. The cave is somewhat little, yet it is breathtakingly gorgeous. It resembles a gnome or a hobbit from The Lord of the Rings, according to several visitors who have stopped by.
The crater lake Uzungol, which is located on the road, is another scenic stop. It was formed by an earthquake-induced landslide, and strong rains in the surrounding area and local rivers transformed it into a lovely reservoir, where there is a large population of trout that is served in local restaurants. The city's central bus station is served by local buses. The journey will cost you between 15 and 20 Turkish liras (85-113 rubles).
You may also drive by Giresun (which means "cherry" in Turkish - it was from here that this fruit was introduced to Europe). The city itself is not very noteworthy, but from here you may take a boat to the island of Ares. There is a park where the residents of the town enjoy spending time. As told in mythology, the Amazons used to reside at this location. The location is gorgeous, but it is also filthy, since the island is now mostly inhabited by seagulls.
Sinop is another city that is ideal for those who like history as well as lovely stroll along the embankment. The Sinop stronghold, which has served as a jail for the last 500 years, served as a symbol of the city. It used to be a place where great journalists, poets, and authors would sit. One of these artists is Sabahattin Ali, who is most known for painting the Madonna in a Fur Coat. In the 1930s, he was imprisoned for publicly denouncing the Atatürk dictatorship. The second point of interest is a monument commemorating Diogenes, who sat in a barrel and begged Alexander the Great not to keep the light from shining on him throughout his lifetime. There is a gorgeous harbor nearby, as well as numerous excellent restaurants that specialize in fish and seafood. You may pick precisely what you want at the door, and within 20 minutes, you will be served a prepared dinner while taking in the sights of the sea.
How to travel from Russia to Turkey
It is possible to travel from Moscow to Istanbul, and then take a trip to Trabzon, with a ticket costing around 550 lira (about 3,000 rubles). Bus trips with overnight stays in five-star hotels, breakfasts, lunches, and dinners are available from a number of firms located immediately at the airport. It will cost you 5.5 thousand Turkish liras (about) (30.6 thousand rubles per person).
The cheapest car with an automatic transmission will cost 350 Turkish liras (nearly two thousand rubles) per day, and a liter of gasoline will cost approximately 20 Turkish liras (roughly two thousand rubles). You can also travel independently and rent a car (113 rubles). There are no difficulties with eating since there are several eateries to choose from at every turn. However, keep in mind that until May 2, Ramadan will be observed in Turkey, during which Muslims will abstain from food, drink, and other pleasures from dawn to dusk. As a result, some businesses operate in a more casual manner. The proprietors may choose not to set up tables and chairs outdoors on occasion, but this does not imply that they are fully closed; you may still dine inside if you choose.
Prices for vegetables, fruits, and meals at restaurants and cafés in Turkey have recently increased, although they are still far cheaper than, for example, those in Moscow or New York. In addition, the cab fee has lately increased: formerly, it was six Turkish liras, but it is now eight Turkish liras. Drivers only accept cash payments.
It takes a complete journey to find out where and how to obtain them. Unfortunately, in Turkey, the Mir card is not recognized everywhere, which is a shame. Before paying, you must inquire at the checkout as to which Ziraat Bankasi you want to use, since payment in certain locations may still be possible with this option.
It is necessary to bring cash dollars or euros and exchange them for lira, or to withdraw money from ATMs in the country. State-owned banks, such as Ziraat Bankasi and Is Bankasi, accept the Russian card without charging interest. However, keep in mind that no more than 2.25 thousand lira (12.8 thousand rubles) can be withdrawn per day from the Russian card.
Author: Ksenia Melnikova/LENTA
Traslated from Russian