Turkey 2011 (Summer)

For our first European adventure as a family, we decided on Turkey.  Even better, the Williams clan joined us.  We spent a few days in the fascinating city of Istanbul.  It is the only city in the world which is both in Europe and Asia, and has been the capital city of three major Empires.  The region was part of the Roman Empire in 100 BC, but when Roman emperor Constantine moved the capital from Rome to Byzantium he named it Constantinople.   The Byzantine Empire lasted over 1,000 years, ending in 1453, when the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople and renamed it Istanbul.  We stayed in the old town and visited: Aya Sofya (Hagia Sophia), Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Hippodrome, and Galata Bridge.  Probably our favorite place to spend time (and money) was in the Grand Bazar.  It's the oldest and largest covered bazar in the world with 61 streets and over 4,000 shops!

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We then spent 4 days exploring the amazing rock formations of Cappodocia.  Cappadocia’s landscape was originally formed by volcanic ash that solidified.  Over 4 million years, the softer rocks eroded away leaving the iconic fairy chimneys - one of which was our hotel!  There are a number of underground towns in Cappadocia, connected by a network of tunnels. These subterranean settlements were useful when invaders came through he region.  We then spent 6 fantastic days on the Mediterranean coast at a small village called Kas.  Some nice walks, beaches, pide lunches, and day trips. One highlight was floating over the ancient city of Simena.  The town sunk below the water when an earthquake hit the region, around 2,400 years ago. We also stopped in to see Santa Claus's birthplace.  Yep, the actual Saint Nicholas was born on the coast of Turkey.