Weather: Sunny
Photo: In the Turkish Delight shop with our saffron teas.
Photo: the delightful salon on the second floor where we sat.
Photo: wandering the streets.
Photo: the ironmongers and forge.
Photo: Cameron and Desley on the promenade at Sinop.
Temperature: early twenties
This morning we awoke early to hear the Imman over the loud speaker calling the faithful to prayer. I couldn’t go back to sleep after that so in the end it was a long day. Today was the first day at breakfast without yoghurt and so I gazed over the tomatoes, cucumber, boiled eggs, sliced meat and cheese but eventually settled on bread and jam. As well, there was a stroke of luck – instant Nescafe! I never thought I would get excited over instant coffee (except in a staff room!) but this was the first time I could manage my own caffeine dose as all the coffees have been so strong.
We had another efficient start and we were on our way to the saffron capital of Turkey – Safranbolu. The area was quite lush on the way with many half-domed plastic covered green-houses growing vegetables. Most houses have their own vegetable gardens.
Safranbolu is a world heritage site and includes some wonderful old houses overlooking the valley with winding cobblestone streets. Our first visit was to a sweet shop (which was an original old three storey house) where our guide took us upstairs to the salon area and we sipped on saffron tea – a very subtle flavour. We then all wandered downstairs to try authentic saffron Turkish Delight and a host of other varieties…talk about kids in a lolly shop!
Wandering the streets was so much fun. Safranbolu is a popular tourist town for the region but it is a little off the beaten track for international tourists. The local traders were very polite and we bought some tablecloths – Ergun our guide had a busy time translating. We then found the little bakery he had pointed out to us earlier and bought some bread stuffed with some mixed fillings and soft drinks and sat on a seat under a tree nearby.
In the centre of the town is a Kervan Sarayi which is a large area used by the traders centuries ago on their way to other trading centres. They were permitted to stay for three to four nights free but they had to be in before lock up time at sundown and not permitted to leave until sunrise.
We had an informative visit to one of the old houses preserved as it was originally in Ottoman times in the 18th century. It was once again over three levels and with many rooms all with wonderful old carpets.
Moving onto our overnight stop took several hours and the landscape became more arid. In one area the locals have developed a rather unique albeit backbreaking method of hindering erosion on the arid hills. They dig sticks into the ground and then intertwine soft branches between them. I’ll enclose a photo to give you an idea. I noticed one group of about ten locals, men and women (wearing long skirts and shirts, vests and scarves) working at taking the branches from the tractor and plaiting the leafy branches.
Sinop is a coastal town on the Black Sea which has a significant history. It is a fortified town used from Hittite times around 700BC. It became well known in the 18th century as Russia invaded Sinop to conquer Asia Minor which then precipitated the Crimean War and involved England and France.
We followed our leader over to the fortress for the sunset and drinks on top of the fort which gave us fantastic views to the harbour. It was a lovely time of the day to sit back and take in the views and this time not be blown away like yesterday! It was then onto dinner for the famous local ravioli dish of the area and our guide had organised for us to try both the yoghurt and walnut types. Both were delicious.
All in all it was a very interesting day. Tomorrow we are exploring a little more of Sinop before we head off to our next overnight stay.
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