On The Road & Microblogging... Till Aug 14th 09

I am going away again within a few days for my next trip to Arizona where I was born passing through Istanbul of course. It will be a very busy trip and packed with things to do and see. I will not be able to regularly and actively blog on this site with my usual style, searched, and packed with photos posts.

As an experiment and Inspired by Jon Rawlinson Productions Blog where he posts his twitter microblogs on a post every day (microblogging is a form of active blogging through out the day when you come to think of it) I will try to do the same depending on access to an internet connection on the road, finding free wifi, and making the time to sit in an internet cafe to upload my pictures and posts. I haven’t yet figured out how just to do it right away into a post. If any one has thoughts on the matter then please place a comment below or twitter me @funlilliy with a message.

I think the main goal is to try to involve my regular readers on this site who are not active followers on twitter or who might miss my twitter posts depending on the time of day they log in to their accounts with my active travel. Kind of a way to connect with both readers and followers. It is also a way to document my travels as they happen with my thoughts as they flow in and get twittered to look back at them when I will be writing and editing my future posts on this trip.

Photos, I will continue to post "My Travel Photo of the day" on my twitpic from both my collection and from the road also depending on my access to internet. I always try to post my shots right away into my flickr account when ever I can on the road so not to lose them.

That also goes for "Learn Turkish Phrase of the day" which will continue on twitter.

I hope that you will like the microblogs that I am going to place effort in making them more useful to everyone.

Stay connected with me here and/or on twitter while I am on the road. I am @funlilliy and this is my twitpic.

That’s it for now...

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Travel Video... Watching Chickens in Olympos Turkey

In Cirali and Olympos it is a common scene to see chickens and chicks running around the grounds in restaurants and hotels gardens. I just had to take a video.

The Romantic Road To Cirali Part Three… The Village

Olympos Turkey June 2009, originally uploaded by Fun Lilliy.

There are many means of transportation to Cirali. Arranged pickups, car hire, taxis, and buses. I recommend when it is your first visit to a city in Turkey to let your hotel arrange for your transportation. If you are arriving after a long tiring flight seeing the man with the sign at the arrival doors past customs will be a blessing. The hotels in Cirali can arrange for your pickup from Antalya airport and sometimes also from Dalaman airport. All you have to do is communicate directly with the management via email or telephone giving them your flight arrival information, and they will do the rest. The price is usually in euros, very reasonable, and fixed. It might be at times slightly higher than a regular taxi. The benefit of it is that you will be greeted once you claim your luggage and taken directly to your hotel. Sometimes it is even better than prices of a regular taxi as some drivers increase the prices for tourist.

If you didn’t see Antalya before then don’t miss out. Stay a night or two and do the surrounding tours to the historic sights and the falls. If you don’t like group tours then rent a car for a day, drive to them your self, and explore. Driving in Antalya can be a bet challenging because there are no clear signs of the smaller inner city street names at some intersections and you might get lost. If you do, always have the telephone number of your hotel at hand and call them for directions. When you are traveling out of Antalya to Cirali the signs are much clearer because you will be using main roads.

The scenic car ride to your destination from Antalya is a must enjoy. It is very refreshing with the green mountains on you right side and the turquoise blue Mediterranean sea on your left. Other ways of transport for the budget travelers is taking the bus that runs between Antalya and Fethiye which will drop you off 1 km further uphill from the turn off to Cirali at a roadside restaurant off the main highway from there take a minibus to Cirali in the Beydaglari Sahil National Park.

The road down is very curvy and a bet bumpy, but from time to time you will see clearings between the hills and the trees down the mountain side and glimpses of the sea peaking in between. Stop safely to take some photos whenever you can. When you reach the end of the hill you will be greeted by the small inns and cabin hotels on both sides of the roads hidden by trees. If you go further there will be a small bridge over a dry river in the summer on your left. Turn left and drive on passing the many small shops selling all sorts of beach required items, food, and drinks. At the end of this road you will reach the beach front that is guarded by the mountains.

Once you have settled in your hotel and you want to enjoy the day in the sun you will be able to rent a sun bed and umbrella right on the beach. Many of the hotels have deals for their guests to use a certain restaurant for your beach requirements, accesses to showers, and parking area for your car. They also lend you bicycles complimentary of the hotel to ride to the beach. If you like walking it is around 10 minutes from most hotels in the area.

The many beach side restaurants are great places to hide from the sun at its peak hours around noon where you can sit back, have lunch, and cool off with cold drinks. At night many offer entertainment with music and Turkish songs that add to the charm of the clear starry night and the nice salty sea air as you soak in the romantic atmosphere.

Cirali is a very laid back village. You can really relax and forget the busting crowded city on the run feel. Time moves slowly and its all about sitting back on your sun chair or swinging on a hammock in the garden watching the clouds pass by, listing to the roaster crowing, and noticing the chickens with their chicks running around the restaurants or the hotel garden. There, doing absolutely nothing is all you have to do …

Related Previous Posts:
The Romantic Road to Cirali Part One… Finding it!
The Romantic Road To Cirali Part Two… The Beach Video

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Post #16: My Journey To Eat “Barshomy” Part Two… How To Peel Opuntia Video

This is one of the young men that have set up one of the many fruit stands in Al-Shafa. To many it is a summer work project or a money profit making job on their summer vacation before they head back to school.

Peeling Barshomy can be a painful task if you don't know what you are doing. The inner fruit is very juicy, soft, sweet and full of hard seeds that you don't chew, you just swallow. It is said to cause constipation so it is advised to drink plenty of water with it.

To read more on this video check out my previous post "part one" of this journey in photos.

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Post #15: My Journey To Eat "Barshomy" Part One… In Photos

Makkah n Taif Saudi Arabia July 2009, originally uploaded by Fun Lilliy.

Barshomy is the Saudi local name for Opuntia which is prickly pears or cactus fruit

This is how the story of this journey began...
I was sitting with my mother having tea a few days ago and suddenly she paused and said "Do you want to eat Barshomy?" I was surprised by the sudden question and took me a minute to answer "is it in season?" she answered "yes… can you go to Al-Shafa for a day?". Al-Shafa is the national park with the small village in Taif Saudi Arabia a very popular summer destination by the Saudi locals because of the cooler mountain weather during the summer holidays. I thought only for a second and said "sure why not! Let’s go, when?" and just like that we decided to go two days after.
Yesterday morning we packed a picnic basket with our lunch. My parents and I headed off early morning for the one hour drive from Jeddah to Makkah where we rested there morning and noon. We had our lunch, and when it was the afternoon we were on the road again set on eating Barshomy in Al-Shafa … This was our journey in photos...

The road from Makkah to Taif on Al-Sail Al Sageer (Arabic for the small flood road) which is mostly used by truck drivers or by regular cars when the other road called Al-Hada road to Taif is closed.

The beginning of the scenic road to Al-Shafa between Al-Sarawat Mountains. The air as you go higher becomes much cooler and more pleasant.
During the winter months families from around the country either come to camp using old style Saudi tents or rent one of the many chalets that are filling the area for vacationing.


This is one of the many fruit stands that are scattered along the road which you will find once you start entering the area with all the attractions. Most also sell fire wood that is used by the visiting camping families or night time picnics.


...
The right side photo is of the owner of the fruit stand.



Pomegranate is also in season now. Along with other fruits that are locally grown and most not with much technology. The farmers in this area still some of them use old organic farming methods.



Scenes from the road... if you go deeper into the woods and your camping for the day. Goats and sheeps will be passing by along with their keepers. Some are women wearing traditional clothing. These scenes are becoming fewer with time.


I thought that was funny...big man on small pony.


Old deserted rock houses or now resting areas for sheep keepers.



Cactus with barshomy fruits scattered all over Al Shafa.


Buying dinner Balillah (chickpeas salad dish) from one of the road side vendors. I will be posting a post in the future explaining the culture behind this dish, its recipe, and a video soon. These are common stands to find in any area that is touristic in Taif and Jeddah.


leaving...


and finally the sun had set on this nice day trip....

Next post will be "part two" with a video on how to peel Barshomy.

Suggested links:
The official Saudi Arabian Taif Tourist information site.
Another site I found with more info Taif.

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Post #14: The Romantic Road To Cirali Part Two... The Beach Video

This is the video of the beach which is east of the main Cirali village. It is an open area with out any built settings or beach side rentals. It is great for picnics and a day relaxing in the sun. Bring your own beach mat, umbrella, food, and drinks. Usually it is less crowded than the main Cirali beach. Just drive on the eastern dirt road from Cirali following the signs to Chimaera till you get at the end to a cross road take the right dirt road heading towards the sea you will end up on this love open area sea front.

Post #13: The Romantic Road To Cirali Part One... Finding it!

Cirali Turkey June 2009, originally uploaded by Fun Lilliy.

Finding Cirali wasn’t an easy task. You always hear about Antalya and when you search for nearby areas on the Turkish Mediterranean Sea, you will find other places. Cirali isn’t usually a place people talk about. After I stayed there I think I understand why it’s a hidden secret, because I too was left with a feeling that I want to keep it for myself, so that it wouldn’t be ruined by floods of tourists that cause it to lose its charm.

It all began when…
I had a few days off after my work related trip was going to finish. I was going to be passing through Turkey on my way back and felt that I was in need of a place to rejuvenate, lay back, and relax. That’s when the thought of Antalya and the Turkish Riviera sprung to my mind. I wanted sun and beach. To become disconnect from the world and disappear for a while. With that thought a decision was made, the destination to accomplish all that will be The Turkish Riviera.

I looked for airline ticket fares, and found that since I was booking two months ahead I found cheap seats to and from Antalya on Turkish airlines online. I booked it right away and that was quickly checked off the list. Now the task of finding a hotel. I wanted something peaceful, romantic, authentic, and on the beach. That was when the problems started and hours of searching were spent. You find Authentic and quite hotels in the old part of Antalya called Kaleici but no beach of a walking distance away. Then you find sun and beach in all inclusive crowded resorts which all to me looked the same with no genuine authentic character. Don’t get me wrong I have times when this is where I will be looking for to stay, but it mainly depends on the city and the type of trip. This was not that kind of trip. Mushkillah (means problem in Arabic).

How to solve the problem, well for starters may be divide the trip into two parts, part in Antalya’s old town Kaleici (because I wanted to see the city) and part somewhere else much more calmer and away from the city atmosphere. I have heard of such places but don’t know any names. Now was the hard part searching the internet and everything being scattered with info here and info there. I was looking for somewhere where it is a close drive from Antalya, not too far but far enough.

Finally I stumbled upon a travel forum in Trip Advisor with destination suggestions on traveling the Turkish Riviera by car and suggested stops. There was an expert on the area that suggested few stops and one of them was Cirali. Others were Patara and Olympos.

Patara was closer to a town called Kalkan which is very popular with the British tourist, many own apartments and villas there. To get to Patra it was closer to fly in by Dalaman airport. Antalya airport was further away. Cirali and Olympos were closer distance (1 and ½ to 2 hour drive) from Antalya airport. All areas had small pensions and inns close to the beach away from all the city lights. Olympos was mainly a backpacker’s destination with their much favored tree house accommodations. I liked Cirali which seemed a very romantic option. It is situated off the main road going down a small very curved road and you will find it hidden between the mountain and the blue turquoise sea…

That’s when the charm of finding a little cabin hotel called Kibala a very special place started but that’s in one of the next posts in this series, so stay tuned…

Suggested Links:
Antalya Website
Cirali Tourist Site
Turkey Travel Planner by Tom Brosnahan is a very informative site to look up when you are searching to go to Turkey.
Go Turkey

Write to you soon…