26 posts found
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 7 September - Home Posted 07 Sep 2008 by Peter Day Still wet when we woke the next morning so we made a very early start on our 1000 km drive to catch our 18.00 hours ferry at Dunkirk. Apart from occasional stops for coffee/lunch simply thrashed it along the French motorways then through Luxembourg and Belgium and back into FRance and made it for the ferry comfortably. Couple of hours on the ferry and we were home in South London by 9 pm. 12481 ...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 6 September - a wet day in Switzerland Posted 06 Sep 2008 by Peter Day  Woke to find our room in the Millenium Hotel had a wonderful view of the lake - and of the thick dark clouds and the rain! So we went for a boat ride on the lake, and managed a short walk without getting wet, then took the funicular then the cable car to the top of the nearby mountain where we ate lunch and briefly dared the weather to look at the view.The cable car back down stops by a church ...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 5 September - to Locarno, Switzerland Posted 06 Sep 2008 by Peter Day This was supposed to be a straightforward drive the 550kms to Locarno, on Lake Maggiore in Switzerland. But the satnav showed us we were going right past Parma and having a good friend there we had to stop for a coffee which meant we were going round Milan in the rush hour and in terrible traffic jams so we eventually arrived in Locarno after dark and in the middle of a huge thunderstorm - raining...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 4 September - to our ferry to Italy Posted 05 Sep 2008 by Peter Day Drove 350 kms across western Greece through incredible mountain scenery. They are building a motorway (an epic feat in itself) but only bits of it are open so you dash along for 30 or 40 kms then get diverted off onto a tiny road winding up and down the mountains. Igoumenitsa is just south of the border with Albania and opposite the island of Corfu. Our ferry left at 8pm and we had an excellent ...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 3 September - to Thessaloniki, Greece Posted 03 Sep 2008 by Peter Day An early morning ferry ride across the Dardanelles lands you close to the Anzac beaches and memorials at Gallipoli. So after a brief visit there we headed off for the Greek border where the roads suddenly improved beyond measure - motorway all the way to Thessaloniki. Stopped for a quick visit to the beach along the way and then to our luxurious hotel - Les Lazaristes. Plenty of time for a walk r...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 2 September - Troy Posted 02 Sep 2008 by Peter Day  On the way to Troy we took a detour to see the Acropolis at Pergamum and then on to Troy. quite a thrill to imagine oneself as part of Achilles' army. They sday Troy is difficult to understand because there are 9 levels of settlement one on top of another. But with some advance reading, and with the help of the explanotory boards scattered around the site it isn't so hard. The wooden horse is a b...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 1 September - to Ephesus Posted 01 Sep 2008 by Peter Day  With our friends flying straight back to London Liz and I began the drive toward home. An easy first day, only 300 kms taking in the Zeus Temple at Euromos and the ancient city of Priene (one of the first places in the world to have its street laid out in a grid plan). These stops meant we arrived at Ephesus after the crowds had gone, and by reputation Ephesus gets very crowded! After Ephesus drov...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 25 August - to Turunc, near Marmaris. Posted 29 Aug 2008 by Peter Day A short drive to the small town of Turunc on the peninsula south of Marmaris, on the way we stopped to explore the ancient city of Aphrodisias. In Turunc our friends had booked us for a one week stay in a little complex of villas and apartments owned by Holiday Property Bond of which they are members. Luxurious, peaceful, good pool, short stroll to the town with lots of good restaurants and bars. ...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 24 August - to Pamukkale Posted 24 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  Two things we wanted to see in Pamukkale, the ancient Greek city of Hieraplous and the travertine terraces. Hierapolis was based around a thermal spa and the waters, as they dry in pools, leave behind snow white layers of calcite. Very popular, and very expensive. You pay to get into the site and you pay again to swim in the thermal pool. Stayed at the Venus hotel - a charming little hotel with ...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 22 August - to Konya Posted 23 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  Another longish drive, we are now 1500 kms from Gaziantep, to Konya. A large and prosperous city and we went for one reason - the Whirling Dervishes. The Dervishes are Suffi, an Islamic sect, and Konya is their base. We visited the mosque where the founder of the Dervishes, Mevalana, is buried along with many other of their leaders. It also houses a small museum. It is a deeply religious place and...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 19 August to Cappadocia Posted 21 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  A 6 hour drive to Urgup where we stayed 3 nights at the Elkep Evi cave hotel. What an experience - beautifully equipped rooms carved into the rocks, so naturally cool you don't need aircon (that's a relief). Spent the next two days exploring the different parts of Cappadocia - fairy chimneys, underground cities, rock churches, valleys with rippling streams. Lots of good places to eat and drink bu...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 18 August - Mount Nemrut Posted 18 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  The sacred burial site of King Antiochos I of the Kommagene kingdom. This extraordinary monument is at the summit of a 2,100 metre mountain (nowadays you can drive to within a couple of hundred metres of the summit). It consisted of altars on which were placed statues of the High Gods - and King Antiochos - basking in reflected glory. The heads have tumbled and now sit perched on the ground. Many...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 17 August - Back to Gaziantep Posted 17 Aug 2008 by Peter Day After an early visit to the beautiful Mosaic museum in Antakya we returned to Gaziantep (240 kms) to meet our friends Helen & Steve at Gaziantep airport (they had just had a few days in Istanbul) who would be joining us for the next 2 weeks. Ate that night in an excellent restaurant under the trees in the park, don't remember the name, but it was recommended by Anatolian Houses hotel. |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 16 August - Palmyra to Antakya, Turkey Posted 16 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  A winding route that took us via Hama (famous for its huge waterwheels that lift water from the river into the irrigation channels) then to Apamea - another spectacular Greek/Roman site with an enormously long collonade of pillars - and north on the motorway to the Aleppo ring road and across the border (more hassle, more handing over money) back into Turkey and to Antakya - the ancient Antioch. A...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 15 August - to Palmyra, Queen of the desert. Posted 15 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  A dash along the excellent roads across the desert to Palmyra, 250 kms.If you haven't been to Palmyra - go. Incredible Greek and Roman remains in this city in a desert oasis. Good hotels - we stayed, as we did before, at the Palmyra Palace which used to be the Cham Palace. Got an upgrade to a suite - excellent views across to the ruins. But another quite spookily empty hotel! We went to look a...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 14 August - to Douros Europa and Tel Mari Posted 14 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  Douros Europa was the furthest outpost of the Roman Empire, a town/fort guarding the Euphrates where archaeologists have found the earliest dated Christian Church and a synagogue with the most amazing painted frescoes - now in the museum in Damascus. The walls are spectacular, looming out of the desert, but again it is difficult to work out what is there inside, though some signposts help (much of...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 13 August Aleppo to Deir Al-zor Posted 13 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  Getting out of Aleppo onto the right road proved to be a mission, ended up being led out by a truck driver we met at a filling station (no cars in Syria use diesel so they spend ages trying to persuade you that you are at the wrong pump! But at 25 UK pence per litre who's complaining!)First stop was at Qelaat Jaber - an old castle now on an island at the edge of a lake caused by the dam across t...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 12 August Gaziantep to Aleppo (Syria) Posted 12 Aug 2008 by Peter Day Compared with other days a really short drive, only 150 kms, but the border crossing is beset by arcane bureaucracy, the rules are impossible to follow and you juist seem to be handing over one handful of money after another - insurance for the car, diesel tax for the car, stamp charges etc etc. All very friendly - one customs officer sat us down and ordered tea for us! But slow! Don't think the...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 11 August Hattusha to Gaziantep. Posted 11 Aug 2008 by Peter Day Long cross-country drive today (770 kms) to get to Gaziantep stopping off another Hittite site on the way. So got an early start, roads were empty so was going like a scalded cat and needless to say got pulled over for speeding. Limit on the road I was stopped on was 80 kph - a little relieved when the policeman told me I had been caught by radar at 137kph - I had been going much faster than that...more... |
| Road trip London-Syria-London - 10 August Safranbolu to Hattusha Posted 10 Aug 2008 by Peter Day  From one UNESCO site to another. 420 kms. Hattusha was the Hittite capital of the area in the 4th century BC. There are other Hittite sites in the area all well worth a visit. Stayed in Sungurlu (a few miles away) at a perfectly acceptable motel. |
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