Current Mood:
Esctatic
So yeah, I had the best weekend ever. Izzy and I went with a few exchange students from Koc University (where Izzy studies) to a rock climbing festival in Olympos outside of Antalya in the south of Turkey. If you want to skip right to the pictures here is the link:
For those that are curious, here are two maps illustrating where exactly Olympus is:
Olympus is somewhere south of Antalya. It took about two hours to get there, and the bus ride to Antalya was about 12 hours or so. The bus ride down there was probably the nicest bus I have ever been on. It was extremely comfortable and I was actually able to sleep (first time I have ever done so while in transit).
Everything about this weekend was amazing. First of all the climbing festival was great. There were a lot of us in our group so we didn’t get to do too many routes, but the routes we did do were great. My last climb of the weekend was probably the most difficult climb I have ever done and took some real technique. Although scraped up quite a bit, I was extremely satisfied with myself once I reached the top. After that climb, I think I am going to buy a good pair of climbing pants to better protect my knees.
The place we stayed in was called Kadir’s Tree Houses. Olympos is an ancient city built 2000 years ago. Today the ruins are still there, surrounded by some of the best rock climbing in Turkey. Just before arriving at the ancient city, is a few blocks of cafes and tree house hotels. Since it is a historical site, only wooden buildings can be constructed, so everything has a very ramshackle feel to it. Kadir’s was one of the first one there, and was by far the best.
Kadir’s had an eclectic mix of people. There were the climbers, and there were hikers, and beach bums, and bikers, and random travelers. There were people from all over the world as well as a sizable Turkish group. My first breakfast there I sat with a Polish girl and a Hungarian guy whom were more than happy to welcome me at their table (for some reason I awoke at 630 am. Since we had been up partying until 3am, no one else was up). That was one of the really great things about the place, everyone was very approachable. Everyone took all meals together, everyone went to the club together.
The club was something else. It wasn’t like what I have typically seen here in Turkey. First of all it had no roof, so in the middle was a big bonfire. Second of all, everyone was together, layered radially around the fire. In most Turkish clubs, people come in groups and stick to their groups. Their are little dense clumps of people, dancing amongst their friends. There is very little socializing with new people from what I have seen. At Kadir’s everyone was together the entire time. Breakfast, dinner, drinking, partying, dancing, regardless of the activity everyone was friendly and open.
The place was also quite a nice escape from the hustle and bustle of Istanbul. For the most part everyone walked so there was no traffic. Everything was built amongst the trees with many animals running around (chickens apparently keep the snakes and scorpions out of the tree houses’ area). The valley was flanked on both sides by tall mountains. There was always a cool breeze coming in off the sea. It was perfect. This was definitely a place I could see myself spending many weeks in.
The bartender at the Hangar Bar (Kadir’s bar) was an American who had visited there for a few days and never left. She was on her third month there while we were there. There was a cyclist who had planned to stay only one night at Kadir’s. He was on his sixth day with no end in sight when we left. There were countless other stories of people simply not being able to leave this paradise.
The last bit about Olympos was that all along the roads in the area were small crates for collecting beer bottles. In our climbing guide book, it warned us about Olympos: “This area induces heavy drinking.” Since climbers are not big drinkers, this is a sign that this area is more than just a paradise for climbers.
For any of you who may have wondered what place I would recommend as my favorite: go to Olympos and stay at Kadir’s Tree Houses next summer. Plan to stay a short time but be warned - leaving this place will be difficult.
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