Balloons, birthdays and bellies!

Firstly, Turkey is a really amazing place. The scenery is so varied and there are some amazing things to see and do. We came 4 years ago and thought we had done a lot of it but we have barely scratched the surface.

We went bush camping in the middle of nowhere and the village elders came over to say hello and welcome us to the area. We have visited towns carved out of the cliff face and an underground city that was on 8 different levels!

We have walked spectacular valleys and eaten traditional Turkish food. I even had a kebab that was cooked in a sealed pottery pot which they cook in the centre of an open fire and then break the pot open to reveal the chicken and veg goodness inside.

But a couple of days ago we arrived in a region called Cappadocia. A land filled with rock formations and these towns carved into them. But yesterday was a special day. It was my birthday!

So at 4am, most of us got up and we went hot air ballooning. We soared for an hour over Cappadocia, reaching heights of up to 1 kilometre and lows of a few feet! The air was filled with hundreds of other balloons and the orange glow of sunrise. When we touched down, we were greeted with a glass of bubbly and a glossy certificate.

We got back to the camp site and pretty soon after, we went on a tour of the area in the truck and because it was my birthday, I got to ride in the cab. The cab is much more spacious and comfortable than the cattle class at the back. It even has a bed if you get tired!

Anyway, this tour went to the local town and more of these rock villages which was quite good. But it was getting hot so we went back to the camp site for a quick dip in the pool.

That evening, we went to a belly dancing evening with loads of local dances, food and drink. A six course meal! So all in all, a pretty good birthday.

To mark our last day in Cappadocia and in the 'westernised' world, we spent most of the day by the pool and avoiding the carpet demonstration! Loads of people actually bought carpets - even up to $2500 worth!

In the afternoon, Gill was having a particularly lazy day, so stayed by the pool. I went hiking down in the valley and there were some pretty cool views. At points, we did think we might be in a horror movie as there were signs everywhere saying keep out the garden but there was no garden, so we didn't know if we were in fact in it. There was also a tent with a chainsaw in it and a tree stump with an axe sticking out the top. The general consensus was that, if we were in a horror film, I would be one of the first to die. Bad times. On the bright side, I made it and am writing this watching a fairly amazing subset!

Off bush camping for 3 nights now, and then we stay in a small boarder town for a couple of nights before entering Iran. Iran basically has limited WiFi and everything is blocked anyway; no Facebook, Google, BBC or anything useful! So keep keen but you may not have an update for a little while.

But check out the Madventure Facebook group as there are going to be text updates going on there.

Hopefully update before, but if not, see you in Pakistan in a few weeks!

18 wheels on our wagon, and we're still rolling along...

Drive days are generally fairly tedious affairs, apart from the occasional spectacular view,  snack stop or someone's unexpected snort or fart to keep us entertained. Otherwise it is a long day of dusty roads broken up by sleeping, reading and erratic toilet stop. So I thought I would take this opportunity to give you a little insight into life travelling on a truck.

The ride is no means luxurious, there is no air conditioning, mini bar or onboard toilet. You either cook in the front, baking behind the windows that don't open, or you are bounced into submission in the back. The further back you go, the bumpier it is. Needless to say, we are currently on the back seat and it has already taken me nearly an hour just to write up to here as I battle focussing on the screen and pressing the right buttons.

The best seats in the house are the coveted library seats because of they are situated I the middle and have extra leg room. We have made it there once in nearly 4 weeks.

Me and my Ayran! Natural yoghurt drink

Here is a photo for you. Note the curtains drawn as the people in the front try in vain to evade the heat and the slight blurring as the photo was taken as the went over another pothole.

There are constant rattling noises and things falling out of the overhead storage and I am sure, by the end of today, I will be several inches shorter after a particularly bumpy ride.

Having said all this, and not even 1/6 of the way into our overland expedition and despite one break down already, we already have a strange sense of loyalty to this truck. It is almost as if the truck isn't a lump of metal or just a means of transport, but actually another member of our party.

Alex and Gills nature watch

Whilst we are globetrotting, we have come across some wonderful flora and fauna so we thought we could make a blog entry and add some cool photos as we go along. So keep popping back to this and see if we have found any more.

Lady taking her cow for a walk

Ducks at Pammukale

Crabs in oludeniz

Pammukale

Dragonfly in Olympos

Pond skater

Flowers

A wild peacock

I think these look like those lolly pops I used to have ages ago

Froggy

Snake skin found a few metres from our tent on a bush camp

One of many ant nests

Wild tortoise

Olympos 2013...?

From Oludeniz we headed further round the coast to Olympos. We had been told that we were going to be in tree houses, luckily for us the tree houses (which were sheds on stilts) were all full so couples were upgraded. Sweet! Air conditioning, lights, plugs sockets and ensuite for us.

 After feeling chuffed for ourselves and just in case we forgot we were travelling, we were brought back to earth. The drainage system has seen better days and, after my shower flooded the bathroom and maintenance had sorted this out, we had a tiny bit of backwash. This meant that we were greeted by someone else's poo on our bathroom floor! Lovely!

 Our accommodation was really close to the beach which was stunning. Before you get to the beach you walk through the ruins of old Olympos. A river ran through the ruins which had beautiful, bright neon blue dragonflies dancing over it. However, we were unable to find any of the turtles on the beach. We are continually being reminded on this trip through the beautiful scenery and amazing wildlife just how awesome a creator God is.

 The statement of 'Mad dogs and Englishmen' is unfortunately ringing true, so we along with another couple, Chris and Jane, thought we'd walk up to the 'Chimaera Yanartas-Eternal flame' (we had The Bangles song in our head the entire journey) in the mid-day sun :-) . Again this was a tad hot, but lovely. We were initially lulled into a false sense of security, walking through the roads which were lined with fruit trees brimming with pomegranates, fig, lime and orange trees. On arrival at the site the terrain and path seemed to get suddenly a heck of a lot steeper, but worth it to see different size of flames licking up against the rocks.

 We have celebrated 2 birthdays on the trip so far. Yesterday it was the trainee trip leader's birthday and we headed out to a jazz bar up the street. The live music by Sütlü Kakao was amazing and we have a proper little boogie!

 The food has been provided here and it has been fantastic, so all feels slightly luxurious (minus the bathroom incident), this is likely to change in the next couple of weeks

flying high

After trips to Ephesus and Pamukale, we reached Oludeniz on the coast.

 Yesterday we went on an intrepid hike during the mid day sun to a Greek ghost town over the other side of the mountain. The hike was very hot and of course hard work but it was definitely worth it as the place we found was massive. After making it back to the camp site and a cold shower, it was time to cook dinner. We had an amazing lamb spit roast. It tasted great but probably only because of the hours of blood, sweat and constant rotating off the spit. The nearby town was touristy and full of Brits, therefore there was a karaoke bar. The majority of the truck landed there for the night, there were a few interesting renditions to say the least.

 The following day we spent quite a few hours on a boat cruise. And after swimming, snorkelling and sunbathing out way around the coast, we went flying! Can you think of anything more relaxing that running off a 2000m high cliff edge?! Gill and I (and a few of the others) went paragliding which was absolutely amazing! The freedom was great and the views were spectacular. Massive adrenaline rush. The photos really don't do it justice.

 Off to Olympos tomorrow so another long drive day in the sweltering heat!