Thursday 18th December - Karadut to Sanliurfa

We both slept well courtesy of our AlpKit down sleeping bags, but it was still raining when we woke.  After breakfast next door we settled up with Murat, which was unfortunately for a lot more than we had thought.  The 25TL accommodation costs we had been told last night turned into 25TL each, with another 20TL for the breakfast, which we had assumed was included.  We feigned not having that much money and managed to reduce the bill, but it was still more than it should have been.

Neither of us was in a particularly good mood as we ventured up the mountain to see if the main access road was clear of snow.  We were in the clouds and it was still raining when we reached the park entrance about 6km up the road from Karadut.  There was slush on the ground but we decided to press on, thinking that if we could get within a couple of kilometres we may walk to the top to see the stone heads, even if we wouldn’t be able to appreciate the views.  We ascended up to an altitude of about 1550m before we thought caution was the better part of valour as, whilst we still had traction, there was another 500m to climb and the snow was getting deeper as we got higher.  We also didn’t fancy the tight bends on the way back down, especially with the lack of crash barriers and sheer drops to the right.  The summit was at least two hours walk away, it was cold, wet and visibility was down to less than 10m, so we decided that Nemrut Dagi would have to wait for another time and we headed back down the mountain. 

200km to the south is the spiritual city of Sanliurfa, a site of pilgrimage due to the actions of the prophets Job and Abraham, and was our destination for the night.  Having battled through the Sanliurfa traffic in the rain, we stopped first at one of the Lonely Planet’s budget hotel choices.  After checking out reception and looking at the room neither of us felt very comfortable about the place, so we made our excuses and left to see if one of the mid-range options was better.  Hotel Rabis was certainly much nicer and they had parking for the Land Rover (unlike the first place, where we would have had to wait to see if a space became available out front), but it was a bit pricy.  They dropped the rate by 10TL, and as neither of us was really in the mood to carry on driving, we decided to stay even though it stretched the budget.  We’re a little worried we’re becoming accustomed to our luxuries!

After a complimentary coffee in the top floor restaurant with views across the city, we went for a wander and searched out some lunch.  I think I impressed the man in the bakery with my grasp of the Turkish language, saying “bir” for one and “iki” for two as I pointed to a selection of bread products, all for 1TL (41p).  We then explored the bazaar, which, unlike the one in Istanbul, is for the locals with not a bit of tourist tat in sight.  Exiting into the old town with its narrow lanes and limestone houses, we were eventually directed back to the centre by some helpful locals via the citadel, perched on Damlacik Hill overlooking the Gölbasi area of Sanliurfa. The latter has sacred carp filled pools,

rose gardens and tea houses, and the Dergah mosque and park complex.  I’m sure it would all have looked beautiful had it not still been raining and rather grey.

One advantage of staying in pensions and hotels rather than camping this time of year, other than the comfort factor, is the ability to easily keep on top of the clothes washing.  We’ve been hand washing each evening but have just run out of liquid, so are now trying out Frosch (www.frosch.de/en/), which we bought the other day in a Cappadocia supermarket.  Chosen for its eco-friendly properties, rather than for its natty logo, we’ll let you know how it performs, although we’re counting on its “Original German Quality” to do its stuff.