Horozlu Han, Konya, Turkey, Nov 2012

Dear Diary,

Let’s continue with my Turkey trip…

The kids on the bus

On our fourth day in Turkey, we checked out from ColossaeSpa & Thermal Hotel very early in the morning. We had to brace ourselves for a long journey ahead of us. 6 hours of scenic drive later, we safely arrived in Konya.

The main door

Us

Before exploring Konya, we first filled our tummies at this one unique place. As I entered the restaurant, I was captivated by its ambiance. Felt like I was stepping into a castle, exactly like the ones that we used to watch in fairytale. Kalau pakai gown kembang-kembang tu baru kena dengan suasana :-)

Very authentic interior

The decor

The place that I’m talking about is Horozlu Han or Horozlu Inn. It’s a caravanserai. Caravanserais, which are built during the Anatolian Seljuki era, are resting places for traders and their animals plying the trade routes. There are three types of caravanserais namely summer caravanserais (with a courtyard), winter caravanserais (with a covered area) and mixture type caravanserais (unification of both summer and winter caravanserais).

The food...

A type of bread

Lentil Soup

Cheese Pide - SO YUMMY!

Chicken Kavurma

Chocolate pudding - NICE!

Address: Horozluhan Mh., 42060 Konya, Turkey. Website: www.horozluhan.com

12 Wonderful Years

Dear Diary,

People say time flies so fast when you're having fun. Well, I can vouch for that. It has been 12 wonderful years being married to my dear Hubby.

Yup, it's our anniversary.

I promise to help you love life, to always hold you with tenderness and to have the patience that love demands, to speak when words are needed and to share the silence when they are not and to live within the warmth of your heart and always call it home.

~ Quoted from movie The Vow ~

Thank you Allah...

Alhamdulillah

Belly Dancing

Dear Diary,

Malam tu lepaih dah mandi, solat, makan & bagi budak-budak tidoq, aku pun turun bawah sat pasai nak tengok belly dancing. Hubby setuju nak jaga budak-budak.

Oh mak oi, terbeliak sat la mata aku tengok si penari. Seksi! Bila pikiaq balik, kena la baju hat dia pakai tu dengan tarian dia. Nasib baik Hubby & budak-budak tak turun tengok sama. Tapikan dia pandai bergelek. Dia punya gelek tu yang mahai. Ada gelek laju, ada gelek gemalai. Gambaq tak boleh boh banyak-banyak na.

Aku dok tak lama pun. Mata tak beghapa nak boleh teghima. Segan la, aku soghang ya hat pakai tudung kat situ. Dalam 10 minit aku pun naik bilik balik.

Colossae Spa & Thermal Hotel, Pamukkale, Turkey, Nov 2012

Dear Diary,

It was already dark when we left Cotton Castle. It had been a long day for all of us and it was time to relax and unwind. We checked in into Colossae Spa & Thermal Hotel, a big hotel located near Pamukkale.

Our room (number 346) has 2 single beds and 1 double bed. It is not only spacious, neat and clean but it is also equipped with modern amenities.

Apart from the standard hotel facilities, there are many extra ones available for hotel guests such as indoor playground, games room, thermal center, beauty center, souvenir shop, etc. Hubby and his brothers tried the thermal pool while I accompanied the kids and their cousins playing bubbles.

The dining place where we enjoyed buffet dinner and breakfast is huge. It’s more like a ballroom hall rather than a banquet hall. There’s even a musician belting out songs on his keyboard.

 The buffet spreads at both dinner and breakfast were filled with scores of foodstuffs for guests to dig in.

 Address: Karahayit (Pamukkale Mevkii), 20290 Denizli, Turkey. Telephone number: +90 258 271 4156. Fax number: +90 258 271 4250. Website: www.colossaehotel.com (for English) or www.colossaehotel.com.tr (for Turkish)

Happy Birthday Hubby!!

Dear Diary,

Today is my dearest Hubby's birthday, so here goes...

Thank you for caring and loving us unconditionally

Thank you for understanding

Thank you for being there for me always

Thank you for accepting me for who I am with all my strengths and weaknesses

Thank you for EVERYTHING

I am forever thankful for having you in my life

ENDLESS LOVE
by Lionel Richie & Diana Ross

My love, there's only you in my life
The only thing that's right
My first love
You're every breath that I take
You're every step I make

And I, I want to share all my love with you
No one else will do
And your eyes
They tell me how much you care
Oh, yes
You will always be

My endless love

Two hearts, two hearts that beat as one
Our lives have just begun
Forever, I'll hold you close in my arms
I can't resist your charms

And love
I'll be a fool for you
I'm sure you know I don't mind
Cause you, you mean the world to me

Oh, I know
I found in you

My endless love
Oh

And love
I'll be that fool for you
I'm sure you know I don't mind
And yes, you'll be the only one
Cause no one can deny
This love I have inside
And I'll give it all to you

My love
My endless love

Cotton Castle Pamukkale, Turkey, Nov 2012

Dear Diary,

The insanely breathtaking view that I talked about at the end of my previous entry is Cotton Castle of Pamukkale, stunning white calcium pools which cling to the side of a ridge. When I say stunning, I do really mean out of this world surreal landscape. It’s difficult to put it into words, to describe the place. You’ve got to be there to appreciate it.

In Turkish, Pamukkale means Cotton Castle. It is located adjacent to Hierapolis of Phrygia and is also declared as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. So when you visit either one, you’d get to visit the other one too. Natural geological phenomena in which deposits left from waters abundance with minerals that flow from a mountain formed this visually spectacular site. Calcium cascade terraces developed over time from the process.

We dipped our feet in the knee high pool. The water was not hot, just lukewarm - suam-suam kuku. Visitors cannot simply step anywhere on the travertine since it can easily damage and change color. There is, however, an area allocated for visitors to walk bare foot. It is believed that the water is able to heal ailments.

My pictures don’t do justice to the splendor of this place. Again I stress, you have to be there to fully grasp its uniqueness. Everywhere you look it is so white with steam coming from the hot spring it looks like a scene from a fairytale.

Apart from Niagara Falls and Grand Canyon, Pamukkale’s Cotton Castle is another awe inspiring landscape that I had been blessed to witness. At these places, I felt so tiny so insignificant in this huge world.

Source: www.pamukkale.net

Hierapolis of Phrygia, Pamukkale, Turkey, Nov 2012

Dear Diary,

After savoring beef kebab with saffron rice for lunch, we bid farewell to Selcuk and looked forward to arriving at Pamukkale. There were two tourist attractions that we would be visiting. The first one was Hierapolis, an ancient city located on hot springs in classical Phrygia.

The Southern Byzantine Gate

Hierapolis, which means sacred city, boasts of hot springs with thermal spa installation. It was declared as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. In ancient times, it used to be a cosmopolitan city in which people from different backgrounds interacted. They crammed the place for its hot springs which are believed to have healing abilities.

Infused with Greek mythology, Hierapolis is also famous for its historical architectural ruins such as temples, churches, theater, gymnasium, necropolis, etc. The ruins also reveal Roman influences as Hierapolis underwent Roman ruling too.

Besides hot springs and ancient ruins, other attractions here are Pamukkale Museum (I didn’t even realize there’s a museum there!), Sacred Pool were visitors can swim with antiquities (Again, we weren’t aware of this!), Temple of Apollo, Plutonium, Martyrium of St. Philip and several others. As we reached Hierapolis quite late in the evening, we didn’t really get the chance to explore the ruins. We only got to dip our feet in the hot springs and enjoyed insanely breathtaking view….to be continued.

Sources: whc.unesco.org, www.sacred-destinations.com

Address: Denizli Merkez, 20280 Denizli Province, Turkey.