At The Palace

Me on the ferry leaving Meis/Kastellerizo

We left serene Meis by ferry yesterday, picked up our car in Kas, and drove back to Fethiye, again staying at Jake and Lucia's. Then it was up early to drive to the airport and fly back to Istanbul - nearly a full day's journey with the traffic of this great city.

Meis/Kastellorizo harbor

I will attempt to describe the verdant valleys through which we passed on our drive: the red dirt and pine studded mountain range to the north (I am not sure how high it is but it gets snow in the winter), the red tiled roof houses set amid fields of corn, vineyards of grapes, olive and avocado trees, women in flowery loose pants and colorful headscarves everywhere working in this undeniably fertile landscape.  Last evening we were still driving as the sun went down and a thick, warm dusk filled the valleys  and warm air rushed through the car windows.

This morning we stopped for breakfast at a restaurant on the road and were reminded of the Turkish hospitality we felt so keenly on our last trip.  Our breakfast consisted of 17 different items, from bread to eggs, 2 kinds of olives, 6 kinds of cheese, crepes, butter, honey, cherry preserves... unfortunately we didn't take a photo.  After we were done and washed up, we were met at the exit by a waiter bearing the trademark Turkish lemon cologne freshener - a farewell gesture that is just so civilized! The whole experience was so unexpected in this roadside restaurant in the middle of nowhere.