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Thursday 25th September 2014
In 62 BC, King Antiochus I built a tomb sanctuary for himself on the summit of Mount Nemrut. Presumably suffering delusions of deity he built huge statues of himself, two lions, two eagles and various Greek, Armenian, and Iranian gods all sitting on thrones outside the tomb.
Just like the frescoes in the ancient rock churches of Cappadocia these statues have suffered from iconoclasm and now the heads are lying toppled from the bodies and the faces have, in some cases, been defaced.
Ok you can read the rest on Wikipedia. We are away early for the 14 km drive up the mountain. The narrow road has been block-paved all the way up (how long did that take?) and loops up and around the surrounding peaks. As we climb higher the sparse vegetation ends and we are in a landscape of bare rock and shingle. The views are great, looking down to the Euphrates River and the flooded valley to the Ataturk dam.
There
is a cafe and gift shop at the top of the road. The monuments are a
further 20 minute walk up a footpath to the top. My companions decide
the hike is beyond their capabilities so while they sit drinking cay I
slog it up the steep path.
It's sunny but there is a strong cooling wind blowing so it's not too bad. It would be murderous in the heat of summer though and if you're thinking of going then make sure you have water and a hat.
I'm all alone on the path. A few hundred metres ahead of me I can see a couple of figures and as I near the summit I look down and can see a large coach party disembarking to begin the ascent.
It's well worth the effort though. The monuments are astonishing and you have to wonder about the ancients who struggled up here to make and erect them. The views too are magnificent as I gaze down the Euphrates valley and think about the dawn of man right here in this land.
I spend an hour wandering around the two terraces. A big group of Australians arrive and we chat, taking mutual photographs. Then I make the descent back to the cafe.
We have a long
day ahead. It will take 3 days to get to K-H's house in Kemer, south of
Antalya. The start of the run is on country roads through the mountains
in Adiyaman province and down to Gaziantep where the PKK (Kurdish
nationalists) have their headquarters.
At Gaziantep we join the toll motorway which will take us through Adana and down to Mersin on the coast. It is a fast road but this far east it is dark soon after 6pm so at 5:30 we head off the motorway for fuel and look for a place to stay.
It's not a tourist area and lodgings are few and far between. The city of Kharamanmaras is 40km to the north and Tomtom suggests this as the nearest place for hotels.
We roll into Kharamanmaras as darkness descends and check in at the Arsan Hotel. For me it is the most upmarket of our stays on this trip, though Charly and K-H reckon the Dedeman Hotel (where they stayed in Konya on the way to Cappadocia) has got it beat.
Whatever, the room is huge, the appointments very high quality and they serve Efes beer. I love it!
After sorting ourselves out and showering away the sweat of the day we repair to the restaurant next door. My Lonely Planet guidebook tells me that Kharamanmaras is famous for first making dondurma, also known as Maras ice cream. That's the sort that is really glutinous and doesn't really melt. I learn that it achieves it's texture by the inclusion of the thickening agents salep, a flour made from the root of the Early Purple Orchid, and mastic, a resin that imparts chewiness (Wikipedia).
The region is also famous for doing interesting things with pistacchio, a paste from it accompanies the ice cream. It's all lovely.
We turn in early. I'm shattered from this morning's hike up Mount Nemrut and from the heat of the day.
In 62 BC, King Antiochus I built a tomb sanctuary for himself on the summit of Mount Nemrut. Presumably suffering delusions of deity he built huge statues of himself, two lions, two eagles and various Greek, Armenian, and Iranian gods all sitting on thrones outside the tomb.
Just like the frescoes in the ancient rock churches of Cappadocia these statues have suffered from iconoclasm and now the heads are lying toppled from the bodies and the faces have, in some cases, been defaced.
 |
| Sunrise over Karadut |
 |
| The Karadut Pansiyon in daylight |
Ok you can read the rest on Wikipedia. We are away early for the 14 km drive up the mountain. The narrow road has been block-paved all the way up (how long did that take?) and loops up and around the surrounding peaks. As we climb higher the sparse vegetation ends and we are in a landscape of bare rock and shingle. The views are great, looking down to the Euphrates River and the flooded valley to the Ataturk dam.
 |
| Stopped at the ticket office |
 |
| The road up to Nemrut summit |
 |
| Charly and K-H stay at the bottom |
It's sunny but there is a strong cooling wind blowing so it's not too bad. It would be murderous in the heat of summer though and if you're thinking of going then make sure you have water and a hat.
I'm all alone on the path. A few hundred metres ahead of me I can see a couple of figures and as I near the summit I look down and can see a large coach party disembarking to begin the ascent.
It's well worth the effort though. The monuments are astonishing and you have to wonder about the ancients who struggled up here to make and erect them. The views too are magnificent as I gaze down the Euphrates valley and think about the dawn of man right here in this land.
 |
| On the summit |
 |
| Some of the fallen heads |
 |
| There are plans to reunite the heads with the thrones |
I spend an hour wandering around the two terraces. A big group of Australians arrive and we chat, taking mutual photographs. Then I make the descent back to the cafe.
 |
| The road up. Euphrates river in the background |
 |
| Long trek on foot |
 |
| The path back down to the cafe |
At Gaziantep we join the toll motorway which will take us through Adana and down to Mersin on the coast. It is a fast road but this far east it is dark soon after 6pm so at 5:30 we head off the motorway for fuel and look for a place to stay.
 |
| On the back roads in Adiyaman province |
It's not a tourist area and lodgings are few and far between. The city of Kharamanmaras is 40km to the north and Tomtom suggests this as the nearest place for hotels.
We roll into Kharamanmaras as darkness descends and check in at the Arsan Hotel. For me it is the most upmarket of our stays on this trip, though Charly and K-H reckon the Dedeman Hotel (where they stayed in Konya on the way to Cappadocia) has got it beat.
Whatever, the room is huge, the appointments very high quality and they serve Efes beer. I love it!
After sorting ourselves out and showering away the sweat of the day we repair to the restaurant next door. My Lonely Planet guidebook tells me that Kharamanmaras is famous for first making dondurma, also known as Maras ice cream. That's the sort that is really glutinous and doesn't really melt. I learn that it achieves it's texture by the inclusion of the thickening agents salep, a flour made from the root of the Early Purple Orchid, and mastic, a resin that imparts chewiness (Wikipedia).
 |
| The Arsan hotel in Kharamanmaras |
 |
| dondurma ice cream with pistacchio |
The region is also famous for doing interesting things with pistacchio, a paste from it accompanies the ice cream. It's all lovely.
We turn in early. I'm shattered from this morning's hike up Mount Nemrut and from the heat of the day.
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