DNZ

Day 1: July 04, 2009 – Saturday

All of our bags being packed and heavy, we took off at 7 A.M. in the morning for a week in Bodrum. It had been a while for me since the last time I had been in Bodrum properly. I emphasize the phrase ‘properly’ since I do not consider my last couple of years in the Turkbuku district as representative of the actual Bodrum experience that I used to have as a child –and, for that matter, not representative enough for anyone willing to spend some quality time.

My childhood passed in Akyarlar, Bodrum –the southern peninsula. Nevertheless, I had had the privilege to visit the entire peninsula during that decade of years, since my parents used to travel with the family car at the time. Since then, this has been the first time in years since I have gone back to Bodrum with car, with easy access to the entire peninsula and more and with the determination and appetite to swim in good waters, eat fine food and enjoy the peninsula to the fullest.

I shall not want to be heard wrong either. Turkbuku, better known as Golturkbuku since its merge with the adjacent Golkoy district, is not a place lacking any quality. In contrast, Turkbuku, for some, is the only place with utmost quality and therefore utmost prices. In August 2006, the district had been nominated the St. Tropez of Turkey by Seth Sherwood in NY Times. And, so it really is! Yet, Turkbuku -with its late night and happy hour parties, chic girls and cool boys, jet skis and yachts- lacks the real essence of Bodrum, which is that of the fishermen’s village and the fishermen’s fish and the sea. Hence, my aim for the summer was to recoup the inner sophistication of Bodrum and to discover its little germs.

In my ideal vacation in Bodrum, vacation starts on the road. Having scanned through Ersin Toker’s book, Istanbul’dan Bodrum’a Yol Kitabi (Guide book and road map from Istanbul to Bodrum), I was also fully aware of the cultural, historical and entertaining stops along the road. We took the ferry from Yenikapi to Bandirma, which reduces the driving time enormously by about 2 or 3 hours. From Bandirma, down the road we went to Susurluk: the land of toasted bread and cheese and airan (ayran- the Turkish traditional drink prepared from yogurt). There is no “the” place to have a toast and airan. From your arrival into Susurluk until you are out from the town, there will be cafes and restaurants serving toast-airan. Nevertheless, Yasa Café is said to be frequented the most by visitors. Susurluk is also the land of outlets. The Ulusoy Outlet Park includes a variety of brands from bikini and inner wear to sportswear and elegant men’s and women’s wear.

After Susurluk comes Balikesir, which we passed without halt. However, if you would want to stop and rest for a bit in Balikesir, all little restaurants in Balikesir serve great versions of home cooking, prepared from virgin olive oil. The speciality of Balikesir is its desert: the Balikesir kaymaklisi that tastes like the baklava with jam.

We did stop at Akhisar, however, that makes itself felt by the increasing number of roadside sellers of fresh fruits –melons especially. We lunched at Ramiz Restaurant, a classic of Akhisar. Ramiz Restaurant serves meatballs and bean salad. What makes Ramiz’s meatballs special is that the meat used in the making is the meat from the ribs of the animal, which marinated only with salt and onions and left to rest before getting prepared under coal fire. Ramiz Restaurant used to operate only inside the small city of Akhisar, but has moved up, along the main road. (And, has brought with it a lot of imitators to the side of the road as well.)

We kept driving in the direction of Manisa and later in the direction of Izmir-Aydin highway. We did not stop again until we reached Soke (with the advent of the new highway, it did not take us more than 3 hours to reach Soke after Akhisar). There are enjoyable and cultural stops before one hits the highway. One is the statue of Kybele near Manisa –reached by driving through a rough road. Kybele is a Goddess of the Hittite reign. Another cultural stop is Smyrna near Karsiyaka, Izmir. Smyrna is worth a visit for anyone with an interest in ceramic works of art.

We did not stop at any of these points of interest, as we were more interested in food and in getting to Bodrum soon as possible. But, we did stop at Ortaklar, Selcuk –not advisable though, as you would have to leave the highway before the actual exit for Bodrum. Ortaklar used to be (and still is) known for its unique version of kebab, the çöp şiş -which is prepared by grilling small cubes of meat over charcoal fire. Overtaken by nostalgia, we tried to find a nice and clean restaurant to ease our appetite with çöp şiş, but we ended up reaching nowhere as the roads have changed in the last 15 years and we were sloppy.

When we finally made it to Soke, the highway ended and we were back on the portion of the “old” road. In other words, a rough road that lasts around an hour to get by. Nevertheless, although the road is rough and hard to drive through for whoever is the driver, the view is magnificent for everyone else. This old road turns around the lake Bafa, a sight to see.

We did arrive in Bodrum by 7 P.M. We were staying inside Bodrum in a relative’s house. After settling in and unpacking our bags, we all took a shower and left home for a stroll through the Bodrum streets. Nothing had changed, except for the fact that the streets were less crazy and less crowded –which to me was nicer. The little sandal shops were still open –Ali Guven, the Ferragamo of Turkey, who makes shoes to fit your feet, was still there as well, only with a bigger shop. The book fair/shop was still there, and so were the pastries and old brasseries.

We ended up in Cuba bar near Marina around 10.30 P.M. After a glass of vodka and tonic, flavoured with fresh Bodrum mandarins, we headed home early for a good night’s sleep.

Possibly Related Posts

• Bodrum Diary – Day 6
• Bodrum Diary – Day 8
• Bodrum Diary – Day 7
• Bodrum Diary – Day 5
• Bodrum Diary – Day 4