Turkey
Aegean Coast
September 2007 • Most Westerners follow the western edge of the country, from Istanbul along the Aegean coast to the Mediterranean Sea. Unfortunately the people who make their living off that tourist trail are a jaded bunch. Selcuk (Ephesus) was a drag of nonstop time-banditry, but Bergama (Pergamon) became my first brush with Turkey's legendary hospitality. An older couple found me wandering the streets looking for a restaurant that was closed because of Ramazan, so they pulled me inside their home and fed me dinner. We talked for a couple of hours, which is remarkable only because we didn't speak the same language.
