I feel very fortunate to have found and joined the Manisa Tennis and Mountain Club. This club meets every Sunday for adventures in Manisa. Many of the members are mountaineers and this Sunday I joined them for my first mountaineering adventure in Manisa!
Every day I’m in Turkey, I find that this country and these people suit me more and more. Turkey is an incredibly beautiful country and the people are warm, friendly, and have a hearty zest for life that really suits my nature.
Of course, part of what led me to living in Manisa was that the city’s mascot is ‘Tarzan’ and finding the Manisa Mountain and Tennis Club was a great thing for me. This Sunday, since Hanane felt a little under the weather, I went to join them for a hike, not really knowing what to expect. I wasn’t too prepared for a big adventure, just a pack with water and a few pieces of fruit. I thought it would be a hike of a few hours on nearby Sypil, boy was I wrong!
They had a bus waiting and we drove about two hours to the mountain town of Bozdag. On the way we passed the ruins of Sardis which is where money was first invented, one could say that it is the place where the root of all evil emerged into the world, but the ruins looked quite serene from the bus. Our first stop was a little mountain bazaar where we had tea and breakfast. In addition to the resident mountaineer, Fuat, two other members spoke great English and befriended me. When I went to pay for my breakfast (tea and a sort of burrito made of spinach and cheese) I found that the president of the club had already paid for mine! It was just the first of many acts of generosity and kindness I experienced through the day.
After this we went to Bozdag where we split into two groups, those who wanted to explore the town and those who wanted to climb to the 2600 meter summit. I joined the climbers.
There were about ten of us climbing and perhaps 20 who stayed to enjoy the town. The hike was a beautiful 15 km stroll with a little bit of scrambling, but no technical climbing. On the way we found wild apricots, juniper, and plenty of chestnuts scattered on the ground.
At the top, I was surprised to find that we had climbed to the peak of a ski mountain from the back side. The chair lift wasn’t running though, so we had to hike back down which was, of course, not a problem for any of us.
At the summit the other climbers shared a delicious meal of bread, cheese, cookies, tea, fruit, dolmoths, and other Turkish goodies with me. One new friend told me that in Turkey the rule is that if you see food, you eat and if you get punched, then you run! I really love the way Turkish people share food. If you are going to eat, you share what you have. My orange and pear didn’t go very far, but were appreciated none the less.
Along the way we met other hikers and there was always a true sense of warmth and as we hiked, it made me feel good to hear the hearty laughter of my companions. I’ve been starting to think that Turkey is perhaps the most civilized nation on the planet. The hospitality and caring people show for one another is reflected well in the sharing of tea and the good natured companionship one finds here.
After the hike we sat and enjoyed tea before climbing back on the bus and coming back to Manisa. It was a wonderful Sunday and I’m so happy to be back among people who love the outdoors and appreciate nature and culture for the wonders they are.
Tag: Manisa
Ancient Travelers – Footprints from 25,000 BC
Travelers have been coming to Manisa, Turkey for a long time. Ancient Greek, Roman, and Lydian travelers voyaged through the area and in some cases set up homes.
The oldest evidence of such ancient vagabonds are the fossilized footprints from 28,000 years ago from the nearby Sindel village. The footprints were preserved by ancient volcanic tuff which filled the original tracks with basalt cinder and thus preserved them until the present day. One can only wonder about the person who made the tracks, no doubt as they high tailed it to someplace further from the volcano!
The later civilizations which inhabited the area included the Yortan-Bostanci culture, the Hittites, and the Yortan culture- each of which exhibited a degree of nomadic traits while having semi-permanent sedentary villages. While the traces of the ancient vagabond footprints (they’ve discovered about 50 of them!) don’t reveal much, there has been a lot of significant finds about the other culture with Bostanci burials, vessel tombs of the Yortans, and a magnificent Idol workshop which dates to the neolithic age.
The ancient Niobe statue which I discussed last week and the stone statues in the mountains which I will discuss in upcoming Manisa Monday features are undetermined in age or influence, though since Niobe is a natural feature, we are more concerned with the stories about her.
What is it about the geography, geology, and natural life around Manisa that has drawn so many for so long? In part, it is the interruption of the sea by the mountains, the Mediterranean climate, and the fertile soil which supports wild pears, junipers, and many varieties of apples, cherries, and vegetables.
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Snow Hiking in Turkey – Izmir – Bornova – Manisa
Our time in Turkey was some of the best that we had anywhere. We will always look fondly back on adventures like this one.
Adventures in foreign countries can be complex or they can be simple. One of the reasons I loved living in Manisa was because of the Manisa Tennis and Hiking Club. They made hiking adventures simple.
I met up with the club at the usual location in Tarzan square on a Sunday morning. As usual, everyone there was healthy, happy, and ready to get hiking and eating. Part of the fun of this club (and probably all Turkish clubs) is how much emphasis is put on the food. The packs were loaded and this wasn’t just going to be a normal outing in the snow. This was going to be a good old fashioned snow hike/sausage roast over an open fire in the mountains.
The club had arranged a bus to take us to the highest point in the mountains between Izmir and Manisa. It was going to take us higher but since there was quite a bit of snow and ice, the road was closed down. The driver let us out at the bottom and we began carefully working our way up the mountain road. More than one hiker slipped and fell but no one was seriously hurt.
Along the way we stopped to drink tea and have breakfast. The location was pretty but not very good for those of us who hadn’t brought something to sit on! It was a cool ass place! Ha ha.
Further on we came to a small village where the snow had trapped the inhabitants in. They didn’t seem to mind a bit. One problem did seem to be sewage leaking from somewhere though as the smell of urine was incredibly strong throughout the village. I’m not sure why, but I watched where I stepped.
We hiked up into the hills further through virgin snow and past woolly cattle who didn’t seem to mind the snow drifting in the least. They ran in a small herd. I don’t know why, but there aren’t all that many cows in Turkey which makes beef incredibly expensive. In fact, all meat is expensive in Turkey in comparison with North Africa or North America or Europe. I haven’t really figured out why.
Finally reaching what seemed to be a peak of sorts, we started to gather wood for our weenie roast. Once again, the choice of spots wasn’t the greatest for those of us without pads to sit on, but since my Turkish is minimal I went with it, even though a more comfortable spot was not very far away with places for people to sit.
After a few misguided efforts to start a fire with large or wet wood, finally wiser heads prevailed and we managed to do things the proper way with small dry tinder, small dry twigs, and plenty of room for the fire to breathe. After that, it was sausage time.
Turks love sausages. Obviously not pork, mostly sheep or some of the more expensive ones are cow meat. We roasted, we ate, we drank tea, and then we covered up the fire with snow and set off back down the mountain.
Down the hill, through the village, down the road, and with only one injury that caused some tears, we made it back to the waiting van. On the way we passed plenty of Turks who had come up from either Manisa or Izmir playing in the snow. Snowmen, plenty of picnicking, and as I smiled at two senior citizen couples enjoying the snow, one old man nailed me with a snowball! I wasn’t the only one laughing. His wife looked scared at first that I would be mad, but how could I be!
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Places I’ve Lived #20 – Manisa, Turkey
We went to Manisa on our honeymoon and since I’d blogged my way out of a pretty good job in Fez, I turned it into a job interview with a school there. I’d been emailing the director and he had said to come anytime and he would show us around. So we did.
The bus ride there from Istanbul was long and beautiful. We passed mountains and streams and finally came to a city with a large mountain behind it. It felt good to me. I called the director and he gave us directions.
We got to the school and met with the director. Manisa is primarily a business city and so it doesn’t have all the cheap or luxurious options for travelers that other cities in Turkey have. Otel Emirhan was fine and offered us a/c, television, breakfast, wi-fi, hot water showers, and a decent bed in a clean room. Once we had settled in a bit, we went to a great little cafe where we met with a second director from a different school.
I had the interviews, but we both ended up getting jobs at the school with the second director! We moved to Manisa, Turkey!
There were plenty of shops, movie theaters (that even sometimes have films in English), big green parks, a beautiful old mosque, and a lively souk filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, cheese, and more. Manisa is also home to the famous “Tarzan of Manisa”
It’s in the mountains, has plenty of hiking nearby, wild horses, it’s a 30-minute bus ride from the beach city of Izmir, and in ancient times Manisa was where Turkish Sultan’s used to undergo their Sultan Training. Furthermore, Manisa was named one of the best cities to do business in for all of Europe. So,it all seemed pretty great to us.
We went back to Morocco for two weeks and then I returned to Manisa. I was there for almost two months before my wife came to join me. The school was good. I loved my students and I got along well with all the other teachers and the directors. They helped me get a residence permit, a bank account, and to get all the things I needed. When my wife arrived, things got more complicated. Since she was Moroccan, it was more difficult to get her a residence permit. She felt like the school was cheating her. Our relationship with the directors and some of the other teachers took an adversarial turn.
She had to make a visa run to renew her visa so I booked her a flight to Morocco. Then we found out she was pregnant. She wanted to take two weeks to a month back in Morocco but was needed in classes. I was suddenly feeling like papa bear and things turned ugly when they wouldn’t agree to let her have the time off. I felt like it was important – it was Christmas and she was pregnant – she needed to be with her mom. They threatened to fire her. I gave them an ultimatum that if she couldn’t have the time off, they would have to fire me too. So they did.
She flew home and I started looking for a new job and a new place to live since I’d been renting our apartment from the school. I loved Manisa but figured I would have more luck and a better life in nearby Izmir.
Manisa, Turkey – Ancient Tantalus and Magnesia
The ancient name of Manisa was Magnesia, the name comes from the magnets which come from Sypil mountain, also known in ancient times as Tantalus. The entire mountain is, in fact, one huge magnet. Stories of magnetic gold being found here, and stories of the Olympian Gods struggling with humans also come from this amazing mountain.
Atlantis. And of course, with stories growing and changing it is more than likely that from a relatively advanced civilization being destroyed in a large lake that the story could grow to a continent sinking into a sea. Not unlikely at all.
It should also be mentioned that many of the sages of ancient Ionia said that the word magnet actually meant spirit. And the name Sipylos comes from greek and means ‘Gate of the Gods’.
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Living in Turkey – Working in Turkey
[ad#Link share in post google replacement]Getting a job in Turkey and living the expat life in Turkey will certainly present some challenges.
Once again, I feel like things are moving up. As I mentioned on facebook (what? you didn’t see me on facebook? here http://www.facebook.com/vagodamitio ), I felt like a returning son coming to Turkey. I had new friends cheering my arrival, friends offering to help me figure life out, and best of all – when I arrived in Manisa I already had an apartment waiting for me!
That’s one of the advantages of taking a job. The apartment and utilities are all paid for. Of course, time will tell how things go. At the moment, I’m sharing the apartment with just one other teacher. If they load it up like the staff room at a hostel as time goes on, then it might be an issue.
I didn’t come here with much, but teachers who have already gone left plenty in the way of clothing and even a couple of books. My roommate told me that I could take what clothes I wanted and surprisingly, I found quite a few things that fit me and looked like they’d never been worn. On top of that, I actually liked the clothes! So, my wardrobe has nearly doubled just by arriving.
The house is furnished and has everything that Hanane and I need in terms of a refrigerator, a stove, a washing machine, satellite TV, and wifi internet. Of course, back when we were living in the casbah we got by with no shower, no hot water, no stove, no fridge, and not much else, so in truth we don’t need much. All of this is luxury for us, but completely unessential.
The one thing that is missing is Hanane. I came as an advance scout to make sure everything is on the up and up and see if we can live here. So far, so good. I am just anxious to see her again. In truth, I’m a bit bored without her company. Last night there was a big carnival concert thing not far from the apartment, but I had no desire to wander up there on my own. If I were 25 and looking to get laid though, I think that’s exactly where I would have gone. Although, from what my new roommate has told me, it’s a celibate life for a single non-Muslim in Manisa. Sounds frustrating and I’m glad that I don’t have to experience that frustration any more. It’s funny, so much of my life was defined by that constantly looking for love, sex, or affection that I missed out on a lot in the process. Anyway, it was nice to recognize that and just know that I’m missing my wife.
As far as I can tell there are only four native English speakers in this city of 300,000. Two of those are going to be leaving. I’m not one of those, at least not as far as I know.
So, the apartment is good. The work is good so far. Manisa is also good. It’s a quiet city, the people are friendly, it feels safe. There aren’t a lot of bars or party places which means there aren’t a lot of drunks wandering around or fighting in the streets. The apartment is situated near a Turkish army base, looks like an officer housing complex to me, because these aren’t uneducated 18 year olds, nor grunts I’m seeing. Somehow the fact that I pass a bunch of sentries in helmets carrying machine guns just feels good to me as I walk to work.
I also pass by the police station where a guy in a flak jacket with a mean looking sub-machine gun paces back and forth. From our fifth floor front balcony that is what is on the left. On the right is an Imam school of some sort. I don’t really see these guys, but they practice the call to prayer and while some of them are good, man, some of them sound like two cats with their tales tied together and slung over a clothesline. They really shouldn’t let those guys use the PA system. Further down is the train station.
I love hearing the whistles and grinds of trains. It’s funny how often I end up living near train tracks. Fairhaven, Raleigh, Fes, and now Manisa.
From the back balcony which is off of our bedroom, there is an amazing view of Mt Sypil. It’s massive and as the moon rises, the sun comes up, or the sun sets the mountain exerts a pull, an attraction. In fact, I think it was the mountain that brought me here, but I’ll write about that later.
Manisa is a healthy place and it is filled with parks, outdoor workout stations, and lots of trees, green space, and scenic spots. there are no shortage of interesting statues and places to see. While I wait for Hanane, I am mostly walking around and just getting the feel of the place in my spare time. It’s easy to find a healthy meal for 1-2 lira ( about $1.50 will do it), the food is pretty cheap, and if you want to splurge, there are plenty of ways to do it. There are at least three movie theatres and I’ve already watched one film at a matinee for about $5 U.S, (8 lira).
There are libraries in Manisa. I’ve visited one of them already and found that they have a few English language books that are scattered over the shelves. When I say a few, I mean a few. I found a book about chicken embryology, a book from the 1800s about the pillars of European history, a book about ‘the Armenian question’, and a few plays. Still, it’s nice to have a public library and they provide free wi-fi as well.
I’ve done little shopping. Mostly buying food in the open air market on Thursdays and some regular groceries like pasta, milk, and rice in the supermarket. I also paid a visit to the Turkish version of Walmart, called ‘Migros’ and bought a pair of trainers so I can do some running for 25 lira (about $18). My next purchase is probably going to be a semi-smart phone with a camera since my phone is pretty shot and my camera is broken and gone.
I’ll be writing quite a lot about Manisa in the coming days. It’s a fascinating place with rich history and a lot happening. for now, I just wanted to sort of catch up with myself (and you) here at Vagobond.
