Sorry, but I must make a mention of my guts

I left Istanbul on a bus, and went to Çanakkale, on the eastern peninsula of the Dardanelles, oposite the Gallipoli Peninsula. The few buses I did go on in Turkey were of excellent quality. Always an attendant (or two) as well as the driver, serving basic drinks and sometimes some snacks. They even have wifi! They had screens in the backs of seats as well, but I didn't watch any movies as they were dubbed not subtitled.

I headed back across the Dardanelles the next morning, to Eceabat, where I decided to scrap the guided tour of the battlefields and cemeteries and go it myself. I got a 'dolmus' (a kind of shared taxi which leaves when full - I love that the name basically means 'stuffed' - think dolma / dolmades) to the museum, which was a complete waste of money, then proceeded to walk into the park, where there's no public transport. It was a hot day, and I covered a lot of k's, but I felt I was taking a lot more in than the people passing by in cars and buses. I visited a few of the cemeteries, ANZAC and Turkish, a few of the landmarks where some of the fiercest battles took place, then walked down to the coastline and along to ANZAC Cove.

Here I went for a swim. Apart from being refreshing on such a hot day, it also happened to be in the same spot that the ANZACs made their first landing all those years ago. The sea was lapping up against the beach, and foremost in my mind was how the sea had being doing thus for such a long time, irrespective of human indifferences. Ninety five years previous those gently breaking waves would have been washing bodies up on the beach and the swell and currents would have been slowly dispersing the blood.

I find it hard to connect with the events that occured on Gallipoli during that time. I have no family members that were involved. People talk about a visit being a pilgrimage of sorts for Australians and Kiwis. It is the most remarkable military event in our history so far, and I think there's something in that to do with using it to give our young nation a bit stronger sense of identity. There are no signs of the terrible things that happened at Gallipoli other than the cemeteries and memorials; the dense, tough scrub could be found in many places like it (it reminded me a bit of the 'maquis' on Corsica). So it's all in the head, really, going there and remembering. 'Lest we forget' - forget what? Countless people have died in atrocities the world round - it's terrible, but I think it's most important to remember how purposless the loss was, and ensure it never happens again.

Now to change the topic completely. Around the time I got a Çanakkale my downloads, shall I say, started to become less solid. The morning after my visit to Gallipoli (and the watching of the World Cup final following that) I was lucky to have a half day lazing around the quiet hostel I was staying at before I got on my next bus. The reason I bring this is up, isn't to raise pity for my situation, but to point out something I found very ironic. In Turkey, you see, the food is so great, but in Australia we'd probably classify it as 'junk' food. Ugh, I hate using that term, but it is - all fast, fairly greasy - but honestly, it's all such great quality. The thing is, there was little else I could eat, even if I wanted to, that may have been easier on my guts.

Either way, I wasn't going to let anything get in the way of trying as many different foods as I could. The evening I got to Edirne, I went straight to a recommended 'ciğerci'. Edirne is famous for their ciğer, which are livers (typically calf I believe) battered and deep fried in sunlower oil. In a ciğerci, the only you choose is what to drink, and whether you will have soup as a starter. Otherwise, without fail you will be brought bread, a plate with sliced tomato and dry roasted yellow peppers (awesome!) on it, and a plate of ciğer. It was so good, I had it the two evenings I spent in Edirne. I also had a cheese burek for breakfast, and a doner kebap for lunch. See - good food for an upset stomach!

I also visited the Selimiya Mosque in Edirne. Also designed by the revered Turkish architect Sinan, he himself proclaimed it to be his masterpiece. I went inside, in between prayer times as it is a functioning mosque (as opposed to Aya Sofia). It was an incredible structure - I think what struck me most about the place was the symmetry; how every nook and cranny seemed to be exactly as desired. I didn't do too much else in Edirne, but it was a pleasant city to wander in.

I left Edirne to get a night bus over the border to Plovdiv, Bulgaria. It ended up being one of those chains of events where everything seems to go wrong. I think I got ripped off by the taxi when I was told there was no more dolmuses going to the place where I was to meet the bus (which did not stop right in Edirne, being an exress from Instanbul). Apparently. Then the bus didn't even stop at the hotel/sercive station complex where I was waiting! Someone saw me slightly distressed (when I watched a Metro bus drive right pass) and bundled me onto another bus, so that I could meet that very Metro bus as the border and jump on. Lucky. Unfortunately though, it had me leaving Turkey in bad spirits.