Don Curry in a dead end

Don Curry reads his travel guides with imagination. He not only processes the information gathered there, but also creates landscapes in his mind, anticipates experiences, and highlights highlights. When he finally reaches these places many weeks later, much of it looks very different from what he imagined. Some things are even more beautiful and spectacular, while others are disappointing; Don Curry's imagination sometimes leads him into a dead end...

At breakfast in Hotel Belinda, he no longer needed any imagination. He knew his favorites and today he limited himself to a generous portion of scrambled eggs, bread, fresh vegetables, lots of fruit, and tea afterwards. In between, he had to move indoors with all the other guests because a rain shower started. So at least the farewell from the coast wasn't too difficult.

First of all, there was catching up from the previous day: the Saklikent Gorge finally had to be explored. Since the sun had long since prevailed in the hinterland of the coast, Don Curry took a detour past Tlos to finally take pictures of the impressive tomb wall in bright sunshine. But then Saklikent, a place consisting entirely of restaurants, bars, shops, and providers of rafting, tubing, and other tours. Don Curry paid €1.5 for parking, then another €1 for entering the gorge. With its steep cliffs and the huge national flag hanging between them above the raging mountain river, it really made an impressive sight. But after 150 meters, it was already over, the paved access path ended on an island with a restaurant and picnic benches, some of which were already in the water because yesterday's rain was quite abundant. A sign warned against further going, but some people still tried to wade bravely through the calf-high river water. Don Curry turned back, for him the famous gorge remained a short dead end. He preferred to get himself a kind of Turkish fish sandwich and paid €3 for it, including Pepsi Max.

The further route led him north. He had read about another city of the Lycians that had not yet been excavated and whose ruins could be found in the middle of nature. This sounded like an adventure that suited Don Curry's passion for exploration. This sunken city is called Oinoanda, and the access to it not only had to be indicated by the navigation system, but there were also sufficient signs at every turn. It steadily went uphill into the mountains. In a small village, the navigation system finally led Don Curry onto a dirt road that steeply ascended. He followed this road even when it narrowed and ran between fieldstone walls. The navigation system still showed the road as a driving route, but as the ground became more and more rocky, Don Curry had serious doubts whether he should continue driving. When a recess appeared on one side, he simply parked his vehicle and continued on foot. Just a few meters higher, the path became so narrow that the car would not have been able to pass through. On the slope of a hill, Don Curry saw a village sign; when he approached it, he could clearly read 'Oinoanda'. He had reached his destination. But where were the ruins? He followed a footpath that led uphill from the sign until after about 200 meters it was no longer recognizable as a path. Ruins? No sign of them. Although Don Curry appreciated the impressive beauty of this rocky mountain landscape and the evidence of primeval agriculture, he did not discover any trace of the Lycian city. Thus, his supposed expedition ended in a disappointing dead end. But it got even worse. After descending to the car, he tried to turn it around at the recessed spot. But no matter how often he tried, he failed. The vehicle was simply too long and the space was overall too small to be able to turn it. Every attempt ended in an ugly crunch that did not bode well. So Don Curry only had one option: reverse downhill on the steep, narrow, and completely uneven dirt road. After about 150 meters, another recess opened on one side. This one turned out to be large enough to actually turn around there. Just get away, thought Don Curry. Only at a gas station 200 km further did he inspect his vehicle: the front covering and lower headlights had visibly sustained damage. Annoying, but nothing could be done about it anymore. Don Curry decided to refrain from maneuvering himself into a dead end in the future.

The last item on the agenda for the day provided a reconciling end. Shortly before, Don Curry got into a mobile police control at the intersection where he wanted to turn, where he was once again signaled to stop and checked. The policeman took a brief look at his driver's license and wanted to let Don Curry continue driving, but he pointed out that he actually wanted to turn at the intersection. Helpfully, the policeman briefly blocked the entire direction of travel so that Don Curry could return as a wrong-way driver to the intersection and successfully turn. The Turkish police - your friend and helper!

So he finally reached Afrodisias, another ancient ruin site, but not only excavated, but even a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Accordingly, the treasures from long past times presented themselves splendidly. Right at the beginning of the extensive site, dozens of beautifully decorated sarcophagi stood at the side of the road, each of which could have been the pride of another museum or excavation site. Various temple buildings, baths, a bishop's palace, and of course an excellently preserved theater also testified to the former importance of this city dedicated to Aphrodite.

It was not far to Pamukkale now. Don Curry immediately found his Venus Suite Hotel, from which he could even catch a distant view of the travertine terraces. The noticeably cooler temperatures here in the highlands of western Anatolia were unusual: at 19°C, Don Curry still sat outside in the courtyard for dinner, but he was already shivering a bit. In return, he warmed himself up with tomato soup, chicken kebab, and a tea; a Tuborg Gold with his meal provided the necessary hydration.

Dead ends, Don Curry mused, are actually just a waste of life. They don't get you anywhere, only back. Unfortunately, you only realize too late when you end up in a dead end...