Bergama, Turkiye

Would You Please Repeat That?

It’s exciting to be in Bergama, our first stop in Turkey!

Bergama is famous for its Akropolis. Turns out the Turkish people pronounce the word Akropolis, which is also spelled Acropolis, very differently than people from the USA do. So when the Turks say Akropolis, it’s virtually unrecognizable (to us). 

The Akropolis is the main event here in Bergama, so not understanding this one key word in conversation makes basic communication here quite the challenge and often rather comical. 

Our friendly hotel host innocently asks us, “Will you be visiting the Ak&#X@*%??s”  Well, hmmmm…..maybe we will, if we had any idea what you said.  

Eventually we figured out how the Turkish people are pronouncing Akropolis, and a huge weight is lifted (talk about an ah-ha moment), but we still have to contend with the zillion other Turkish words that we cannot even attempt to pronounce or decipher. 

It Should Have Been Easy

It’s just so disappointing because we thought pronouncing Akropolis was a no brainer. Come on, at least that one word should be a given.  Just goes to show us that we really have no clue here in Turkey, and really no business trying to speak Turkish.

And it sure doesn’t help that our hotel is the Akropolis Guest House.  It’s a miracle we even got here.

Bus Terminal from Hell

Speaking of our arrival, things went smoothly until we hit the Bergama Otogan Terminal. It seemed strange that out of a full busload of travelers we were the only two people to exit at the Bergama terminal, after all, it’s a fairly large city of over 100,000 people.  

It turns out that Google has almost 600 reviews of the Bergama bus terminal, with the average rating of 2.8.  Here are just a few of those reviews from the past month, all translated from Turkish. 

Turkish Reviews

One star: “This place is a nightmare” 
Three stars: “We felt like we were in a horror movie. No security, no attendants, strange noises coming from the rooftops.” 
One star: “Unfortunately, it is an abandoned transit route where you land in the creepy evening, like the zombie crossing left from the abandoned town.” 
One star: “Free space to shoot horror movies.” 
Two stars: “It is a place that Allah forgot.”

And lastly, not exactly sure what this one means, but it doesn’t sound good…. 
One star: “The owl has landed, it is playing the ruins, It is falling”

I think you get the idea.

We got off the bus and the bus quickly pulled away and there we stood.  The station is five miles out of town, just off a freeway, in the middle of nowhere.  It was 5 pm on a Saturday and we were literally the only people there.  Not a car in the parking lot.  No other buses.  No people at all.  Nothing. Just a big, cavernous, empty, hollow building.

Let’s Look Inside

Steve opened the door for me into the rather new and modern looking terminal with high ceilings,  and my first thought was that something was wrong here.  It was eerily reminiscent of the twilight zone.  Everything looked clean, quiet, and completely devoid of people.  Like it was a place untouched by man.  

I slowly scanned the entire building from left to right, searching for any sign of life.  Not a soul to be had.  Not a worker or a patron.

The Turkish Flag

We walked through the station and out the other door, to another empty parking lot and a Turkish flag flapping in the wind. All we needed was just one taxi, just one.

The app I had downloaded back home, that was supposed to help in this very situation, BikTasi, came up empty. Sorry, no taxi’s available for you!

Muret, to the Rescue

Muret, the owner of our hotel in Bergama, answered my desperate call (not exaggerating), and spoke passable English.  He was more than happy to send a taxi to rescue us.

Thankfully I didn’t have to pronounce Akropolis during our conversation or we’d probably still be stranded at that Allah-forsaken station.

The Tour Guides

The next day we finished our hike around the Pergamon Akropolis, an ancient hilltop civilization, and had stopped for a cool drink at a cafe before heading back into the town below. 

Two local middle-aged tour guides (men) sitting in the next table started chatting with us and learned we were from the U.S. Shortly, a third tour guide approached and they kissed on the cheeks in greeting. 

To Kiss or not to Kiss

“It’s ok”, kisser #1 explained to us, “This is how we greet each other in Turkey.  We have known each other since childhood” (as if we were concerned by their display of affection). 

Another man at the table (non-kisser) decided to explain further, “It’s ok, they are both married and have children”, followed by their laughter (again, as if we were worried). 

Kisser #1 then said, “Oh, they are from America.  I’m sure they know a lot of gay couples who are married and have children.”  And they all had a good laugh. It was kind of awkward.  I thought to myself, actually I don’t know a lot of gay, married couples that have children….just a few.  🙂  

No Politics

We knew better than to discuss politics or offer any social commentary while in Turkey, so we just chuckled and decided it was time to go. 

The Teleferik

Before our definitely not-gay encounter at the cafe, we took the very modern Teleferik (like an enclosed lift on a cable) up to Pergamon Acropolis. Walking through the typical residential buildings in town and suddenly coming apon the modern Teleferik was a striking contrast.

It was a smooth 5 minute ride up the very steep hillside.   

The Ruins of Pergamon

The ruins of Pergamon, built in the 2nd century BC, are located at the crossroads between Europe and the Middle East, in the Aegean Region of Turkey.  Pergamon was a rich and powerful ancient Greek city high on a hill (Akropolis means “high city”) and became an important cultural, scientific, and political center. Its location is ideal, on a large mesa with sweeping views in all directions.  Not a bad spot to build.  Location, location, location. 

After the Greeks came the Romans, followed by the Ottomans. Every subsequent civilization added and enhanced the city, expanding, beautifying, and ultimately creating a great monument to urban planning and design. 

The really big draws at Pergamon are the remnants of the great temples and dramatic amphitheater.  The library that once housed 200,000 volumes, the Great Altar of Pergamon, a three-terraced gym, and a 10,000 seat theater were all set into the sloping terrain surrounded by an extensive city wall.

Are You OK?

One of the world’s first full-service health clinics, founded in the fourth century BC, was built down the road from the Akropolis.  Over the next centuries, it became one of the best-known healing centers of the ancient world, second in importance only to Epidaurus in Greece and was also the world’s first psychiatric hospital.

Asklepion and the Akropolis were connected by a vaulted road nearly ½ mile long.  At the beginning of the road stood a large arched gate, where potential patients were stopped and assessed before entering. 

The patients were examined by the priest doctors (Asklepiads).  It was important to keep favorable statistics for the clinic, so those about to die or pregnant were turned away (wow!).

Above the gate was the inscription, “The Death is Forbidden to Enter in Asklepeieion as Respect to Gods”.  

Our modern day symbol of medicine, the snake and staff, comes from the Greek God of medicine, Asklepios.  That’s pretty cool.

The Town

Bergama is a typical Turkish town and not particularly touristy. A town where you see a tractor or two pulling through the town carrying their produce for sale. A town where you see the occasional horse drawn buggy.

There are a few hotels, but they aren’t blanketing the place. Mostly just regular Turks going about their business and not many tourists. But we’d occasionally see a tourist couple with that distinctive tourist look (like us).

Here’s the look: khaki shorts, sandals or Birkenstocks, sunglasses, sun hat or visor, carrying small backpack or fanny pack, looking around and sometimes pointing.

The Cat

Bergama is full of stray cats and dogs. But there was one cat in particular, that we called Monty (because she looked so much like a tabby cat we once had, Montgomery- Monty for short).

Unlike in Morocco, where there are also tons of stray cats, the cats (and dogs) in Turkey are well-taken care of by the neighborhood and local restaurants that keep water and food out for them. They generally look well-fed and are so friendly.

So, back to Monty, the tabby cat. Monty was always waiting for us at our favorite restaurant in town, Akasya Park Coffee Kitchen, usually lounging on a soft bench cushion.

The restaurant had all outdoor seating, which works really well if you’re a stray cat, like Monty. Here are a few shots, in sequence, as Monty stealthily tries to figure a way to get to Steve’s curry dinner.

WINS

Turkish Breakfast

What a feast!  It’s like Spanish Tapas, but Turkish and at breakfast.  Lots of tiny plates with a huge variety of delights!  Fruit, eggs, fresh bread, two kinds of olives, coffee (or tea), butter and honey, fresh jams, crepes, fried pastries filled with a mild cheese, local cheese, and more cheese.  And always fresh tomatoes and cucumber slices (see Losses for more).

Fizzy Water

I desperately wanted soda water for our hotel refrigerator. The 2-liter sugar laden soda bottles are easily accessible, but I couldn’t find any plain soda water at the markets. 

At the third market we searched, I finally found a worker who handed us a 6-pack of very tiny, 6.5 oz bottles of “minera” water.  I used my hands to indicate we wanted a larger bottle, but he replied, in broken English, “This is the way the Turkish people drink their mineral water”.  So be it.

LOSSES

Hotel Rules

“No washing of clothes in your room” is listed as the #1 Hotel rule at the Akropolis Guest House.  What?  That’s how I roll. We travel light and rely on hand washing.  And it’s been very hot (high 90’s), and we’ve been very active, so sorry, but I have to wash out at least my underclothes. 

Thankfully my clothes dry very quickly, so it’s like it never happened, right? Shhhh…don’t tell on me.

Tomatoes & Cucumbers

Turkey is the land of fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.  So far, salads mostly consist of a little lettuce with fresh tomatoes and cucumber slices piled high. 

In an ironic twist of fate, the only two vegetables I’m not fond of are tomatoes and cucumbers.  I actually like the taste of tomatoes, it’s just the consistency I can’t deal with (so I like ketchup, tomato sauce, etc).  But cucumbers are not my thing and never have been. Luckily Steve is more than happy to eat my share.

Next Stop: Selcuk