We took a ferry from the Greek Island of Samos to a town called Kuþadasi, on the south west coast of Turkey. As we crossed into Turkish waters the Greek flag atop the ferry was taken down and replaced with the Turkish flag. As soon as we arrived I felt strangely anxious, and I don't really know why. I can only guess that it was because I had never before been to a predominantly Islamic country. It just feels so different. I am unconsciously more wary, and feel more foreign than I have anywhere else. Even Mal fits in more than I do with his dark colouring. And then there is the fact that we keep wondering "Where are all the women?". Until we reached Istanbul, we barely saw any Turkish women. The streets are crowded with men, working in the shops and restaurants, sitting in cafes drinking tea and chatting. The only women around are clearly tourists, and this of course makes us stand out even more. Nevertheless, my anxiousness quickly subsided as I realised that it is actually very safe here. The people are very friendly, although we quickly learn that they often have the ulterior motive of trying to sell us something! Turkey is a country of many nationalities and religions, an interesting mix of eastern and western cultures. Although a secular state, the dominant religion is obviously Islam and there are mosques on nearly every street corner. Their haunting call to prayer drifts over the city three times a day; it is difficult to ignore. Most people we speak to say that Turkey is a good stepping stone from west to east, and that time here is good preparation for Egypt. We'll soon see. While there has been some stuff on the news about possibility of Turkey going to war in Iraq against a Kurdish group, we have barely heard anything about it (except for a few street demonstrations) and have not felt in the least bit of danger. Most of the action is on the eastern side of the country, where Turkey boarders Iraq and Syria. So why spend nearly 2 weeks in Turkey you may ask? There is so much to see and just soooo much history! It is a much bigger country than we even thought. We used Kuþadasi as a base to explore the ancient city of Ephesus (as in the book of Ephesians) and the natural wonders of Pamukkale, the Cotton Castle. Ephesus was incredible, similar to Pompeii in terms of archaeology, but so much more significant for us from a religious perspective. We could hardly believe that we were walking the streets that Paul, John and maybe even Jesus (Sýmon can you confirm?) walked. This trip has given me a huge appreciatýon for archaeologists - what a job it must have been to dig all this up. I can't get my head around how you would even begin!! Pamukkale is hard to describe, but it just looks like a white wonderland. Cliffs rich in calcium terraced with pools of turquoise water. Very beautiful but unfortunately too cold to swim, so we waded instead. There is even a pool named after Cleopatra, who supposedly came here on her honeymoon with Mark Antony. The area is known for its hot springs and we get all dirty until we spot other people's body hair all throughout the mud. Gross! We jumped out pretty quickly! After a few days we hop on an overnight bus to a town further north called Çannakale, from which we visit the ancient city of Troy, and of course the battlefields of Gallipoli. Troy was a bit dissapointing as not many remains have been uncovered and it cost us quite a bit to go. But Gallipoli was really special. We were lucky enough to go with a Turkish guide who is married to an Aussie girl, and spends half of every year in Australia. Therefore we were told both sides of the story by someone very passionate and knowledgeable on the topic. So we went to all the memorials, wrote a message in the visitors book at Lone Pine, walked on the beach at ANZAC cove and even through some of the trenches. Seeing so many graves of boys so young made us sad to think of such waste, and angry at the incompetance of some of the leaders. But more than anything it made us so proud to be Australian. Compared to the rest of Turkey that we have experienced, Istanbul is very cosmopolitan, seemingly caught between east and west, old and new. There are the likes of McDonald's next door to a traditional Turkish kebab shop. And boy have we eaten kebabs - shish kebab, lamb kebab, doner kebab, chicken kebab, mixed kebab - and they are on every menu. There are also very nice tomato based casseroles and every meal is accompanied by a big air-filled pide. However, we have both decided that dessert is by far the best part of Turkish cuisine. They make the most delicious rice puddings we have ever tasted, and the pastries, syrupy cakes, baklava and Turkish delight are to die for! In Istanbul there is the most amazing Spice Bazaar that sells all of the above as well as any spice or dried fruýt or nut you could imagine. You should smell the place! It would be so great to have one of those in Sydney.... We visited the Topkapi Palace in Ottoman style, and the Dolmabahçe palace in French style (much like Versailles), as well as the incredible Aya Sofya mosque, originally built as a Christian church. One day we had a traditional Turkish Bath in a big marble steam room. A short, solid Turkish man wearing something that resembled a loin cloth, rubbed us down, massaged and washed us on on a plinth in the middle of the room before throwing water over us and calling over the next victim! Mal wasn`t too keen on paying a man to rub him down, or me for that matter! But we had lots of laughs, knowing we wouldn`t get this anywhere else! Mal also had a traditional haircut and shave. They shaved him with a blade and then set a charcoal stick alight and burnt the fine blonde hair off his ears! They must like them clean cut over here! So I sat and watched in wonder, as Mal sat uneasy in the barbers chair praying for his life... Turkey is a place where you would go to see a lot of religious history - Christian, Islamic and Pagan - side by side; buy carpets (I am yet to talk Mal into luggýng one around Egypt & Africa for me) or colourful Ottoman style ceramics; to brush up on your haggling skills in the many bazaars; drink yummy apple tea; get your fortune told by a rabbit (yes, that's right); buy "genuine fake watches"; and where you have to laugh when the guy that runs your hotel tells you to "... make baby in my hotel, call baby Ali and remember always Hotel Panorama in Turkey!".