After toying with the thought of whether to go see Mt Ararat and visit Dogubayazit and more of the Kurdish area of Turkey, and finding a few foreigners that assured us that it was safe and a must see destination, we came to the conclusion that most likely we were not going to be again in that part of the world and this would be our only chance to see that area.
Therefore, we decided to do it.
We packed up our stuff again (which seems to get heavier by the day in spite of the fact that we leave things behind when we get a chance) and ran to the minibus stop to catch one heading to Dogubayazit.
We had a spectacular three hour ride through the mountains of eastern Turkey and the border with Iran. Fields covered with black lava contrasted with the green narrow valleys where Shepperd's waited while their flocks grazed. The scenery was amazing and most amazing was the fact that we were feet away from Iran. The Turkish government is heavily represented by military basis where you can see soldiers training by the side of the road and it was quite interesting to see a group of them being supervised while they filled up rocket launchers. The barricades built out of sand bags and full body armor along with machine guns sent the message that they were ready for anything that could happen. We felt that it was a constant reminder of "who was in charge" to the Kurds and their wishes for independence.
We had quite a few military check points in which they took our passports and checked it thoroughly. At one of them they even inspected our luggage and we felt bad for delaying the rest of the passengers which happened to be all locals. Some of these situations where a bit nerve-wracking but also gave your system a shot of adrenaline and excitement. After going over a 9000 foot pass we had Mt Ararat in front of us, capped with snow and the view was stunning.
We stayed in Dogubayazit a few days and enjoyed every minute of it. The people were extremely nice and many on the streets stopped us to shake our hands, thanked us for visiting and invited us for tea and a chat.
We found the best restaurant for us in all Turkey on the main street of Dogubayazit and became regulars. Their food was typical Kurdish and Turkish food and was delicious and inexpensive, and the staff was super friendly.
At night we would hang out with Fettah, the manager of the Hotel Isfahan where we stayed, along with some other guests (all Turkish) that have official jobs such as policemen or teachers and are required to work in the eastern part of the country for a few years. With them we tried some traditional Kurdish appetizers, typical for Ramadan times, and learned how to drink Raki - a grape spirit infused with aniseed, similar to Greek ouzo - which you cut at least by half with water. Our room had a balcony that displayed Mt Ararat and Ishak Pasa Palace in all their splendor and we really enjoyed sitting out and enjoying our view.
We visited Ishak Pasa Palace, a beautiful fortress - palace - mosque complex up hill 6km southeast of town. Its architecture is a great combination of Seljuk, Ottoman, Georgian, Persian and Armenian styles.
We really enjoyed our stay in Dogubayazit, where we collected many interesting stories that deserve to be discussed over a drink or two.
Gaby
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