Mersin

Mersin is a town on the Meditteranean coast of Turkey. It's about an hour away from Adana, and it's where some friends (Mark and Elvin) invited us to go this past Sunday. We met them Sunday morning around 9:30 and rode in their vehicle. They have a two year old son, and we had to drop him off at his grandmother's house so she could keep him while we were gone. She lives in the middle of downtown Incirlik, and there's a futball (soccer) field across from her house. Now, this is a professional field that plays honest to god professional soccer. She lives on the 4th floor, and her livingroom and kitchen windows look straight into this field! Mark told us that there was a game there that night, so we were in for a treat when we got back from Mersin. After dropping their son off and visiting (and having Turkish coffee which looks like Espresso) for a while, we got back in the car and were on our way.

Our main destination was a mall in Mersin. We enjoyed the view and the conversation on the way, and it wasn't long before we were pulling into the largest mall I have ever seen in my life, and yes, I've seen the Ala Moana in Hawaii. This mall tool up at least 4 city blocks, and was several stories high in different places. It stretched on forever! We went inside and hit the food court first, because it was getting to be noon. There were many choices, and me, Nikki, and Rob hit Sabarro's. It was a lot like the US version, with some differences. Our pizza was pepperoni and sausage, but the sausage was more like a thick bologna than it was US sausage. In addition, I had some fried potatoe slices that were seasoned heavily with all different kinds of spices and herbs. They were really good, and Nikki and Rob were picking out of my plate!! Brice settled for McDonald's, and it was pretty good, although not nearly as good as Japans version. Mark and Elvin got Popeye's chicken. Afterwards, we all had sticky ice-cream, and then we set off on foot. The guys stayed together, and the girls stayed together, and we mostly followed Elvin around. We seemed to be in a hurry, so we didn't really get to explore all that much. I can tell you that clothing prices are very high in Turkey. We commented that we don't know how they afford to dress themselves. We thought that it was just because we were in trendier boutiques, but Mark told us that prices for clothing are high all over Turkey.
The mall got really crowded super fast, so we left and went to do some sightseeing. Elvin (who is from Turkey) told us that there was a castle in the sea about an hour away, so we headed upthere. After a beautiful drive along the coast, we arrived at a sleepy, but beautiful public beach. Elvin explained that the tourist season was over, but the locals still hang out there , as do a few vacationers. The castle is called "Kiz Kalesi", and here is the information that I was able to find out about it: The castle in the sea, or Maiden Castle, was built by the Byzantine admiral Eustathios in 1104, and is situated on a small island at the entrance of the old harbor. It's about 200 yards offshore and was originally connected to the mainland by a causeway. There are watch towers on the walls, a cistern, and a Byzantine basilica in the courtyard. Just like most of the castles in Turkey, Kiz Kalesi has an interesting tale.
One day a fortune teller told the king of Korykos that his sole and much-beloved daughter would be killed by a snake bite. In order to prevent that, the king built the castle in the sea and made his daughter live there. But even a king cannot change destiny. A snake brought onto the island in a basket of fruit bit his daughter, and she died. Exactly the same tale is told for the Kiz Kalesi, or Maiden Tower, in Istanbul which was built on the Bosphorus as a light house to guide ships.
After leaving the area, we headed back to Adana, but found ourselves hungry again. Unbeknownst to us, there are veondors that sell cooked corn-on-the-cob right from their fields of corn. We pulled over, and everyone had a fresh ear of corn served in it's own husk. It was hot, salty, and buttery, and it hit the spot! I'm telling you, I really love the fact that Turkey loves corn as much as I do. Each ear of corn was only 75 cents, and it was really filling. We drove back to Adana in peaceful conversation, and lulls of quiet so we could enjoy the view.
When we went to pick up their son, the streets had filled up with handcarts and vendors selling their wares for the upcoming game. There were all kinds of roasted nuts and seeds, popcorn, lamb kebab sandwiches, and many other treats. Literally, the street was lined with vendors. We went upstairs to pick up their son, and found that Elvin's mom had cooked dinner for us all. They were open-faced beef pastries that were based in dough that had been brick oven baked. Apparently, you can cook whatever type of pastries you want, and them take them down to the local baker who will bake them for you in his brick oven for a small fee. We took our food out on the balcony and watched all the preparations for the upcoming game. There are two Turkish teams that play in that arena (all Elvin knew was the orange team and the green team...that night the orange team was playing). We enjoyed the view, the company, and the food, but then we realized that we needed to go ahead and leave before the game started and we wouldn'tb able to. We packed everything up and headed home. Elvin told us that her mom owns a beach property in Mersin, and she invited us to go back with them on the weekends in the summer time! Personally, I can't wait!!!