Revisiting Corum!

Thursday, May 8, 2014

Hello!

(Do I need to say that today is the NFL Draft … and we’re not there!  Hopefully we’ll be able to listen via the computer!) [We?  Margaret is getting careless with her pronouns again.  –R]

View of Corum Museum from rooftop restaurant!

Interesting situation last night, as we were getting ready for bed.  Earlier in the afternoon, Robert had turned on the air conditioning.  Now, we were looking for heat – but it wouldn’t stay on!  Robert called down to the desk, and was told that all hotel heat had been turned off because it was spring!  Whew!  Our options were 1) an electric heater; 2) more blankets!  A few minutes later, a knock on the door, and three wonderful wool blankets are now for our use!  Interesting!  As R says, WHY do people use calendar dates for heating and cooling, instead of being reflective of the real weather outdoors?!  Who knows!

Up this morning about 6:30 a.m. — hot shower for R and a real BATH for me!  Wow!  Felt really, really good!  The wonders of hot water!  We went down for breakfast around 7:30, and were met with the usual buffet spread.  And, voila, TANG reappears on the menu!  (Actually, they don’t really call it Tang – it’s just what comes out of the juice machine; no need to identify it – once tasted, it’s unforgettable!)  I was actually able to use the coffee machine to put out some wonderful hot chocolate!  Lots of cheese, four different types of olives, breads, some wonderful grilled mushrooms, also an omelet bar – it’s just that I’m really not an omelet person! 

Robert's breakfast this morning!

Ready to head out a bit before 9, for the Corum Museum which is, literally, across the street and down half a block!  Well remember it from two years ago.  First, we walked around the lovely front garden, where all sorts of artifacts are displayed.  It ranges from Hittite lions through Roman and Byzantine grave steles; quite a variety, and all interesting.  They also had a display of really HUGE pithos, and had some good explanations on how these huge terra cotta storage jars were manufactured.  (FYI, they were done two ways – one, purely as pinch pots, and the second, on a wheel!  Who knew!)  

Hittite Lion fountain in the garden

 

Me in front of Corum Museum!

Into the museum then, to buy our tickets.  Very nice staff; very friendly and helpful, as we bought tickets and rented the audioguides.  Each audioguide is obviously different, but this one was superb.  Excellent English – I didn’t spot any mistakes at all, and very comprehensive as we walked around the museum.  We were also offered (and took them up!) on a small locker in which to lock our jackets and my purse.  Terrific!

Hattic tomb reconstruction

Original of Teshub, Hittite Storm God

Hittite cult double vessel

Wonderful collection; excellent museum!  They have several very informative, interactive computer graphics displays to explain various parts of the exhibit.  It actually starts with the Hattic peoples, moves into the first real dynasty, our favorites, the Hittites!  From there, it moves to the Phrygians, Romans and Byzantines.  The museum actually took us up to almost lunch-time, as there was a great deal to see and listen to.  I think my favorite piece was a caving of Teshub, the Hittite storm god, and the king of their religious pantheon – just wonderful!  Oh!  And they had a replica of a machine that literally drilled large holes in stone!  Amazing! 

Reproduction of Hittite drilling machine

After the museum, we wanted a bit of a rest, so stopped in the courtyard, as well as the museum shop…yet another scarf as well as a key chain in the form of a 50 year calendar!  R thinks I’m being wildly optimistic, and that we should gift it to Joy, our wonderful neighbor across the street who hits 4 in August!  We’ll see (I was actually thinking more in the form of a coloring book, myself!)

Original Hittite hieroglyphic

Back to the hotel at this point and, as neither of us was hungry (big breakfast!), we decided to take a drive instead of eating.  Out to look for an excavated chalcolithic site somewhere to the west of Corum!

Nice to be back in the car again and on a really lovely drive!  We saw some absolutely exquisite birds,

Exquisite European Bee Eater!

including our favorite storks – people set up platforms on top of telephone poles, and the nests are huge!  We understand that the storks usually try to come back to the same nest year after year, and some of these were quite large!  In fact, in some, smaller sparrow-type birds were actually living in the bottoms of the stork nests!  Think condo!  

 As the storks are so large, they really do manage to pick up a lot of things – including the ubiquitous plastic shopping bag, which are incorporated into the nest.  I’m just grateful that the Turks very much enjoy the storks, rather than try and shoot them for dinner.  They seem very protective of the population that passes through the area; great to see! 

Stork watching over nest!

Stork in her nest!

We made it through several very rocky roads to the site, but as there were absolutely no markings, didn’t manage to find it.  Oh well!  That does seem to be the way in Turkey … some places are signed, some places are not – and either you see it or you don’t – not a problem!  

Turned the car around and headed back toward Corum, through absolutely stunning scenery and rolling hills and dales.  (question:  What’s a dale??)  Left the car at the hotel and walked across the street to find today’s Magnum Classic ice cream bar…YUM!  Also picked up a bottle of white wine which we had to sneak into the hotel past the “Absolutely NO outside food or beverages allowed!”  Felt like a criminal…  [Margaret’s raging honesty at work.  – R]

We’ll head upstairs to dinner in a couple of hours!  Last night, we had live music provided by a trio – female singer, along with flute and piano.  Just lovely and the view from the top of the hotel is really lovely!

More later!

m

xxx