Kayseri in the snow!

Hello!

Well, the weather prediction has definitely come true!  We awoke to a very white Kayseri this morning – with more snow coming down. 

Kayseri from our hotel window!

R's breakfast

The view from our window was really quite lovely!  We headed down to breakfast about 9 and, at first, were very surprised to find that the breakfast room was really filled with people – so much so that tables had been moved out into the mezzanine. We had no idea that there were so many people staying here at the hotel! Many of the people were wearing what looked like ski pants or ski bibs, and at the desk when we stopped by, they were handing out maps to the local ski resort on the closest mountain.  People were also fitting skis into racks in front of the hotel – well, if it’s snow they were looking for, looks like they got it! 

Very snowy!

Me & Hittite Lions in front of the museum!

Hittite religious vessel (huge!)

Inside of Hittite bathtub; note the seat!

Outside of Hittite bathtub!

Cuneiform tablet & envelope!

Our plan for the morning was to visit the local archeological museum.  We saw it first about three years ago, and on the map it didn’t look too far away (notice I said “on the map?”).  So, out we went to join the rest of the Kayseri population getting snowed upon.  The first thing I noticed was that while it really wasn’t terribly cold, the footing was extremely treacherous.  Much of the city streets and sidewalks have different types and styles of cobblestones, as well as lots of marble insets and other types of stone.  There were places where, quite literally, I felt like I was trying to find traction on pure ice … something this long-time California/Arizona girl has not had to deal with for a while! 

Stunning Hittite orthostat

As it turned out, getting to the museum – through sloggy snow and falling flakes, wasn’t made easier by the fact that there are very few street signs anywhere in Kayseri’s city center. 

Beautiful gold cup!

We had to stop several times to ask people the way, and, as Robert pointed out, our long walk made yesterday’s excursion to the shopping mall look like an easy walk in the park!  We eventually found it – and I LOVED the wonderful Hittite lion in the courtyard!!  Inside we went, where I proceeded to get out of various scarves, earmuffs and jacket.  There were other people at the museum, but as it’s a rather small place, they didn’t stay long. 

I would say that not much has changed since our last visit.  I well remembered the Hittite bathtubs, and there are several really stellar Hittite orthostats.  Kayseri, or Kanes (pronounced: Kanish) as it was known in the olden days, was the site of the largest Assyrian trading colony in Anatolia (ca. 1800 BC).  The Assyrians were the traditional traders all over the middle and near east, and would run caravans back and forth between Babylon and Assur and Anatolia.  They would bring finished goods – metal ware, pottery, fabric and textiles to Anatolia to trade for this area’s metals, especially copper and tin, silver and gold.  The trading colonies were really independent small communities that would attach themselves to the local, native population centers.  When a caravan would arrive, it would be taken directly to the leader of the native community and opened, and a tax would be collected by the local authorities, after which time the Assyrian traders would be free to sell or trade their goods for a return caravan back to Assur. 

Nuts and spices at the Bazar

My own personal favorite...

Both of these areas here in Kanes have been excavated, and we plan on stopping on our way out of town to walk through them again … providing that the snow has stopped falling!  The museum was an interesting mix of Hittite and Trading Colony articles, but of course, I do prefer those Hittites over anyone else! 

After having a good walk around, we again girded our loins for the snow.  This time, possibly because we were still dampish from our trek there, it just felt a lot colder, and the snow was hitting us directly in our eyes.  Hard to see when one’s glasses are either steamed up from one’s breath (I sound just like Sheldon Cooper, don’t I?) or wet from the large snow flakes hitting them!

We decided on our walk back that we also wanted to stop and see if we could find the Kapali Carsi, the city’s vaulted bazaar. 

Cheese and sausages!

And don't forget the olives!

From the map we had, it appeared that it was very near the heart of the Kale (castle) but as we walked along the castle walls on the outside, there didn’t seem to be a way in!  Instead, we turned in the other direction, just to look at the map again, and voila! Realized that we actually inside the bazaar – and it went on, and on and on … I had decided that the only thing that I left behind (that was on my packing list) was my sweatpants; very comfortable after long days of walking.  So, as we were walking through, I was able to find a pair of navy sweats/tights – very comfortable and only 10 TL!  (About $2.63 US)

Me in the pub!

Fabulous lunch!  We don't even need dinner!

We managed to get back to the hotel without slipping and falling, which I counted as a major victory, and as it was past lunchtime by now, we headed to the Sports Pub in the hotel lobby for lunch.  And wow, it was fantastic!  We both ordered exactly the same thing – with the exception that I had some vanilla and strawberry ice cream for dessert.  We both ordered beef fajita-style wraps, and they came with wonderful French fries and a small salad.  Normally, I’m not a big wrap fan, but this was really delicious!  Full of beef and peppers and onions, accompanied by some white sauce, that may have been purported to be mayonnaise, but I used on the wrap, and it was great.  All washed down with a couple glasses of red wine – obviously for its therapeutic value – we were still chilly!  Back upstairs for naps, and now just up, and it’s about 4:30 pm.  The laundry has been done and delivered – yippee! And the snow continues to fall gently, and we are now staying put in the hotel at least until morning!

More later!

m

xxx