Discovered on Travel Pod

I recently discovered a blog over at Travel Pod written by a couple of Wisconsin natives, who are ESL teachers based in Istanbul. They blog about their “Asian Odyssey”, which has taken them through the length and breadth of South East Asia, and landed them in Turkey (with the occasional trip back home to the US, and a myriad of side trips to other locations). They’ve been on their travels since 2004, and ventured out of the urban confines of Istanbul to visit the Bodrum Peninsula.

I really like the informal style they use to describe the Historical sights of Bodrum, and this guest post covers their visit to a couple of the most memorable Bodrum sights — one of which was scavenged by Knights, to build the other.

A double helping of Bodrum History

by Kathleen at Kopppers Blog on Travel Pod 

The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus

During our trip to Bodrum, we had the fortune to visit (what remains of) one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World — the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus.  The Mausoleum was considered a stunning architectural achievement, and was devastated by a series of earthquakes in the early 15th century.

Given the history, and its world-renowned status, I was surprised to get to the Mausoleum and be asked to pay a mere *5TL (about $3.50) to enter.  It was also shocking to discover that we were the only people there — surely one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World would garner more attention than just me and Konrad?

The lack of crowds was actually a positive thing, as it made the trip even more special — imagine: walking around the ruins of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (of which very few still exist) by yourself in the midst of a sun-shiney day — fantastic!

We spent about an hour exploring the ruins and looking through the museum explaining the history of the historic structure, and then made our way back into Bodrum to continue the enjoyment of our first Turkish vacation.

Read the Full Post and view more photos

An Underwater Museum in an Above Water Castle

Another of the sights we visited was the Castle of St. Peter, which houses the Museum of Underwater Archaeology.  The castle was built in the early 15th century by the Knights Hospitaller.  Unfortunately, the Knights scavenged the ruins of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus for building materials while erecting the castle — which means that one of Bodrum’s most stunning sights was built to the detriment of the city’s oldest and most famous site.

To gain entry to the castle, we had to pay for a ticket to the museum — something we hadn’t planned on, but decided was a necessity.  Once inside, we were glad that we had; not only were the relics interesting, but the views from the castle were stunning.

The castle dominates the Bodrum skyline morning, noon, and night.  It’s particularly beautiful in the evening, when it’s all lit up.

Read the Full Post and view more photos on their Travelpod site

This post has been edited to fit your screen! (To view the full posts and photo’s over on Travel Blog, follow the hyperlinks above)

Thanks to Kathleen and Konrad for sharing their travel tales with us, and keep an eye out for their next Guest Blog post.

*Prices have increased since this article was written.