Antalya Museum and our intro to CouchSurfing

At first Antalya looked like many of the larger cities in Turkey, row after row of off-white or peach apartment buildings all modelled after the same design. But once we started walking around, the beauty of the city was apparent. The city is located on the Mediterranean ocean. It’s natural fortifications resemble those of Dieppe in France. The city is perched on dramatic and beautiful cliffs. Walks, promenades and quaint parks weave in and out along this impressive coastline. The buildings in the old city all look as if they just received a fresh coat of paint. The shops display colourful shawls, pillow cases and rugs. Above all, the people of Antalya are welcoming, relaxed and friendly. In fact, having just joined CouchSurfing 10 days before arriving, Chris and I were aware of a monthly CouchSurfing meeting occurring while we were in Antalya. We were also aware that Ben and Pen, the Australian…Continue Reading

Earthquake Update and a Couchsurfer’s Plea

First of all, I want to reassure everyone that we were well away from the zone of last night’s earthquake. We didn’t feel so much as a tremor, although when I stomp up the steps of our rickety wooden treehouse after the types of huge and delicious dinners we get here, it can feel like a 1.0 on the Richter Scale. Also, after the generous advice of our new friend Brenda here in Olympos, we set up a profile this morning on Couchsurfing.org, a world-wide online community for hosting travelers. The idea is brilliantly simple: travelers get beds and local insights, and hosts get to entertain house guests from new and interesting cultures. There are thousands of users around the world willing to open their spare bedrooms and couches up to strangers based on their online profile and a simple, effective rating and referral system. Users create an online account and…Continue Reading