Gorillas in the Mist

Trabzon is a cool little urban city on the coast of the black sea. I didn't get to wander around much, but the area near my hotel had cute little cobble stone sreets that made me sort of feel like I was in a college town, despite the seediness of the brothel/hotels nearby. The people here look distinctly different as well--since they are a huge port they seem to have a lot of Russian imports, and over awhile it looks like the Russians and the Turks have been having quite bit of nookie...I saw a ton of halfies walking around.

The big thing to see here is the nearby Sumela Monastary. By the time Murad, Semi, and I drove through the mountains nearby Trabzon it was well after dark, so I had no idea the next day that Trabzon was basically esconced at the foot of some gorgeous, lush mountains. The windy drive up to Sumela was absolutely stunning, and it definitely had a feeling of the opening scene of Jurassic Park...we had some serious Gorillas in the Mist action going on!

The Monastary itself is not huge and not really all that impressive, but like everything else in Eastern turkey, mostly the trip there and the surrounding areas is what makes it worth it. It was weird to be up in the mountains where it was drizzling and misting all over us, and then to get back to Trabzon and walk around in a tshirt and flip flops. Still, even though I abhor dampness, it gave the entire monastery a nice mysterious effect.