BEACH PICNIC

From Ephesus we decided to find our way to the Aegean Sea and find a suitable picnic area.  Unfortunately, that was the time it decided to get rainy on us.  The first beach we visited was, except for some animal life, and a few fishermen on a jetty, deserted.

 Bird prints in the sand, a "kangal" puppy, and of course, you always see a herdsman and his cow on the beach.  This cow was grudgingly going to join her friends just behind this tea house.  A kangal dog is a native Turkish herding dog, one of the two Anatolian herd dogs.  We decided this beach was not quite what we wanted, so we drove a little further along the coast road towards Kusadasi, the "hot spot" of that area and the port where all the cruise ships come in.  We found the perfect picnic location.

Pigale Plaji or Beach, was all but deserted too.  As the weather was still a little rainy, we were able to find an abandoned beach bar and had our beach picnic under cover.  

 We had a smorgasbord of fresh fruits, cheeses, meats, tomatoes, and bread.  We had a beautiful view out to the sea, and even had a visitor....because someone thought he neeeded to be fed, our visitor stayed and followed us along the beach.  We named him "Bear" because he was brown and furry, like a bear.

 We walked along the beach and picked up sea glass, marble, and clay, weathered by the waves. Who knows, maybe they were from the ancient city.  We went out onto one of the jetties.  The water was crystal clear; there was a white village up the hillside; and Bear joined us.

 We even said goodbye to a cruise ship leaving Kusadasi; hopefully they have already been to St. John Basilica and Isa Bey Mosque and these sites won't be so crowded.