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HOTELS IN TURKEY
To travel in Turkey to-day, on a well planned tour with air conditioned busses and modern hotels, is to see ancient history in style. To travel in the interior of Turkey in the 1950s was an experience, spelled with a capital E.
Naki and I had to make many trips out of Izmir, to the experiment stations at Aydin and Tarsus, and to farms in these regions. We would often be gone for a week or more at a time. Two large dams were under construction, one in the Gedez valley and one in the Menderes. Water was being supplied for irrigation to small villages in the interior. We cooperated with the Soil and Water Conservation Agency (Toprak Su), a division of the Ministry of Agriculture. We would occasionally stay in private homes, and the hostess could never seem to be satisfied that she had done enough for us, we were treated like VIPs. Much of the time, we stayed in OTEL PALAS, the village palace.
The Otel Palas usually was located in the center of the village, and only a small sign on the door would indicate that there were rooms for rent. The entrance looked the same as other doors from the street. Our first trip from Izmir, took us to a small village in Aydin Province. We arrived early in the afternoon, and Ishan took our luggage to the hotel, and made reservations for us. Naki and I went to the Station and when we went to the hotel, I was not prepared for what was in store for me.
There were only 6 or 7 street lights, all were so covered with dust that Naki said, " We may have to light a match to find the hotel." When we came to the door of the hotel, I discovered that we were not the only guests. A camel caravan had arrived from the mountain meadows, bringing large bales of hay to the railroad station. After unloading, the drivers parked their camels at the entrance to the hotel. There were Camels lying all over the street. One was right in front of the door. Naki gave it a kick, and with a loud bellow, it leisurely unfolded its joints, got up and moved over, allowing us enough room to get in the door.
The squeaky hinges on the door announced our arrival. and, the hotel manager called out, "Hos Geldonis", (Welcome), He pulled a light cord with a 40 watt light bulb, hanging from the ceiling at the far end of the hall. He pointed to a closed door and indicated that I could have that room. I pushed the door open, there was no lock, and found another cord and pulled it and got another dim light. This must be my room, it contained my luggage. I was to learn later that there were only two single rooms, and Naki and I were given them as honored guests. The one other room had 8 beds and they were occupied by the camel drivers.
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Metzger Memories
