Termal

As I have mentioned before, finding a way to beat the winter blues is a bit tough. When I complained to Savas that I did not like skiing, he suggested with a completely straight face that I go hunting. And this is the man who prefers to take pictures of his friends taking pictures of mushrooms to actually killing a live animal. I guess everyone thinks that Americans love nothing better than to take out a pigeon or two. 

Ceylan and I decided to skip across the Marmara and go to Termal, a forested spa resort featuring natural hot springs. Loved by the Romans, as well as the legendary Ataturk himself, Termal is a cheap and quick way to escape Istanbul for immediate relaxation. The place sits in the middle of an Arboreum, where you can take strolls before or after your spa session. The resort also boasts two hotels, an excellent restaurant, two hamams, and a spa complex that includes an open pool and sauna.

While most hamam facilities in Istanbul require a furnace to heat the water, the sauna and the hamams in Termal tap into the natural hot springs, which can be seen flowing under one of the hamams. The water is supposed to be very healthy because it is loaded with minerals. Many sick people come to Termal simply for th

e benefits and healing properties of the water. Bathing in the hot water is supposed to cure eye and foot sickness, as well as rheumatism.

I read in a guide book that the fresh trout in Termal is worth the trip. And boy was it fresh! When Ceylan and I sat down in the restaurant for lunch, we asked the man if they had shish kebab. "No kebab," he said, "We are out. Only fish. Very fresh!" We opted for the fish, as it was the only thing they had, and our waiter immediately bolted out the door and headed for what I thought had been a decorative pond in front of the restaurant. The pond apparently also functions as a giant trout tank! He grabbed a net and wrangled us up two very alive fish, threw them in a bucket, and handed them to a young man who ran off to the kitchen. When he headed back for the door Ceylan and I scurried back to our table, as if we had not been staring at him with our faces squashed up against the window. In about 45 minutes, our fishies reappeared deliciously baked on two white plates. Awesome!

I have heard of flower clocks before, but this is the first time I have seen a garden calendar. The gardeners have planted some shrubbery in the shape of Tukey at the top, placed Termal's name in the middle, and at the bottom it reads, 20 Subat 2009, "Subat" being February in Turkish. What killed me was that the "20" was situated in a little planter box on its own, and it is obvious that the landscapers have to cart out a new number every day. It makes me wonder if they have 31 plants in boxes out back in the garden shed. 

I also have a picture of myself standing in front of the spa but Ceylan just ended up looking cuter. You can see behind her the hotel, the forest, the open pool, and the roof of the indoor sauna. Can you see the steam coming off of the pool from the hot mineral water? It was crazy swimming outside in the middle of February!

Just a nice picture of steam rising from one of the chimneys in the indoor sauna. The sauna area was very much like a normal hamam, except it was mixed, for men and women. Ceylan and I just ended up sitting in the "family salon." for most of the time.