We visited Turkey in August, 2009. It has a fascinating mix of people, cultures, religions, history and geography. We started with a quick day in Istanbul to see Topkapi Palace and the the Blue Mosque. From there we flew to Van in eastern Turkey and headed north to climb Mt Ararat. After a successful climb we traveled west to Central Anatolya to Cappadochia and visited Goreme and its fairy chimneys and cave houses. We headed back to Istanbul and made a quick trip to Ephesus before ending our trip.