Getting lost but finding a bird

So yesterday (Friday), we decided to get some nature time. There is a national park relatively close to our AirBnb. We hopped in our rental car, as if you are renting a car then you should take advantage of it!

The destination, Dilek Peninsula Büyük, a national park situated on a peninsula that juts out into the Aegean Sea. Well we relied on Google Maps to get us there. Roads are not well marked in Turkey and deciphering the names that are listed is difficult. Well, Google Maps did get us to the park but not it had us going up a gravel road that dead ended in the middle of the park, no where near the sites. The drive was long and somewhat stressful, there are no real lanes on Turkish roads and drivers either go really fast or really slow. So I was definitely disappointed to be in the wrong spot, with the right spot being another hour of driving.

We decided to make the most of it and drove around the part of the park we were in, which had tidal flats and birds galore, which Ashley was quite excited to see. She quickly spotted flamingos! Our third continent, Asia, to see flamingos. The area was also lovely, with long tidal flats, crystal clear waters and at least one natural spring.

We did fancy a swim, so we decided to drive in the direction of the rest of the park. The drive winded us through a town, where the traffic was really crazy! Traffic was in both directions but space for only one car to get through, and lots of pedestrians, dogs, cats, and kids.

But we made it to the park, which was gorgeous. It was through a pine forest, and you could look out over green blue waters to some Greek islands. We found a bay and took a dip. In the process, seeing some wild boars. We have seen wild boar caution signs on the roads, but no boars. Well, there was a whole herd of them feasting on the detritus of day visitors. I am not sure what Ashley was more excited about, the flamingos or the boars.

Despite the detour, it turned out to be a great day. The water was so relaxing to swim in, albeit a bit cold. We also got to see large swathes of Turkish country side, and had another charming roadside stand interaction.