This is the email about the Palamutbuku and Knidos stops during our trip to Datca.
Palamutbuku and Knidos
The two carpet shops we’d gone to see in Datca were no longer open so we decided to go visit Knidos at the tip of the Datca peninsula. (Knidos is pronounced K Ni Dos, the K not being silent.) I wasn’t so interested in the ancient Greek and Roman ruins, but rather the 4th century sun dial. And we were so close, so why not go? As it turned out with a wrong turn to Palamutbuku and mountain road, it took over an hour to get there. Lonely Planet says you can take a taxi from Datca to Knidos and back for 100 TL (in 2009) which includes 2 hours of taxi waiting time. We paid 1,000 TL to have the motorbike for 6 months here in Turkey so I think it will pay for itself. We certainly enjoy having it.
Randal thought it looked a long way on the map and I thought it looked a short way on the map. It certainly wasn’t as far as Marmaris and that hadn’t taken all that long. But after about 20 minutes or so, I began to wonder since we had to visit Knidos, eat lunch, and come back in a reasonable amount of time. But Randal thought turning around was dumber than going in the first place and he was driving so we just kept going. We followed the somewhat erratic handwritten signs for Knidos until Randal turned and followed the one that said Knidos Butik. I thought that Butik was the Turkish word for Boutique which they call their small hotels. Instead of arriving in Knidos we ended up, literally, in Palamutbuku where the road literally ended! It was noon and there were several small restaurants. Randal picked what was probably the most expensive one because of the Efes and Tuborg beer signs. Le Jardin de Semra was lovely but definitely more expensive than our chicken wrap stand. But we were on "vacation."
Road to Knidos overlooking the Mediterranean.
We stopped to look at teeny tiny olives beginning to grow on these trees.
Palamutbuku for lunch.
Le Jardin de Semra
Our table.
Don’t ask about the poodle; I don’t know. It was in the photo so must have been in the picture somehow! Odd.
Our view.
One of the many coves along the coast we may cruise to at some point. When a tour bus parked across the way and blocked our view the owner of the restaurant made the driver move the bus!
Semra is the owner of Le Jardin de Semra.
There really is a garden which provides many of the vegetables used in the dishes and salad.
http://www.lejardindesemra.com/eng/index-eng.html is the website and quite fun to look at. She shows lots of views of the restaurant but not the renovation that took place and how she transformed an old stone building and some stony dirt into the lovely restaurant with its gardens. Semra told us about her sister who lives in Detroit. Unused to Detroit weather, the sister put her plants outside in the sun but neglected to take them in that evening so they all froze.
More tables and a bar around the side leading to the garden in the back.
A display of lovely ceramics.
Knidos is all the way at the western tip of the peninsular.
Almost to Knidos
A dock for cruisers and commercial tour yachts.
We spent most of our time in Knidos talking with other cruisers we met.
On the very tip were the ancient harbor entrance and a very small dock.
Ruins of Knidos
It cost 8 TL per person to walk through the ruins. We really didn’t have time or the right clothes. We had our long pants, shirts and heavy biking shoes and it was t-shirt and shorts hot! It would have taken hours and we didn’t know if we’d stay in Datca that night or bike back to Marmaris. I would have enjoyed the hike and hopefully seeing the sundial, but that will have to be another time. And honestly, after Ephesus and Hierapolis, we aren’t so needing to pay to see ruins.
Walking back to the motorbike.
We grew up with a dog named Susie who looked a lot like this dog except for the black spots on her muzzle. What do you think Bruce? Har?
Then it was off back to Datca
Old Datca
We only biked through but will walk around next visit. It’s mostly a few small shops and restaurants, all old stone buildings and narrow stone roads.
We stayed overnight in Datca and then biked back stopping in Turgut for lunch and to buy those carpets. We did a lot in 2 days