SURVIVAL KIT, CONTINUED.

I began this blog yesterday, opening up two of my survival carriers. A foldable stool, and my backpack. My thought when I began putting this survival "kit" together about 40 years ago,  was based on thoughts of getting lost in the woods, or going over a cliff and having to rescue myself, or being stranded on a lonely road. No GPS, no cell phones, many lonely roads. The thought being, if I'm stuck in the woods for a night I can remain warm and dry. If I need to leave the scene, I can carry my back pack with any essentials, and attempt to get out of my predicament. However, over the years, what I've used mostly, is blankets that I've given to stranded motorists with kids, an elderly woman shivering in a park, a man laying on the road waiting for an ambulance, rescuers asking for a blanket to prevent shock. I've gotten overwhelmingly sleepy while driving several times, and pulled over, took a nap and used a blanket. I've used the toilet four times. Mary Jane said, "I'd just go out in the woods?" I won't go into detail of why I was in a place without woods and needed that toilet, once for a passenger in my car. I've repeatedly used jackets, towels, dry socks, gloves, scarves, for myself and others. It is very handy to have an extra jacket in your car at all times.


The last packet I opened, a sturdy carry bag contained, a stout cloth band that you could tie around something to portage it up hill, or drag wood pieces to a fire, or drag something with you that you may need.  Another jacket? Holy cow! A heavy scarf, two easy carry water bottles, a package with a space blanket, more bungee cords...


A closer look, two foldable hand saws, something to read to pass time, including an article on survival, a fishing hook pressed into a cork, a small film can with two very mini sinkers and fishing line, plastic lines to hold fish, a sturdy carry bag (blue) that can actually hold water like a foldable bucket. A quarter for a phone booth. Now I can laugh at that. A metal can to drink from or cook in for a cup of soup or tea, or just to heat water. Mary Jane asked me if I carry energy bars. At one time I carried lotions, chapstick and food items. They melted and made a mess. I also carried canned tuna and soups at one time, and in this bag you will see my can opener. But food aromas attract animals. I read the book by Euell Gibbons, Stalking The Wild Asparagus, years ago and I know what I can eat in the woods to survive. You can even survive on pine needle tea. I also tried carrying those items inside my car and a few hours in a hot sunny parking lot, melts lotions and lipstick, candy bars etc. into an unusable mess.

So in this sack, I had more socks, a scissors, a push button screemer to scare off anything, animal or human. Can opener, clothes pins, a single clip, another sweatshirt, a tool kit of screwdrivers, and my two easy carry water bottles.
I've learned a lot about this little exercise. Number one, how I've over done some things and lack others. My small hand pole with reel, I no longer have. No extra pants, or clothing for warm weather. No road flares, no meds, can't figure out what happened to my snake bite kit and first aid kit? I found one single package of band aids. Where is my ace bandage? No soap? I do have a comb in the car. And, I had no identification or medical information about myself in my pack, like the ones Jim and I carry in the refrigerator of the motor home. Yup, my survival kit is going to get a revamp. Food is a good idea now that  there are so many dried backpacking foods available.


I expect this exercise may have bored you silly. People usually laugh at my survival kit. It is something built into my psyche from my childhood. My dad always preached survival to my sister and brothers when we were kids. We lived in a log cabin in the woods where it was a necessity to think about such things. Someday, I'll tell you about the time my husband and I  left Murphys for Reno on a beautiful warm fall day, dressed lightly in leisure suits,  hit a bear, wrecked one half of our car, leaving us without one head light, and a door that wouldn't open on the driver's side. We continued on to see Sammy Davis. Left after the show, got caught in the mountains on the way home that night, in a freak snowstorm, that morphed into rain, hail, mudslides, and put us shivering, in a ditch. If you run the heater, you can run out of gas.  My husband no longer laughed at my survival kit.

CAUNUS, LYCIAN RUINS, CLEOPATRA'S BATHS.

Continuing from yesterday, our river boat stops at a long wooden pier.
A smooth path brings us to a National Park where a caretaker lives.

Owen decided to try the keepers motor bike.

Part of Usla's job is to educate us about plants and animals as well as history, which he does. He pointed out two oak trees that have very different shaped leaves. His first tour here was with a group of biologists. They would ask him about various trees and plants. He told them they were oak trees. He was a bit unsure about these and was guessing. When he checked, sure enough, to his surprise, they were Western oak trees.

We arrive at the Lycian ruins amphitheater and a movie crew is filming. They can be seen at the top of the edifice.
Owen immediately bounces up to the top and he calls down to Usla, "say something." Remember Usla sent him to the amphitheater at Ephesus to speak. He complied. Then we told Usla he had to sing a song. And in a very melodious voice, he sang a love song for us in Kurdish.

A tree has taken root among the stones and will some day be removed as the restoration continues. We liked its shade.
The VIP chairs wait there turn. Usla tells us the story of Caunus, who came here to be with his sister. But his brother exiled his sister because a sister and brother are not supposed to become man and wife. She was so devastated to be separated from the brother she loved,  she killed herself.

Usla took this picture of us. He takes many pictures and gives each person a disk of the trip.

A common turtle in the area.


I wouldn't let Owen walk under that unstable looking door header even though it wasn't roped off. Makes gramma nervous.

Caunus is an important ruin, not because Caunus's father was an important Roman Statesman, but because it is one of the best preserved examples of a Roman Bath. Sheep and cows have invaded the ruin. Usla complains that is not supposed to happen. But after so many ruins, the sheep are more interesting to me at the moment.

Our presence causes them to vacate what was once marble floors. The foundation shows the bath, two warming halls, excersize halls a sweating room and the hot room. I'm not sure how the archeologists learned such detail, but it will be interesting to see it when it is finished.

We load back into our boat, and head for a small tourist town for a pit stop before heading back to the gulet. (Usla's photo.)

As the boat rounds a corner, we get a glimpse of Lycian Temple Tombs carved into the hillside above the town of Kardak.

Usla tells us we will see more important tombs like these later in our trip and we won't be hiking up to this one that dominates the little tourist town.
Owen has his eye fastened to Kebabs & Fishes, and it is close to lunchtime.

Usla calls on his "assistant", Owen, to help as the boat unloads into the town for a pit stop where we each pay 1 lira to pee. We only have fifteen minutes here. The goods is all really schlocky tourist stuff, nothing of any quality. But, Owen finds two knives, they are switchblades and he recognizes an expensive brand and buys them for 180 lira thinking he has a bargain. After the purchase was complete, the vendor gave us a heart shaped God's eye and a pin and offered us tea.  I should have realized then, he overpaid. The knives turned out to be knockoffs, but, even so, he enjoys them.

We pass the gates that keep the turtles in and poachers out on the way back.
We see some tourists about at the Riviera, in bathing suits. They tried the river side to swim, those brave souls. Gina says, "We Brits aren't afraid of a little cold water."

The wind picked up and the water got choppy on our return trip.
A nice rest after lunch,

For some,  a nap...

Joyce Jacobs, is 80 + years old, and is an inspiration to all of us. She doesn't relax but enjoys Yoga and hiking dispite having lived through crippling polio as a child. An amazing woman.

Usla shows Owen how to fish with just a line and some bread for bait.

Owen tried it on several occasions but never did hook a fish.

Gina, Maria, Joyce B. and Joel, braved the cold for a swim and warmed themselves on the sunny foredeck.
This was such a good picture of Maria and Joyce, I could't resist posting it


The weather turned cold and windy. Choppy water had the boat doing a rock and roll. Captain Faisal went out in the small motor and checked the next cove over and checked with other boats he encountered. He decided we'd best move to a more sheltered spot.

We moved to Friendship Cove, with Cleopatra's Baths, where we would have gone the next day anyway.

I know my kid is tempting himself to jump in the ocean. But, I'm nervous about it and keep calling him away from the edge.

A--- CBRECCD-- BLOG

Egads! Jim seems to have adopted my cold so we stayed home yesterday and read. We did manage a quick trip to the store for chicken broth to make chicken soup.

 Neither of us get bored because we are avid readers. I'm currently reading a Phillip Margolin, Ties That Bind.

Home, in California, is beckoning and I've made reservations on Amtrak. I have a bum shoulder and its looking like surgery is going to be my only option. Not something that can be accomplished from the road.

Drat!

Jim reminded me that I'm here and can complain. Something to think about. Anyway, I know this is a pretty  CRummy blog, but when you have excess letters, you may as well use them. Or, Can Break Ribs Easily Coughing, Coughing Dreadfully.   (Where's the damned Kleenex?)