Monday, 24 September 2007

The Mini-Buses of Bodrum

The vibrant minibuses that run around the Bodrum peninsula are home to unforgettable memories for many of Bodrum's visitors.

This one goes to Torba; a quiet, unspoilt town with some of the cleanest beaches of the entire peninsula...

...while this one goes to Torba's polar opposite, Gümbet; a nearby town infested by cheap British package tourists and some horrible establishments that cater to their tastes.

The blue one goes to Bitez, a village right next to Gümbet. I have fond memories of almost every summer spent there, from age three onwards. Sadly, Bitez is being overrun with cheap buildings these days, and its pleasant orange groves are giving way to teeth-like series of mass housing.

Finally, the orange buses operate within Bodrum town itself. As I've told before on this blog, such minibuses are as practical as bars and clubs for getting drunk and meeting new people.

A Dead Snake

Our cat dragged in this poor juvennile snake in our summer house at Çeşme this summer.

It was so young! If cats could understand punishment, I'd really spank my cat for this heinious deed.

Its sharp, angry-looking "eagle eyes," combined with its brown-spotted skin pattern, suggest that this probably was a juvennile blacksnake, Coluber jugularis. (I can be wrong, of course.) Although not poisonous, these snakes are very aggressive and bite like psychos when handled. They are nevertheless beneficial creatures for keeping pest rodent populations in check. Blacksnakes can grow up to two meters long, but this one only got to thirty centimeters. Rest in peace, friend.