{"id":10185,"date":"2022-02-15T22:01:32","date_gmt":"2022-02-16T05:01:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=10185"},"modified":"2022-02-17T12:12:59","modified_gmt":"2022-02-17T19:12:59","slug":"americans-antiochus-and-arsameia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2022\/02\/15\/americans-antiochus-and-arsameia\/","title":{"rendered":"Americans, Antiochus, and Arsameia"},"content":{"rendered":"
Position: 37\u00b058’04″N 38\u00b043’52″E<\/a><\/h6>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Slipping on the snow and ice, Clio\u2019s tyres whined with increasing urgency. She refused to move forward. Fortunately, she wasn\u2019t involuntarily moving backwards either. The steep, narrow road was in relatively good condition. Only, it was covered in a Turkish version of ‘Cascade Concrete’.<\/p>\n

For those of you not used to winter driving in the Pacific Northwest (PNW), consider yourselves fortunate. Two things conspire to make it terrifying. The first is all the other drivers in the region. With little to no experience of driving in snowy conditions, they charge around in the misguided belief all-wheel drive and ABS will save them. They\u2019re also the ones in the ditch a half mile from home.<\/p>\n

The second is the snow itself. Heavy with moisture, it typically falls when the thermometer hovers around 0C, i.e., when it\u2019s barely freezing. Cascade Concrete is a skier\u2019s expression. Unlike the Rockies\u2019 famous Champagne Powder, heading off-piste after a heavy snowfall in the PNW is akin to pushing cement around. Best have wide skis, or a snowboard, and strong legs.<\/p>\n

Lower down, city dwellers discover that any amount of pressure compresses the snow into ice and water. Without studs or chains, you ain\u2019t goin\u2019 nowhere under control, buddy. About 14 years ago Portland was hit by a \u2018blizzard\u2019. A foot of snow fell and stayed around for 10 days. Because there is no plowing to speak of, the city was paralyzed. I saw one Lexus slip sideways downhill, bouncing off parked cars on either side of the road. Compared to the Northeast, where traction control consists of a couple extra bags of cement in the trunk of your Chevy, this was far more entertaining.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile Back in T\u00fcrkiye<\/h6>\n

\"hulki-okan-tabak-U4pRG_IuA_s-unsplash.jpg\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Snow in Turkey\u2019s southern mountains is common in winter. With a large body of water nearby and freezing levels well above 1,000 metres, conditions are similar to the Cascades. I knew what lay ahead, but that didn\u2019t stop us having a go up Mount Nemrut. The opportunity to tick another box in our virtual guidebook was too tempting.<\/p>\n

There is something to the old saw of the ancient mystic living in a cave on a mountaintop. Many of the world\u2019s most fascinating sights are found at elevation. Like Machu Picchu or Lake Titicaca, for example. The moais of Mount Nemrut<\/a> speak volumes about the certain kind of crazy that makes a shaman and their acolytes leave the rich, fertile plains for the mountains and carve huge heads out of rocks. But artifacts don\u2019t lie.<\/p>\n

SAVING CLIO<\/strong><\/p>\n

With a guardrail on one side and the mountain rising above us on the other, our only option was to back down \u2013 slowly. Yes, I know, I could have done a quick reverse handbrake turn and spun Clio around smartly. She is a rental after all. But discretion and valour and all that. My heart raced for the first 50m or so \u2013 until I remembered all the much stupider things I\u2019d done in cars<\/a>, and reassured myself that this wasn\u2019t all that difficult in comparison.<\/p>\n

Reaching some bare asphalt and traction, I breathed a sigh of relief and got out to watch our new traveling compadres attempt the climb. A hundred metres on from where we gave up, they too began the slow retreat downhill. The moais would have to wait until the spring thaw. Passersby told us the park was officially closed anyway, so we felt a little better about our attempt and failure.<\/p>\n

Plan B<\/h6>\n

Pointing the cars downhill, Plan B kicked into action. Carol and I didn\u2019t know what Plan B was, but Ozy did. We wound down the opposite side of the mountain towards Arsameia<\/a>, another ancient city up another mountain. The scenery was spectacular, all deep ravines and overhanging rocks.<\/p>\n

Arsameia<\/h6>\n

The history of this ancient capitol of the Greco-Iranian kingdom of Commagene is about as comprehensible as any of the Balkan states. That is to say, not at all. A long set of stairs delivers you to a very well-preserved stone relief of King Mithridates (aka Antiochus I of Commagene) shaking hands with Heracles. Nearby is a deep cave with a long inscription above its entrance describing how the city was founded and instructions on carrying out once important rituals. Because both the cave and the dexiosis<\/a> (a relief in which people join hands) were completely covered in dirt for centuries they are in remarkably good condition.<\/p>\n

At the top of the hill you find unexcavated foundations and spectacular views over the valleys. The cliffs are mighty impressive. The Romans annexed the area in the early 0000s and abandoned the hilltops for the valleys lower down. I guess when you\u2019re swinging a big army you can defend the lowlands and reap the benefits of easier access.<\/p>\n

The sun made its way towards the horizon, and it was time to find a room for the night. Our new friends decided to head further east, where we had just come from, so we parted ways with promises of catching up in Marmaris before too long.<\/p>\n

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