Day 19; Finike
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Rather than 'borrow' a tomb Finike has created its own version and they've made a good job of it.
Soon after and 250m from my accommodation the skies open, thunder rumbles, lightening lights up the dark sky and the temperature drops. I shuffle around under a leaky sun awning next to a kiosk until I find a dry patch then on goes the light fleece, then the rain jacket; both items I didn't ever expect to use. Eventually the kiosk owner lures me into the toasty kiosk with the offer of free tea. I havn't said much about the genuine kindness of the Turkish people but this is an excellent example.
If the Lycian culture and architecture interests you, but you don't want to walk for 30 days (okay down to 28 in my case) then you could visit the British Museum. There you can see the Xanthos marbles which apparently demonstrate the synthesis of Lycian, Persian and Greek styles. Interestingly, but maybe not surprisingly, the narrative is from a Greek perspective. If you were talking English football you would describe it in terms of the Premier League; Norwich City being the Lycians in this scenario.
This brings us naturally to Charles Fellows who is the person most associated with exploring Lycia.
As the photos of the journey show, I have made an effort to see the tombs and the sights but my rest day provided the opportunity to look back in the guidebook and see what I have missed. With the late Turkish breakfast and an average 8 hour walking day it is difficult fitting in too much sightseeing. I am however content that I am getting an excellent overview. Roughly speaking I now have the choice of a mountain route or a coastal one and I am taking to the mountains. I am slightly apprehensive given the bad weather and I am unsure if that will set in though from last night's loud thunderstorm and today's bright skies and short cloud burst I predict scattered showers. In addition, the very last section of the walk overall sees me walking for 7 hours then the last part of that section is difficult in bad weather. The guidebook advice is to not walk it in bad weather but doesn't offer an alternative so all I can do is take a view on the morning of that section.
Which brings me my guidebook. I have now had time to re-read it and acquire an understanding of the writing style. From my perspective it is very good at the history, advice on walking the trail, section overviews and safety warnings but it is written by an expert and as such the author provides summary information and assumes you will know the rest. The book does come under criticism and until very recently was the only guidebook available. On reflection I think the guidebook works and perhaps the author's unwritten sentiment is 'if you can't work it out from what I am providing then you shouldn't be doing the walk' which is fair.
With time off I have been wondering why the tombs tend to be on hill tops, or on hillsides overlooking the sea, both difficult situations to build on. The only explanation I could come up with was if you needed a tomb you would want A Tomb with a View. I apologise to you the reader and to E. M. Forster whose 1908 book was made into a film of the same name, A Room with a View. Terrible punning I know.
