Though it was a series of unfortunate events that landed me in Bodrum, it ended up being my favourite place in Turkey. A quaint little seaside town, it seems like it’s packed in summer, but I still found it lovely in the winter.

I had quite a few things on my map that I wanted to get to in the four hours I had to explore, but I ended up spending over two hours at my first stop, the Bodrum Castle and the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. I absolutely adore the idea of castles and so rarely get to explore them that this was a complete treat.

I then made it to the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, where a cat showed me through the ruins.

Before I high tailed it back to my hostel, I was able to see the old amphitheatre. Though I wasn’t able to actually go in and explore, I was impressed by the magnitude of the structure, which now just a random artifact on the side of a busy road.In Bodrum, I stayed at the Bodrum Backpacker’s Hostel which was about a ten minute walk (with all my luggage!) from the Otogar/bus station. Despite my having made a reservation less than an hour before showing up, the staff was super receptive and we had a great time. I’d assume the place gets very crazy in summer, but definitely a great place to hang out with people.