– English Lyrics

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

I have to show you something incredible.

This is Delikli beach!

This is very cool.

And it's just the first stop on our adventure

of Turkey's Izmir Peninsula.

I'm just an hour's drive from the big city of Izmir.

And most people don't know about

these incredible places

around Cesme, Karaburun and Urla.

I'm going to show you some amazing beaches,

taste incredible food,

learn about history, and visit a place time has forgotten.

I'll even try to be sporty on camera.

So, let's go.

Our first stop is the town of Alaçatı

in the trendy resort area of Çeşme.

It's gotten more popular and expensive in the last 10 years,

but there are still lots of quiet streets and very cute cafés.

I definitely think it's worth a visit.

I head to Bumba Breakfast Club to try a Turkish ritual:

Kahvalti, the classic Turkish breakfast.

I can hardly believe my eyes.

We have a variety of spreads, multiple cheeses, potatoes, olives.

We're in an olive producing region.

I also ordered menemen which is tomatoes, eggs and peppers.

One of my favorite Turkish dishes.

I'm just going to try my best to decide what to eat first.

Amazing.

Everything.

And I'm not the only one who's into the food here.

When the owner rented the building some years ago, he found a turtle.

It stayed and raised a family.

And they're just wandering free.

It's pretty cool.

Alaçatı was a thriving agricultural hub in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The Greek Orthodox population who lived here built these incredible

stone houses, many of which have been turned into hotels,

bars and restaurants.

The Greek Christians were forced to move

largely due to the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne

that mandated a population exchange

between Turkey and Greece based on religion.

It affected up to two million people

and it's a big part of this region's history

that we'll continue to encounter.

You can still find many things shared by both cultures —

like desserts with mastic resin

grown on the neighboring Greek island of Chios.

Everyone told me I have to try mastic pudding, which is called...?

Sakızlı Muhallebi.

May I have a piece please?

It has a kind of piney taste.

I'm into it.

Sakiz! [mastic]

The signs of Alaçatı's recent tourism boom are obvious.

I wanted to check out part of what helped make it a tourism hotspot.

Wind! The coast of Alaçatı is one of the most popular places in the

world for windsurfing.

Many international competitions are held here.

At Alaçatı Surf Paradise Club, they have been teaching people windsurf

for 30 years, including beginners like me.

I have a surf instructor today.

Do you think I have what it takes, Yusuf?

I hope so.

Me too.

So we started here in 1995, so it's been like 30 years.

But it becomes popular at the beginning of 2000s.

Because of the super flat and super shallow water

the people feel safe in here.

And it makes it super easy to learn because the flat water.

And another important factor: the wind here is very consistent.

And do you have to have certain requirements

in order to be able to do it?

Everybody can windsurf, it depends on the people.

For you maybe it takes 5 hours, for me maybe 10 hours to do it.

So it always depends on the people.

We have a limited shoot time, so let's see if it takes five hours.

For you it will take us 20 minutes, don’t worry.

20 minutes!

Start your timers.

I immediately start to regret my idea

of windsurfing for the first time on camera.

It's a lot to take in at once.

I crashed into the hotel!

But finally I start to get the hang of it.

I did it without falling.

Thank you to Yusuf, who was a really awesome teacher,

I have to say.

Thank you very, very much!

Now I'm heading east to Urla.

This is one of Turkey's wine regions,

and it's home to around a dozen wineries.

Wine has been produced in this region since ancient times.

Today I visit HUS, a boutique winery

that Ceylan Ertörer Diaz Leon

founded with her late husband in 2018.

She tells me more about Urla's wine tourism boom.

Urla has a very long history with viticulture actually.

But with the Greek population moving and

Ottoman Muslim population coming to the region,

this was kind of lost and forgotten unfortunately.

After a century without wine production,

around 20 years ago, Turkish wine pioneers

brought viticulture back to Urla.

The latecomers also joined them and five wineries founded

the Urla Wine Route Association 10 years ago.

And now we are 10 producers in the association, cooperating with each other

and always trying to improve ourselves.

and tourism and viticulture of the region. 

I would also like to learn and taste

a little bit of what you produce here.

Yes, we are gonna do it!

Let's try that!

So as white, we have Bornova Misketi.

It's a type of muscat.

So this is one you definitely have to try when you’re in Urla.

Really nice, it's very refreshing, very light,

perfect for this Aegean weather.

I'm a fan of Turkish wines now, what can I say!

Thank you for your visit.

I find it fascinating that this is one of the longest inhabited regions

on the Aegean coast, since the First Bronze Age!

It's been home to many civilizations,

the Ionians, the Persians, the Byzantines,

Ottomans, among others — thanks in part to its fertile soil.

I'm about to taste more of what these lands have to offer,

at farm to table restaurant OD Urla.

Chef Osman Sezener's restaurant is a major part

of what is making Urla a fine dining hotspot in Turkey.

It's one of several Michelin starred restaurants around Urla.

It also has a Green Star reserved for restaurants in the Michelin Guide

at the forefront of sustainable practices.

OD Urla works with producers in the region to source locally

and also grows ingredients on Sezener's own farmland.

To start, locally caught blue tailed shrimp.

We put our Cesme lemon

and made a gel from there and also with orange gel.

And we are using our own mint.

And we made a mint salsa verde.

And you can see there's mint salsa verde on top of the shrimp also.

I hope you're gonna like it.

Next, manti — small turkish dumplings

with artichokes grown on the farm and calamari.

I really wanted to try artichokes which are from the region

and this is just blowing my mind.

What can I say?

Grouper in oyster sauce with artichoke confit.

I wish this meal would never end.

Fortunately, there's still dessert,

chocolate mousse with hazelnut praline and homemade sweets.

This meal, the whole experience,

has been more than amazing.

I loved it, what can I say?

And while you're in the area,

be sure to visit the historic streets of Urla town.

Check out Zafer street or Sanat Sokagi — "art street."

It's called that for its many artisan shops and vendors.

Its historic buildings harken back to when it was Vourla, a Greek village.

I could definitely get used to the laid-back vibe here.

And of course, I couldn't leave the region without a trip to the beach.

Beach tip: The Demircili area on the South coast

has many bays to explore and wild nature.

But keep in mind it can get pretty busy in the summer.

But for sunset tonight, I have plenty of space to myself.

Now we're going even more off the beaten path

to Turkey's largest peninsula, Karaburun.

Karaburun is a real hidden gem,

especially if you enjoy hiking, like I do.

One of the routes takes you past Sazak village —

an abandoned Greek settlement.

I was really curious to see this place.

And it's true, it really feels like somewhere time has forgotten.

The 80 or so buildings have stood empty for over a century.

The government recently made it a protected heritage site and announced

plans for renovation.

But it doesn't look like that's gotten underway yet.

For now, the smell of wild herbs, thyme and oregano fills the air.

Nature has taken over.

Well, that concludes our adventure on the Izmir Peninsula!

I had an amazing time.

I learned so much.

Let me know which part was your favorite in the comments,

and see you next time!

Bye!

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
incredible /ɪnˈkredəbl/ B1	adjective - extremely good or impressive
adventure /ədˈventʃər/ B2	noun - an exciting or unusual experience
peninsula /pəˈnɪnsjələ/ B2	noun - a piece of land almost surrounded by water
beach /biːtʃ/ A2	noun - an area of sand or small stones beside the sea
history /ˈhɪstəri/ A1	noun - the study of past events
food /fuːd/ A1	noun - anything eaten to provide energy
cafe /ˈkæfeɪ/ A2	noun - a small restaurant selling light meals
breakfast /ˈbrekfəst/ A1	noun - the meal eaten in the morning
olive /ˈɒlɪv/ A2	noun - a small green or black fruit
dish /dɪʃ/ A2	noun - a particular type of food or the container it is served in
wine /waɪn/ A2	noun - an alcoholic drink made from grapes
civilization /ˌsɪvəlaɪˈzeɪʃn/ B2	noun - the society and culture of a particular time or place
restaurant /ˈrestərɒnt/ A2	noun - a place where people can buy and eat a meal
shrimp /ʃrɪmp/ B1	noun - small shellfish with ten legs
heritage /ˈherɪtɪdʒ/ B2	noun - features belonging to the culture of a particular society
hiking /ˈhaɪkɪŋ/ B1	noun - a long walk in the countryside for pleasure verb - to go walking in the countryside for pleasure
windsurfing /ˈwɪndsɜːfɪŋ/ C1	noun - a sport of sailing on water using a board with a sail
mastic /ˈmæstɪk/ C2	noun - a resin from trees with a pine-like flavor
thyme /taɪm/ C1	noun - an aromatic herb used in cooking
oregano /əˈregənəʊ/ C1	noun - an aromatic herb used in cooking