0:00:43 > 0:00:46'Lake Ohrid lies between Albania, which I've just left,
0:00:46 > 0:00:50'and Macedonia, on which I'm setting foot.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55'I shall be heading east, through Macedonia's eye-catching scenery,
0:00:55 > 0:00:58'and on to the border it shares with Bulgaria.
0:00:58 > 0:01:03'Then across Bulgaria into Turkey, and via Istanbul and Ephesus
0:01:03 > 0:01:06'to Cappadocia on the Anatolian plateau.'
0:01:15 > 0:01:18- Pretty spectacular up here.- Yeah?
0:01:18 > 0:01:21'With my friend Dimitar, I'm entering territory
0:01:21 > 0:01:24'where even 4x4s fear to tread.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28'The rocky foothills of the Rila Mountains in western Bulgaria.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34'Dimitar is a member of an order called The White Brotherhood,
0:01:34 > 0:01:38'who hold an annual gathering in the starkly beautiful surroundings
0:01:38 > 0:01:41'of an area they call The Seven Lakes.'
0:01:43 > 0:01:45- I've just seen a lake.- Yeah.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47- Fantastic.- First lake.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49It's beautiful. This is...
0:01:49 > 0:01:53- The first of the...- Seven lakes. - Seven lakes.- Yes.
0:01:53 > 0:01:54It's lovely.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57COW BELLS CHIME
0:02:06 > 0:02:10'It's been a long day's journey to get to this remote spot.
0:02:10 > 0:02:12'Well, as remote as a spot can be
0:02:12 > 0:02:15'when there's 1,000 other people sharing it with you.'
0:02:16 > 0:02:18This is the camp.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21It's like a...
0:02:21 > 0:02:24- small city, isn't it?- Oh, yeah!
0:02:24 > 0:02:28Up there, all of those tents perched very precariously.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40'I didn't sleep much last night. By the time I nodded off,
0:02:40 > 0:02:43'everyone else was getting up for the sunrise,
0:02:43 > 0:02:46'which is very important to the White Brotherhood.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50'The summer solstice is the most auspicious time of year for them.
0:02:50 > 0:02:56'And this lofty mountain top is the most auspicious place to witness it.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59LOW SINGING
0:03:00 > 0:03:04'The White Brotherhood was founded by a Bulgarian called Peter Deunov,
0:03:04 > 0:03:09'on whom the spirit of God descended on March 7th, 1897.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14'Non-smoking and vegetarian, it's a curious mix
0:03:14 > 0:03:19'of Christian and Indian mysticism, with much talk of spiritual energies,
0:03:19 > 0:03:23'which are evidently abundant in these spectacular mountains.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27SINGING CONTINUES
0:03:49 > 0:03:53'The climax of the day is what they call paneurhythmic dancing.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56'No bobble hats and anoraks here.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59'This is the White Brotherhood in all its glory.'
0:03:59 > 0:04:04THEY SING
0:04:13 > 0:04:17What is the aim of what you are doing here today?
0:04:17 > 0:04:19What is it really all about?
0:04:19 > 0:04:21It's about the peak of the summer.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Today is the peak of the summer.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25And...
0:04:27 > 0:04:33People are gathering today because it's a celebration for the brotherhood.
0:04:33 > 0:04:39Since this day is when you can receive the most of energies
0:04:39 > 0:04:44from the sun. And... We come together,
0:04:44 > 0:04:48we dance the paneurhythmic. We have concerts.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52It makes us feel more close to each other,
0:04:52 > 0:04:54more like brothers and sisters.
0:04:54 > 0:05:00Is the paneurhythmic dancing, is that a way of achieving this harmony, this function?
0:05:00 > 0:05:07Yes. This is the best tool we have for achieving the harmony.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10Because, it's a union of three very important things.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14Number one, that is the material, the moves.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18Number two, this is the words, you know the mind.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22It's words which are words about nature,
0:05:22 > 0:05:28about love, about harmony, about the spring, the energies.
0:05:28 > 0:05:32And also, it's the third thing, it's also the heart. You know,
0:05:32 > 0:05:38people are also working with their hearts, while being in the circle.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41It's a union circle. Uniting people.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45It's the symbol of the sun. And also,
0:05:45 > 0:05:48People are also working on their spiritual level.
0:05:48 > 0:05:52It's like a prayer in movement and dance.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55Today was an extraordinary event.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58- Were you pleased with the way it went?- Yeah, absolutely.
0:05:58 > 0:06:04I think every year, it's becoming more and more harmonious.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08What happened to the White Brotherhood during the Communist period?
0:06:08 > 0:06:10During the Communist period,
0:06:10 > 0:06:15it was hard for all spiritual work in Bulgaria.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19Because, you know, the only spiritual thing allowed
0:06:19 > 0:06:24was worshipping the Communist ideal,
0:06:24 > 0:06:29the Communist principles, so...
0:06:29 > 0:06:32It was not only the White Brotherhood, but also all kinds of
0:06:32 > 0:06:38religious and spiritual movements were either forbidden...
0:06:38 > 0:06:40At times they were persecuted.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42And...
0:06:42 > 0:06:44Or they have to hide.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47SINGING
0:06:53 > 0:06:56What I like about the White Brotherhood is that they're not dogmatic.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59They may be excessively tolerant,
0:06:59 > 0:07:02But also this great event today, very spectacular,
0:07:02 > 0:07:05but a quiet spectacular.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09It's not been the blasted noise from PAs and loudspeaker systems
0:07:09 > 0:07:11that seem to be so important these days.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13The other thing is, they talk a lot
0:07:13 > 0:07:16about the feel of natural energy in an arena.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19I've never been sure about that. But here in the Rila mountains,
0:07:19 > 0:07:22I think it actually really does actually exist.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38'After the elevated harmonies of the White Brotherhood,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41'mundane considerations like getting off the mountain
0:07:41 > 0:07:43'bring us down to earth with a jolt.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47'Well, rather a lot of jolts, actually.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06'On the way to the capital, Sofia,
0:08:06 > 0:08:08'we detour to meet Stefan Kitanov,
0:08:08 > 0:08:12'who has, for many years, championed the work of Monty Python in Bulgaria.
0:08:14 > 0:08:16'Whether it's our fault or not, I don't know,
0:08:16 > 0:08:20'but his other great enthusiasm is the powerful local spirit rakia.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23'His father, who gave him the taste for it,
0:08:23 > 0:08:26'worked for a sports goods business, run by the state.'
0:08:28 > 0:08:32My father was deputy director then.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36It was not possible for him to be director, because he was not a member of the party.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39- Oh, I see, so he never got to to the top.- So, after he got retired,
0:08:39 > 0:08:43- he came here, and he escaped.- Yeah.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46It was very important during the socialism,
0:08:46 > 0:08:48- people to have country house.- Yeah.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51So it was one of the aims for them.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55- He grows absolutely everything here, doesn't he?- Basically, yes.
0:08:55 > 0:09:01But my father doesn't believe in trees which do not deliver fruits.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04- Oh, I see!- Because, from any type of fruits you can make rakia.- Yeah.
0:09:04 > 0:09:11- But, you see, the best rakia comes from these...- These plums.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13- This is your father.- Yes.- Hello...
0:09:13 > 0:09:17'The ripe fruit is carted off to a couple of doubty 70-year-olds
0:09:17 > 0:09:19'called Lubo and Seta.
0:09:22 > 0:09:27'In their garden shed, they produce a head-whacking double-distilled concoction.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32'Brewed in a copper still called a kazan,
0:09:32 > 0:09:35'and decanted into an attractive plastic bucket.'
0:09:39 > 0:09:42- Cheers.- Oh, well, cheers! - Nostravia. We say "nostravia".
0:09:42 > 0:09:47- Nostravia.- Nostravia.- Nostravia. - Nostravia.- Nostravia.- Nostravia. - Thank you.
0:09:47 > 0:09:48Oops!
0:09:48 > 0:09:53Does the government discourage moonshine rakia making like this?
0:09:53 > 0:09:58- Is there any sort of disapproval of it?- You know, it's a very important part
0:09:58 > 0:10:02of the life of the people. So the government doesn't want to interfere.
0:10:02 > 0:10:03Yes.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07It's a bit like opium poppies, or...!
0:10:07 > 0:10:10HE SPEAKS BULGARIAN
0:10:10 > 0:10:15- Nobody knows, and everybody has kazan!- Yeah!
0:10:25 > 0:10:29'Sofia is one of Eastern Europe's most intimate and walkable capitals.
0:10:29 > 0:10:32'There are one or two grand buildings,
0:10:32 > 0:10:34'like the Alexander Nevsky church,
0:10:34 > 0:10:39'a memorial to Russians who died helping their fellow Slavs fight the Turks.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43'But, by and large, her leafy streets are on a human scale.
0:10:55 > 0:11:00'If you want to get around more quickly, there is, as throughout Eastern Europe,
0:11:00 > 0:11:05'a ubiquitous tram system, which the Communists wisely kept and, indeed, actively encouraged.
0:11:16 > 0:11:20'Today, in pursuit of a wider cultural context,
0:11:20 > 0:11:25'I'm turning my back on cathedrals and churches.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28HE SINGS IN BULGARIAN
0:11:30 > 0:11:31'This is Azis.
0:11:31 > 0:11:36'And he must have come as quite a shock to some of his fellow Bulgarians!
0:11:43 > 0:11:47'In a predominantly conservative and homophobic country,
0:11:47 > 0:11:52'you couldn't be much more out of line than a gay, gypsy transvestite.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58'And as a result, he's wildly popular.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10'I meet him with Mya, a local film director, as our translator.'
0:12:10 > 0:12:15Were you encouraged by others around you, your mother or father, to become a singer?
0:12:15 > 0:12:18HE SPEAKS BULGARIAN
0:12:20 > 0:12:24His mother had some kind of sick ambitions...
0:12:28 > 0:12:30..thinking that her child should be a mega-star.
0:12:32 > 0:12:36Something like Elizabeth Taylor in her mother.
0:12:43 > 0:12:49But, in one moment, because of his... Because he is gypsy...
0:12:52 > 0:12:55..all of the doors were closed in front of him.
0:12:57 > 0:12:58But that was before.
0:12:58 > 0:13:00You were born and brought up a gypsy,
0:13:00 > 0:13:05Do you think the situation has changed for the gypsy community now?
0:13:07 > 0:13:08No. Actually not.
0:13:08 > 0:13:12They are still so dirty and so miserable as they were.
0:13:12 > 0:13:17When you were young, were you angry at the way you were treated as a gypsy?
0:13:20 > 0:13:23Yes. There were people who obviously did it.
0:13:23 > 0:13:27They rejected him because of his race.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33His mother took him to film castings...
0:13:38 > 0:13:42..and nobody took him because of the colour of his skin,
0:13:42 > 0:13:44This is not a tan. It's the colour of his skin.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47He was born like that.
0:13:55 > 0:13:59'Despite his problems, Azis is one of the lucky ones.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01'Most gypsies live as close to the edge
0:14:01 > 0:14:04'as the threadbare horses they're racing for pin money
0:14:04 > 0:14:06'in Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second city.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09WHISTLING AND APPLAUSE
0:14:09 > 0:14:13'I'm here with local girl Meera Stileva.'
0:14:13 > 0:14:17They move pretty quickly! They're really fast!
0:14:20 > 0:14:22'We're enjoying ourselves, even if no-one else is!'
0:14:25 > 0:14:27What's going on?
0:14:36 > 0:14:40'The shouts and cheers belie uncomfortable facts.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42'85% of Bulgaria's gypsies are unemployed.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46'Only 10% of their children are in secondary education.
0:14:47 > 0:14:53'They live in a part of town dominated by canyons of Communist housing blocks.
0:14:53 > 0:14:54'Quietly going to seed.'
0:15:01 > 0:15:06- All these blocks here are totally occupied by gypsies, or do they mix them?- No, they're not mixed.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09This quarter here is for gypsies.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12- Do they try to mix them ever?- Yeah.
0:15:12 > 0:15:16They try. There is another quarter in the south of Plovdiv.
0:15:16 > 0:15:21And every first floor, they put the gypsies, gypsy families.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25- And all of the other floors are settled Bulgarian families.- Yeah.
0:15:25 > 0:15:30And... A big spy in the door, you just have a hole,
0:15:30 > 0:15:33- and behind that there is a horse. - A horse in the apartment?
0:15:33 > 0:15:36Yeah, a horse in the apartment, and a fire in front of the block.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39- So, this didn't really work so well?- Not at all.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42But it's quite funny and interesting.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45Do they like living in these blocks, or would they rather be living
0:15:45 > 0:15:50- in the countryside? - If you spend some hours here, they're just out of the blocks.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52They never spend much time in the blocks.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55They're gathering coal together in front of the blocks,
0:15:55 > 0:15:59doing... music, singing, chatting.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01Do ordinary...? I mean...
0:16:01 > 0:16:04- Would other Bulgarians come here very often?- No.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07Actually, no.
0:16:08 > 0:16:09Hey!
0:16:18 > 0:16:22'Despite the conditions, wherever there are gypsies, there will be music.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24'And where there's music, there will be a party.
0:16:24 > 0:16:29'I've been invited to sway along with the local's Women's Institute.
0:16:31 > 0:16:32'Some of them have come armed.
0:16:45 > 0:16:48'The gypsies of Plovdiv are not without friends.
0:16:48 > 0:16:52'There are groups working hard to improve conditions in ghettos like this.
0:16:52 > 0:16:58'But like gypsies all over Europe, these people cling tenaciously to their own way of life.
0:17:08 > 0:17:12'Plovdiv is the last big city this side of Turkey.
0:17:12 > 0:17:13'And outside a local transport cafe,
0:17:13 > 0:17:17'I hitch a ride aboard of one of the many trucks heading for the end of Europe.'
0:17:18 > 0:17:20Oh!
0:17:20 > 0:17:21Oh!
0:17:25 > 0:17:27HE SPEAKS TO THE DRIVER IN BULGARIAN
0:17:27 > 0:17:29Ah... Turkey?
0:17:29 > 0:17:33- Istanbul.- Istanbul. - That will do me fine. Fantastic.
0:17:33 > 0:17:34Thank you.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57Istanbul turn off.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00There's a title for a novel!
0:18:14 > 0:18:18'It's a long straight drive down the E80,
0:18:18 > 0:18:22'across a flat featureless plain that will take me to the border,
0:18:22 > 0:18:25'then on to Edirne and Istanbul, before crossing the Bosphorus
0:18:25 > 0:18:29'into Asia to Ephesus, and as far east as Capadoccia.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44'I asked the driver to drop me at the border,
0:18:44 > 0:18:47'because I want to see as much as I can of European Turkey,
0:18:47 > 0:18:49'which many people tend to forget about.'
0:18:52 > 0:18:55This is the Turkish border which, of course, used to stretch
0:18:55 > 0:19:00far into Europe, as far as Vienna at one time, under the Ottoman empire.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04The empire is now long gone but modern Turkey still wants to be part of Europe.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14'I take a taxi into the nearest big town, Edirne.'
0:19:14 > 0:19:17Hello. Edirne or bust.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22'There's nothing very beautiful to see at first.
0:19:22 > 0:19:27'Just another wind-swept frontier and another interminable line of traffic.'
0:19:30 > 0:19:34Wow. People ask what the connection is
0:19:34 > 0:19:38between Turkey and the rest of Europe. Just look at all these trucks...
0:19:40 > 0:19:41for the answer.
0:19:41 > 0:19:46'There's certainly no evidence that Turkey is an under-developed nation. Quite the contrary.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49'It's the growing strength of the Turkey economy,
0:19:49 > 0:19:52'and the size of the place that worries people.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56'If Turkey joins the European Union, it won't be as a small country,
0:19:56 > 0:19:59'glad of the security, but as a giant
0:19:59 > 0:20:02'with a population bigger than any other member state.
0:20:04 > 0:20:09'I'm beginning to wonder if I've made the right decision to stop off at Edirne.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14'But a 15th century stone bridge leading into town
0:20:14 > 0:20:18'is just the first of a series of wonderful revelations.
0:20:24 > 0:20:30'Behind the mundane facade of a busy modern city, lies an impressive history.
0:20:30 > 0:20:36'My guide, Selene Corcot, born and brought up in Edirne, is keen to show it off.'
0:20:45 > 0:20:50I'm glad to have met you, because otherwise I think I would have just gone through Edirne
0:20:50 > 0:20:53- and gone straight to Istanbul. - That would be a shame.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Because this city is full of so much culture and history.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00- Yeah.- And the landscape is beautiful.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03The collection of buildings are just extraordinary.
0:21:03 > 0:21:09And three very important mosques in walking distance and lots of bridges and rivers.
0:21:09 > 0:21:14'The man largely responsible for the glories of Edirne is Mimar Sinan,
0:21:14 > 0:21:16'whose work, more than any other,
0:21:16 > 0:21:20'expressed the might and magnificence of the Ottoman empire.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23'The Ottomans, a dynasty from eastern Turkey
0:21:23 > 0:21:27'made Edirne their capital before they took Constantinople.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31'It was here, in 1569, that Sinam, in his eighties,
0:21:31 > 0:21:34'created what many consider his finest work.
0:21:36 > 0:21:42'The Selimiye Mosque is arguably Europe's most glorious example of Islamic architecture.'
0:21:42 > 0:21:45Wow. That is such a...
0:21:45 > 0:21:50- Colossal. Colossal space, isn't it? - Amazing.- It's almost, sort of...
0:21:50 > 0:21:53- dizzying. There's nothing in the centre...- Very spacious.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56- It's all supported around either side.- Yes.
0:21:56 > 0:22:00When Sinam built this, he was quite an old man, wasn't he
0:22:00 > 0:22:01- He was 85 years old.- Yeah.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04This is why it's his masterpiece.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08We are very happy that he had a long, fruitful life.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11That is why we have more than 400 art pieces from him.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Is this considered to be one of his best?
0:22:14 > 0:22:16This is the masterpiece of Sinam.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19He achieved everything he was aiming.
0:22:19 > 0:22:26He tried to make it perfect, the dome as big as he wished.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30'If the mosque represents the religious impact of the Ottomans,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34'the 500-year-old Beyazit Kulezi shows how important science was.'
0:22:34 > 0:22:37I really wanted to show you this place. It's my favourite place in Edirne.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39It's lovely.
0:22:39 > 0:22:45It's a complex with a mosque and a hospital, and Bayezid built this complex
0:22:45 > 0:22:50so that he could give the city a nice, advanced hospital.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52'Its centrepiece, now a museum,
0:22:52 > 0:22:56'is probably the first psychiatric ward ever built.
0:22:56 > 0:22:57Running water and soothing music
0:22:57 > 0:23:01'were used to create a suitably therapeutic atmosphere.'
0:23:01 > 0:23:04Water and all that. It's a peaceful feeling
0:23:04 > 0:23:07- even before you start being treated?- Yes.
0:23:07 > 0:23:09And the sounds of music.
0:23:14 > 0:23:19Let me show you this patient's room, suffering from black love?
0:23:19 > 0:23:23- Black love?- Impossible love. Dark.- Oh.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25Sort of unrequited.... Ah!
0:23:25 > 0:23:28- Lovesick. Melancholy.- Lovesick, yes.
0:23:28 > 0:23:33Treated very nicely with New Age therapies in this room.
0:23:33 > 0:23:38- And he is... That's insane? - The insane one. So, they do share a room, probably.
0:23:38 > 0:23:42He doesn't look insane, he hasn't had a letter for a few days!
0:23:42 > 0:23:44With a rose in his hand.
0:23:44 > 0:23:48- Very enlightened.- It is. Ahead of its time.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51In Europe, until the 18th century, it wasn't recognised,
0:23:51 > 0:23:53- mental illnesses. - Lock 'em up!- Yeah.
0:23:55 > 0:23:59'This far-sighted alternative to the madhouse
0:23:59 > 0:24:02'failed to outlast the Ottoman empire.
0:24:02 > 0:24:07'When the Russians invaded in the 1870s, it was closed down.
0:24:09 > 0:24:14- 'But our tour of the splendours of Edirne is not yet over.'- OK, Michael.
0:24:14 > 0:24:16That was good. Now where?
0:24:16 > 0:24:20Now I want to take you on a traditional sight-seeing trip.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23- Oh!- With this carriage. I hope you like it.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26It's the real thing with the horses.
0:24:26 > 0:24:28A modern way to get about.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30It doesn't mean we are getting married?
0:24:30 > 0:24:32No, no, no.
0:24:32 > 0:24:33If you want!
0:24:33 > 0:24:35SHE SPEAKS TURKISH
0:24:35 > 0:24:37- Oh, wow!- Lovely, isn't it?
0:24:43 > 0:24:46This is the municipality building,
0:24:46 > 0:24:52- and this is the founder of the republic, Ataturk.- Ataturk? - Yes. It's a very new republic.
0:24:52 > 0:24:53So, they're trying to...
0:24:53 > 0:24:56keep up with his ideas,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59and not to forget, so that religion and state is kept separate,
0:24:59 > 0:25:03so that we are a modern country.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07Because he started the republic in the 1920s, after the end of the Ottoman empire.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11The end of the Ottoman empire, it was the the first world war,
0:25:11 > 0:25:13and we were defeated.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17- Yes.- So this part of the Edirne was taken over by Greeks.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20And then Ataturk just put up a
0:25:20 > 0:25:23big war, and tried getting back all of the land.
0:25:23 > 0:25:28And then quickly had to make the republic.
0:25:28 > 0:25:33- What else did he do that was particularly significant? - He did so many things.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37For example, for us Ataturk is important as a woman,
0:25:37 > 0:25:39because we have the same rights as men.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49Where are we going now? We are leaving the town.
0:25:49 > 0:25:54This is a surprise for you. There is a local wrestling, oil wrestling, right by the river.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57- It has a beautiful view. - What is it, oil wrestling?
0:25:57 > 0:26:00Oil wrestling. It's a very traditional Turkish sport.
0:26:00 > 0:26:05It dates back to like 640 years of history.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08And wresters are called pelivanns.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10- Pelivann?- Pelivann.- Pelivann.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23'The prospect of grown men and young boys wrestling while covered from head to foot
0:26:23 > 0:26:28'in olive oil may raise a few smiles in the cricket-playing countries.
0:26:28 > 0:26:31'But here in Turkey, it's a very serious business.
0:26:33 > 0:26:38'As the drum and pipe band gets everyone in the mood, the olive oil is liberally dispensed.
0:26:47 > 0:26:51'It's important to get the oil everywhere,
0:26:51 > 0:26:54'both over and under the black buffalo-hide pants
0:26:54 > 0:26:56'which are all the wrestlers are allowed to wear.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12'The youngsters are particularly keen.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16'They know if they're any good, there's money to be made in the oil business!
0:27:22 > 0:27:25'As the band up the tempo and the grappling begins,
0:27:25 > 0:27:28'Selene fills me in on the rules of the game.
0:27:28 > 0:27:33'A bout is deemed to be over when one of the pair is flat on his back, belly to heaven.
0:27:33 > 0:27:38'The pants can be used to get a grip as can the buttocks inside them,
0:27:38 > 0:27:41'but wedding tackle is strictly out of bounds.
0:27:49 > 0:27:54'The referees, ever vigilant, keep a careful look out for any slippery behaviour,
0:27:54 > 0:27:56'or rather, non-slippery behaviour.
0:28:01 > 0:28:06'The pelivann are all professionals, And in the height of the season, do really well.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10'What could get you arrested at Wembley can make a fortune in Turkey!
0:28:19 > 0:28:22'Discovering Edirne has been a delightful surprise.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25'The sort of thing that gives travelling a good name.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30'But now it's time to see more of this country
0:28:30 > 0:28:33'that straddles Europe and Asia.
0:28:44 > 0:28:49'As Edirne slips away, the local train takes me on towards Istanbul.
0:28:53 > 0:28:57'It's not the most glamorous way to approach one of the great cities of the world,
0:28:57 > 0:29:00'but there is a touch of gold at the end of the rainbow.
0:29:04 > 0:29:08'Our Istanbul terminal is the very same one
0:29:08 > 0:29:11'that was built in 1883 for the world renowned train
0:29:11 > 0:29:15'that connected Turkey with the rest of Europe, the Orient Express.
0:29:22 > 0:29:25'The famous old train doesn't come here any more.
0:29:25 > 0:29:29'But ghosts of the old days still linger at Sechecy station.'
0:29:38 > 0:29:43There's something about arriving at Istanbul, it's one of the great destinations of the world.
0:29:43 > 0:29:47You know when you come here, it's a place of consequence.
0:29:47 > 0:29:51Probably been at the heart of human affairs, this city, longer than ever.
0:29:51 > 0:29:54Of course, it's the end of Europe.
0:29:54 > 0:29:55For now at any rate.
0:30:00 > 0:30:04The Bosporus, touching Asia and Europe connecting Russia
0:30:04 > 0:30:07with the Mediterranean, binds Istanbul together.
0:30:07 > 0:30:09Wherever you are, it's always there.
0:30:13 > 0:30:15I meet Rafi, an art dealer,
0:30:15 > 0:30:18who recently brought a big Picasso exhibition here.
0:30:18 > 0:30:23He reminds me that Turkey's connections with Europe are nothing new.
0:30:23 > 0:30:29Don't forget that Istanbul was the capital of the Eastern rule.
0:30:29 > 0:30:31When it was Constantinople.
0:30:31 > 0:30:33Right.
0:30:33 > 0:30:35And today,
0:30:35 > 0:30:37the people...
0:30:40 > 0:30:46..we feel that we are in Europe, we have exhibitions in Istanbul.
0:30:46 > 0:30:50Do you think the success of your Picasso exhibition
0:30:50 > 0:30:55- is an example of things changing on a wider scale in Turkey?- Yes.
0:30:55 > 0:30:59Especially in the last 20 years,
0:30:59 > 0:31:03we start to change very quickly.
0:31:03 > 0:31:07So easy, the Western way.
0:31:07 > 0:31:10Do you feel frustrated at all at the attitudes
0:31:10 > 0:31:14of certain European countries towards Turkish membership?
0:31:17 > 0:31:23If you want to come, even for a simple club member,
0:31:23 > 0:31:26you have to accept the main rules.
0:31:28 > 0:31:35What we did to become a member of the European Union.
0:31:35 > 0:31:43- Yes.- But if the club start to create every moment different rules,
0:31:43 > 0:31:46you don't feel comfortable.
0:31:46 > 0:31:48Yeah. Yeah.
0:31:50 > 0:31:54I think if Turkey joined, do you feel it would be a good thing, a bridge?
0:31:54 > 0:31:58Yes. Exactly. Exactly. It's a very...
0:31:58 > 0:32:01- More so than any other country, really.- Yes.
0:32:02 > 0:32:07Judging from the young Turks I see pouring in and out of the Sabanci Museum,
0:32:07 > 0:32:10there's no lack of curiosity about things European.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19Of course, it's a two-way process, isn't it?
0:32:19 > 0:32:23You are not just talking about Turkey becoming more Westernised,
0:32:23 > 0:32:28- but the West being interested in the East through Turkey?- Exactly.
0:32:29 > 0:32:36Where we are here, right now, it's a very good place to explain this question.
0:32:36 > 0:32:41- We have a silver brazier here. - That is what it is.
0:32:41 > 0:32:45And we have a painting, an anonymous painting,
0:32:45 > 0:32:51but we think it was made by a French artist at the beginning of the 20th century.
0:32:51 > 0:32:55- Western ladies being brought tea and coffee by Turkish girls?- Exactly.
0:32:55 > 0:33:01It's a very good place to ask this question.
0:33:01 > 0:33:03Do you think it will happen in your lifetime?
0:33:03 > 0:33:06- Yes.- This Turkish membership?
0:33:06 > 0:33:09Yes. I'm sure of that.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12You are a young man. That's a pretty safe answer.
0:33:12 > 0:33:14Let's say 60 years old.
0:33:14 > 0:33:15For me, it's very young!
0:33:33 > 0:33:37Istanbul is a place of drama not just for arrival but departure.
0:33:37 > 0:33:44You can't get much more sensational than going on one of the world's very few intercontinental ferries.
0:33:44 > 0:33:47Europe to Asia.
0:33:47 > 0:33:49For about 50 pence.
0:33:51 > 0:33:56On the Asian shore, I'm to glimpse a more exotic side of Turkey.
0:33:56 > 0:34:01SHE SPEAKS TURKISH
0:34:07 > 0:34:11Tanyeli is not just one of the country's most accomplished belly dancers,
0:34:11 > 0:34:14she is also a canny businesswoman,
0:34:14 > 0:34:21taking her product away from sweaty folky evenings for tourists and turning it into a cool global brand.
0:34:31 > 0:34:34She has studios in Florida and Australia,
0:34:34 > 0:34:39has taught moves to Madonna and I'm here at her dance academy to see how she does it.
0:34:39 > 0:34:41It's a tough assignment!
0:34:41 > 0:34:44Which rather unexpectedly becomes a lot tougher.
0:34:44 > 0:34:48- I need to see your belly.- All right.
0:34:48 > 0:34:50I have to see your sexy belly.
0:34:50 > 0:34:52My sexy belly.
0:34:52 > 0:34:58You have to do... Come here.
0:34:58 > 0:35:00I won't be able to do this. I just know.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03I'm culturally and physically...
0:35:03 > 0:35:06SHE SPEAKS TURKISH
0:35:06 > 0:35:11When you do the belly dance, it works, breathe in and take your muscle in.
0:35:12 > 0:35:14Now you breathe out.
0:35:17 > 0:35:19She makes it roll nicely.
0:35:19 > 0:35:21No, no, no. It's not roll yet.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24It's the base step.
0:35:24 > 0:35:28Then you have to work with the muscle like this.
0:35:28 > 0:35:33Because, we have stomach here and here. Two different muscles.
0:35:33 > 0:35:38Then we start the move from start here and breathe in and out.
0:35:38 > 0:35:45But then to belly roll, you have to hold your breath here first.
0:35:45 > 0:35:48- You cannot do it.- I'm very nervous.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51I might have a heart attack. Ah!
0:35:51 > 0:35:55I will work on it and come back in five years.
0:35:55 > 0:35:57Five years? Oh, my God!
0:35:57 > 0:36:00Five minutes, if you like. I can do it when you are not watching.
0:36:00 > 0:36:02That's why I'm telling you that...
0:36:05 > 0:36:08Anything at all? Does that look rather rude?
0:36:10 > 0:36:11That's not a belly roll.
0:36:11 > 0:36:13It is something else.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16That is a pelvic thrust.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19Ha-ha!
0:36:19 > 0:36:22- It is. That was what I was taught in Alexander technique.- Thank you.
0:36:22 > 0:36:27Any Turkish girl should be able to belly dance
0:36:27 > 0:36:29because you are born to it?
0:36:29 > 0:36:31Yes. Exactly.
0:36:31 > 0:36:35Because the tango is not from my country
0:36:35 > 0:36:38and other dances are not from my country.
0:36:38 > 0:36:46For new generation and new age, we know how to do tango, we love to dance.
0:36:46 > 0:36:50Even Indian, hip-hop, R'n'B
0:36:50 > 0:36:55but belly dance is from our blood.
0:36:55 > 0:36:59- Yeah.- You know? It's like people ask me sometimes, "When did you start?"
0:36:59 > 0:37:04- I don't remember. I think I started when I was in my mother's tummy. - Yes.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07This dance is like a medicine.
0:37:07 > 0:37:11It's like a meditation but when you have stress,
0:37:11 > 0:37:15then you feel uncomfortable about something.
0:37:15 > 0:37:17You have made it internationally.
0:37:17 > 0:37:19You have your clubs all over the world.
0:37:19 > 0:37:23- How have you been able to export it? - Dancing means love.
0:37:23 > 0:37:29Dancing means peace. In the dance, there is no fight.
0:37:29 > 0:37:35You know, my advice from me to them
0:37:35 > 0:37:38is it's good to dance a little bit.
0:37:38 > 0:37:42Do men belly dance? Could you teach George Bush to belly dance?
0:37:43 > 0:37:48George Bush to belly dance? You know, this is like Mission Impossible.
0:37:48 > 0:37:51He'd ask for a big fee to start with!
0:37:59 > 0:38:20'Hang on, that's two steps to the left,
0:38:20 > 0:38:24'two to the right, one step forward, one step back.
0:38:24 > 0:38:27'Turn to the right, turn to the left.
0:38:27 > 0:38:28'Spin and... Yeah, yeah!
0:38:28 > 0:38:30'I think I've got it!'
0:38:53 > 0:38:56'After all of that excitement, I take my evening meal at a meyhane,
0:38:56 > 0:39:00'a simple local restaurant where I can sit quietly
0:39:00 > 0:39:03'and recover over a meze and a glass of raki.
0:39:04 > 0:39:08'But they have ways of dealing with people who want to sit quietly.'
0:39:12 > 0:39:14May I sit?
0:39:14 > 0:39:16Sure.
0:39:16 > 0:39:20'Within seconds, my meal turns into a concert.
0:39:20 > 0:39:24SHE SINGS IN TURKISH
0:40:09 > 0:40:10Very good.
0:40:10 > 0:40:15'Sheval, who has serenaded me so beautifully, explains.'
0:40:15 > 0:40:20What was it about, apart from your very passionate singing and beautiful playing?
0:40:20 > 0:40:24- What was going on?- Here is meyhane.
0:40:24 > 0:40:30- Meyhane?- Meyhane means, the exact translation,
0:40:30 > 0:40:35I should have to exactly translate means a very old-fashioned Turkish word,
0:40:35 > 0:40:37it's drink.
0:40:37 > 0:40:40Hane is the home, the house.
0:40:40 > 0:40:42A drink house.
0:40:42 > 0:40:45It's not a simple word.
0:40:45 > 0:40:50Meyhane is more poetic word in Turkish.
0:40:50 > 0:40:53This kind of music is coming from Ottoman empire.
0:40:53 > 0:40:59It's out of the academic, out of the street.
0:40:59 > 0:41:06The people express their feelings
0:41:06 > 0:41:08with this kind of music.
0:41:08 > 0:41:13The idea, really, of a place like this is to open up?
0:41:13 > 0:41:20If we see someone drink alone, like you, and we have more compassion!
0:41:23 > 0:41:28After two glasses of raki, and with this kind of music,
0:41:28 > 0:41:30you start to open your heart
0:41:30 > 0:41:35and express your feelings, your sadness.
0:41:35 > 0:41:39It takes a lot more than two drinks to unlock the Englishman!
0:41:39 > 0:41:42You are sure? Let's try.
0:41:55 > 0:42:00Throughout its long history, as a Greek, Roman and Ottoman city,
0:42:00 > 0:42:05Istanbul has managed to combine both an Eastern and Western temperament,
0:42:05 > 0:42:07which has made it unique.
0:42:07 > 0:42:09But Istanbul is not Turkey.
0:42:09 > 0:42:12If I want to understand this country better, I must move on.
0:42:14 > 0:42:19Under the stern gaze of Kamal Ataturk, founder of the republic,
0:42:19 > 0:42:23a procession is taking place to mark an extraordinary event,
0:42:23 > 0:42:26the 25th Camel Wrestling Festival.
0:42:32 > 0:42:35The event is held in an arena in Ephesus
0:42:35 > 0:42:38built on top of 2,500 years of history.
0:42:39 > 0:42:4420,000 people, mostly male, gather together to enjoy raki and kebabs
0:42:44 > 0:42:46whilst wallowing in nostalgia for the creature
0:42:46 > 0:42:50that once played such a central part in rural life.
0:42:52 > 0:42:55In modern Turkey, apart from these showpiece occasions,
0:42:55 > 0:42:58the camel is virtually redundant.
0:43:17 > 0:43:21These are specially bred, highly-trained Iranian camels,
0:43:21 > 0:43:26kept hungry and randy to ensure that bad temper will make for a better bout.
0:43:26 > 0:43:28Frothing at the mouth like angry colonels,
0:43:28 > 0:43:31they try everything to pin their opponent's heads to the ground.
0:43:32 > 0:43:36Tell me a good trick you have seen the camel play.
0:43:36 > 0:43:42To hold the other's head under the front legs.
0:43:42 > 0:43:44Hold the head under the front legs?
0:43:44 > 0:43:49And sit on it, which is very dangerous for the other one.
0:43:49 > 0:43:53And also very good for the one who can do this.
0:43:53 > 0:43:58- That's like a headlock, the equivalent in wrestling, you can't get them out.- Exactly.
0:43:58 > 0:44:01Exactly.
0:44:01 > 0:44:05My friend Yusuf assures me that the camels feel no pain.
0:44:05 > 0:44:07Though not being a camel himself,
0:44:07 > 0:44:10there's an element of speculation here.
0:44:10 > 0:44:12It certainly looks bloody uncomfortable to me.
0:44:12 > 0:44:15SHOUTS IN TURKISH OVER LOUDSPEAKER
0:44:17 > 0:44:22They're encouraging the more aggressive side of the camel's behaviour.
0:44:22 > 0:44:26One or two out there are just... They obviously don't want to fight.
0:44:26 > 0:44:29They look like they're really happy just having a cuddle.
0:44:29 > 0:44:30Are they gay camels?
0:44:30 > 0:44:36There are some sort of camels. Yes.
0:44:38 > 0:44:42So expensive is it to run a good fighting camel that as soon as
0:44:42 > 0:44:46victory is achieved, the contestants are instantly pulled apart.
0:44:47 > 0:44:51Changing tack slightly, do you think that
0:44:51 > 0:44:57people here today are mostly in favour of Turkey being in the European Union or not?
0:44:57 > 0:44:59Yeah, hard to say.
0:44:59 > 0:45:04I know, and I believe many Turkish people, the majority
0:45:04 > 0:45:09of Turkish people want to belong, be part of the European Union.
0:45:09 > 0:45:12But...er...
0:45:12 > 0:45:16the political things...
0:45:16 > 0:45:19seems like new difficulties
0:45:19 > 0:45:25being created by the European Community. Maybe it's our fault too.
0:45:25 > 0:45:28We must...er...
0:45:29 > 0:45:31..explain ourselves,
0:45:31 > 0:45:34express our feelings better.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38I think we should get some camel wrestling at Wembley Stadium.
0:45:38 > 0:45:39That is the first step!
0:45:44 > 0:45:46ANNOUNCEMENT OVER TANNOY
0:45:55 > 0:45:58Well, we've come to the end of the Turkey that we know.
0:45:58 > 0:46:03But the vast majority of this country lies out to the east where the camels came from.
0:46:03 > 0:46:05And where we are going to.
0:46:43 > 0:46:45In the heart of Anatolia,
0:46:45 > 0:46:51or Asia Minor as it was known, is this hauntingly beautiful area called Capadoccia.
0:46:53 > 0:46:57Created by the aftermath of a massive volcanic eruption, the sea of lava solidified
0:46:57 > 0:46:59into a soft rock called tufa,
0:46:59 > 0:47:05which has been sculpted into these unique shapes by wind, rain and snow.
0:47:20 > 0:47:27This is the town of Goreme. I'm off to meet a couple who have turned one of these wonderfully odd structures,
0:47:27 > 0:47:31called fairy chimneys, into a very unusual guesthouse.
0:47:36 > 0:47:41Half expecting to find hobbits, I instead find myself taking a glass of tea
0:47:41 > 0:47:46with a German academic called Andus and his Turkish wife called Gulcan.
0:47:46 > 0:47:51How did you end up living in a cave in the middle of Turkey?
0:47:51 > 0:47:55Well, it's a kind of funny story actually.
0:47:55 > 0:47:57But I'm an anthropologist.
0:47:57 > 0:48:01During my studies I came to this area as a tourist actually.
0:48:01 > 0:48:04I found out it's a very interesting area.
0:48:04 > 0:48:10First of all, the funny dwellings, all of these troglodyte caves everywhere and the nice landscape.
0:48:10 > 0:48:13I thought it might be a nice scene for a thesis.
0:48:13 > 0:48:17So I started doing field research in the area.
0:48:17 > 0:48:22And well, later on, many years later, I came back.
0:48:22 > 0:48:26Gulcan, what do people think around here about a German
0:48:26 > 0:48:31moving into one of these caves that everyone else was leaving?
0:48:31 > 0:48:32They get surprise.
0:48:32 > 0:48:36They state why he is living here,
0:48:36 > 0:48:40he is a secret agent,
0:48:40 > 0:48:42007, like James Bond or something.
0:48:42 > 0:48:45- He looks like James Bond!- Yes.
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Probably did then.
0:48:47 > 0:48:50- LAUGHTER - All of the Bond girls!
0:48:50 > 0:48:54Yes. Here, this house, almost 30 or 40 years
0:48:54 > 0:48:59nobody lived in it before, because it was empty.
0:48:59 > 0:49:00The whole broken houses.
0:49:00 > 0:49:04When I was a little child, when I come to my grandparents,
0:49:04 > 0:49:08if I get naughty with my brother, they always say,
0:49:08 > 0:49:16"Don't. You have to be OK, just stop. Otherwise we are going to put you in the ghost house."
0:49:16 > 0:49:21- We call this area ghost house. - You call these ghost houses?- Yes.
0:49:21 > 0:49:23What kind of ghosts?
0:49:23 > 0:49:28There are two different kinds of ghosts. The nice ones, they call them the fairies.
0:49:28 > 0:49:31These are the good ghosts, or fairies.
0:49:31 > 0:49:40- The bad ones, the bad spirits which are gathering in the green waters. - They take you into the water.
0:49:40 > 0:49:44They take you into the water and drown you and give you bad energy.
0:49:44 > 0:49:48People still believe it.
0:49:48 > 0:49:50I believe, but it's not true.
0:49:50 > 0:49:52But it's scary.
0:49:58 > 0:50:01- You go first. - No, after you.- OK.
0:50:04 > 0:50:06It's nice today.
0:50:08 > 0:50:10OK.
0:50:10 > 0:50:12Careful down there.
0:50:12 > 0:50:14- Perilous this.- Yes.
0:50:14 > 0:50:16You don't have railings.
0:50:16 > 0:50:20- Yes. It's still in progress.- Ha-ha!
0:50:20 > 0:50:25- It's sporting.- The good thing is the pond down there, if it's not frozen.
0:50:25 > 0:50:28You can fall in that.
0:50:37 > 0:50:41The caves have provided refuge for many,
0:50:41 > 0:50:45none more so than early Christians who came here fleeing persecution.
0:50:45 > 0:50:49They built an estimated 1,000 rock churches in Cappadocia.
0:50:49 > 0:50:53It's an area where you have lots of churches from different periods.
0:50:53 > 0:50:54You know. Very close together.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57Was this early Christianity?
0:50:57 > 0:51:01Well, it's a very important area, especially over here,
0:51:01 > 0:51:05you have lots of different churches from different times.
0:51:05 > 0:51:09In early Christianity, the area where also the Trinity was,
0:51:09 > 0:51:14let's say, invented with the Father, God and Holy Spirit.
0:51:14 > 0:51:18- That idea was...? - It all kind of developed over here
0:51:18 > 0:51:23and later on became of that orthodox part in Christianity.
0:51:23 > 0:51:27How long were the Christians here for? How long were these
0:51:27 > 0:51:29sort of working churches?
0:51:29 > 0:51:33Well, you know, it started in the 6th century and would last until
0:51:33 > 0:51:35the 12th and 13th century,
0:51:35 > 0:51:40even the time when Ottomans already invaded Turkey.
0:51:42 > 0:51:49Anders tells me that human habitation goes way beyond the early years of Christianity.
0:51:49 > 0:51:55People were living here, you know, from Neolithic times onwards.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59They had some trading contacts to Mesopotamia,
0:51:59 > 0:52:03where they traded the volcanic glass,
0:52:03 > 0:52:09which they used for cutting the harvest. That's how...
0:52:09 > 0:52:13It wouldn't be the Silk Route, but it would be going across it?
0:52:13 > 0:52:15Yes, it's a very early trade line.
0:52:15 > 0:52:19Afterwards, more and more people settled down in the area.
0:52:19 > 0:52:21Cos it's rather fertile, you know.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33In some churches, there are wall paintings in stunning condition.
0:52:33 > 0:52:38Protected over the centuries from direct sunlight, though sadly not from the hand of man.
0:52:38 > 0:52:43The faces scratched out, was that... They've scratched the faces out,
0:52:43 > 0:52:46was that a deliberate policy at some time?
0:52:46 > 0:52:49Later on, when the Turks came, they were afraid of the evil eye.
0:52:49 > 0:52:52So they scratched out the faces,
0:52:52 > 0:52:59especially the eyes, cos they kept flocks and animals in the caves.
0:52:59 > 0:53:05- They thought the eyes were somehow had some spirit quality?- Exactly.
0:53:06 > 0:53:12Would you like to learn for your feature, I have a friend of mine. She's just living over here.
0:53:12 > 0:53:16Gulcan is more interested in the future than the past.
0:53:16 > 0:53:21She wants me to meet a neighbour who can read fortunes from looking in a cup of coffee.
0:53:21 > 0:53:27I never know if it's a good thing to know about what is going to happen.
0:53:27 > 0:53:32She says bad things and good things. Most of the time, it's coming true.
0:53:32 > 0:53:38- Does your neighbour read your fortune?- Yes, sometimes.
0:53:38 > 0:53:41- Good things? - Good things and bad things.
0:53:41 > 0:53:44- You seem a happy sort of person though?- Oh, yes. Yes.
0:53:44 > 0:53:47- You generally think news is good for you?- Yes.
0:53:47 > 0:53:51I'm interested in exciting and nice things.
0:53:51 > 0:53:55Also she says bad things, of course, I get really upset.
0:53:55 > 0:54:01- I turn it upside down.- Yes. Yes.
0:54:01 > 0:54:05- Put it down there. - And let it wait for a while.
0:54:05 > 0:54:10When it becomes cold here, it means it's ready.
0:54:10 > 0:54:13It takes time for them to dry out.
0:54:13 > 0:54:16- So it's against Islamic law?- Hmm.
0:54:16 > 0:54:23Yes. For Islamic things, this thing, I'm really not a good Muslim person.
0:54:23 > 0:54:28I'm not really a religious person.
0:54:28 > 0:54:33This kind of things is for Muslim people, they say never, ever do it.
0:54:33 > 0:54:36They don't accept such things, they say it's a sin.
0:54:36 > 0:54:39But we do.
0:54:39 > 0:54:44Also sometimes men, they are very interested in such things.
0:54:44 > 0:54:49But mostly maybe 80% is women that are more interested in than men.
0:54:49 > 0:54:53- That's interesting. - Yes, I like it very much!
0:54:53 > 0:54:55SHE SPEAKS IN HER LANGUAGE
0:54:58 > 0:55:00OK, will you meet a rich lady.
0:55:00 > 0:55:03She will make you tied here.
0:55:03 > 0:55:05You don't want to go!
0:55:05 > 0:55:09- That's interesting. - It's really interesting.
0:55:09 > 0:55:13- There is new love for you.- Well.
0:55:13 > 0:55:16You will get very good news.
0:55:16 > 0:55:20You will be happy and you will jump like a kangaroo.
0:55:20 > 0:55:24You will be very happy, she says.
0:55:24 > 0:55:28- Is this to do with meeting the lady or is this separate?- Ha-ha!
0:55:29 > 0:55:34- TRANSLATION: - Maybe. Maybe or not.
0:55:34 > 0:55:36Oh, well.
0:55:43 > 0:55:45That's really interesting.
0:55:45 > 0:55:51You are going to meet this rich lady in the internet chat.
0:55:51 > 0:55:54- Like a teenager.- A chatroom.
0:55:54 > 0:55:57I can't work the chatrooms!
0:55:59 > 0:56:01Arichlady.com.
0:56:07 > 0:56:10Caves and internet chatrooms?!
0:56:10 > 0:56:13It's most confusing.
0:56:13 > 0:56:17It certainly stops you making any glib judgments about big cities
0:56:17 > 0:56:19and rural backwaters.
0:56:21 > 0:56:25It feels strange, unfamiliar, and very foreign out here
0:56:25 > 0:56:29in Asian Turkey. Yet, there's much we have in common.
0:56:29 > 0:56:32Our Christian heritage survived here.
0:56:32 > 0:56:36Sons of Anatolian farmers abandon their fields to run hotels for us.
0:56:36 > 0:56:42As the young move to modern houses, anthropologists save their old ones.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46Separating East and West is a futile preoccupation.
0:56:46 > 0:56:51The future is co-operation. I know - I saw it in the coffee cup!
0:57:37 > 0:57:41Much history has been played out in this hard and mountainous land.
0:57:41 > 0:57:46As political and economic change reverberates through the region,
0:57:46 > 0:57:50it could well see its time come again.
0:57:50 > 0:57:55If Turkey is successful in joining the European Union, and many think she will be, then the new Europe
0:57:55 > 0:58:00will include not just wild and wonderful landscape like this,
0:58:00 > 0:58:05but a whole set of new neighbours, including Syria, Iraq and Iran.
0:58:41 > 0:58:44Subtitling by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:58:44 > 0:58:47E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk