In Foca you wake to the sound of birds in the trees and in the distance, you hear the distinctive motors of the small fishing boats leaving the harbour in the Little Sea (cucuk deniz). Mornings are usually bright and the sky is blue for most of the year. Even in winter you can still have breakfast in the morning sun. A two or three minute walk from my home (a Greek stone house or "tas ev" in a pretty little square of similar houses) brings you to the Little Sea, where you can sit in one of many cafes next to the clear water in the harbour and drink your first tea (cay) of the day, together with a simit (a circular bread with sesame seeds) and some local village cheese. Just take a few minutes to watch the boats coming and going and enjoy the views - you will feel yourself adjusting to Foca time.
If it is a Tuesday you will see lots of local people wheeling past you with their trolleys- they are off to the weekly bazaar (pazaar) where you can find just about every kind of vegetable, fruit, herb and spice. The noisy and colourful bazaar stays in town all day and covers a sizeable part of the streets with its stalls, selling clothes, textiles, shoes and just about anything else you can think of, in addition to all of the freshest fruit and vegetables brought into town by farmers from the surrounding countryside.
On other days there are lots of walks to explore - sometimes we will walk around the harbour of the Little Sea by the water's edge and turn into the Big Sea (Buyuk Deniz) - yes we have two harbours in Foca - both with their own character and atmosphere. A couple of hours walking will give you an appetite and there are many cafes, restaurants and bars to choose from, offering a wide range of Turkish cuisine - from snacks such as Ayvalik toast, to meals of fresh lobster and the freshest fish, squid and octopus, all accompanied by a wide range of mezze (small dishes of hot and cold appetisers) and fresh salads. We also have a range of local wines to complement the food and they are very reasonably priced.
If you want to experience another side of Foca then try taking a walk to the "English Nose" (Ingiliz Buruna) which is the headland at the end of the Little Sea - a 30 minute walk will take you to a peaceful haven from which to take in the panoramic views of Foca and the chain of little islands receding into the horizon. You can even take a boat to Fig Island (Incir Ada) and spend the day there with a barbecue and a good book or two - another place to escape to when you want to get away from the crowds.
Evenings follow the pace of the day - a few calls to friends and a plan is made. Sometimes it will it be an "al fresco" barbecue at a friend's house or garden - fresh sardines, hamsi (anchovies), salad, kofte (meat balls), sucuk (spicy sausage), and lots of Raki and wine if you want it! Or maybe we will go to one of the numerous harbour side restaurants by the Little Sea. You can even buy your own fish and take it with you - they will be happy to cook it just how you like it. We have a fish market next to the harbour and every day there is an early morning auction of the catch - a spectacle worth seeing. But if you do not want to get up so early you can call into the market any time during the day or evening and select your fish from a wide variety that is always freshly caught that day.
Which reminds me, Foca is a living fishing town- most of the local people depend on the sea for their livelihood. But those of us who found our way to Foca a little later in our lives tend to be people looking for ways to enjoy a simpler, gentler pace of life - so you will find many interesting people here - artists, musicians, ceramicists (like me), writers, retired professionals and academics etc. and you will also find a warm welcome - Turkish people are very hospitable by nature and have a natural curiosity about most people and things!
If you still have enough energy at the end of the evening you can find something to do in Foca nearly all night long - we even have a 24 hour supermarket which pre-dates the European trend by a few years! At night, for a few drinks or coffee, and even to dance and party a little if you want to, there are three or four cosy and intimate bar/ cafes you can go to after dinner - my friends own a couple of these and I recommend you to drop by - they are Foca Karasi and Bardacik - friendly, unpretentious and a warm welcome - and they play music for people like me who likes Latin, jazz, and blues more than disco and rock.
Of course Foca is perfectly located to travel to well-known touristic sites (Bergama, Ephesus etc) - all within one or two hours drive - but the guide books will tell you about those. I just want you to have a taste of the atmosphere of Foca, of what makes it special for me and my friends, and why, if you step on the black stone (a question you can ask to local people), Foca will forever be in your heart.
A great place to learn more is at www.focafoca.com - a website run by two more of my friends who also stepped on the black stone!
