Near where we were staying, there was a hillside village of stone houses that had been abandoned in the early 1920's. The actual village (Kayakoy) is said to have been established much earlier by Greek inhabitants. In 1923(ish) there was a movement to relocate all Greek descendants of Turkey back to Greece in exchange for Turks that lived in Greece. This village is a result of that exchange. The families who lived here were told to leave all that they knew of life behind and carry only what was necessary with them. There are not many details concerning this rest of the story because it is a dark stain on the fabric of Turkey's history. What was left behind is a ghostly reminder of how lives can be interrupted by governing authorities based on prejudices. The village was never re inhabited by the Turks because it was rumored that the villagers had poisoned the water supply. The houses had mud and thatched roofs so without regular maintenance they were deteriorated by the elements. There was also an earthquake in the region that damaged many of the homes and the locals who lived in the valley used what they could from these abandoned homes to repair their own. Currently, they are making efforts to try and preserve what is left for historical and touristic value.
Although this was not the impressive ancient structures that we had visited earlier in the week, this village left a larger impression on our minds because the circumstances concerning this place were not so far removed from recent history. The sense here is too familiar to those who walk in and out of the overgrown paths that used to lead to the market or the chapel. Only the wind whistles through the ruins where children's laughter and church bells used to resound. A silent reminder that echos loudly the prejudices of the heart are dangerous destroyers of mankind.