Turkish Delight

 The two sea days on this cruise bracketed our days in Istanbul, so they will be covered in our next post, as I am writing this on Sea Day 2, after two interesting but busy days in this huge city, a new port for us.

First off, to reach Istanbul by ship, we have to sail from the Aegean Sea through the Dardanelles Strait and then through the Sea of Marmara. It's no surprise that Istanbul has such a rich history as a major city - it is at a safe and defensible crossroads between two inland seas, very difficult for anyone to attack from the water.

Channat Callai Fortress. A cemetery for
the victims of the Battle of Gallipoli is nearby

One of the towns along the shore

Istanbul was established as a city by Greek settlers in 657 BCE and known as Byzantium, as these people claimed heritage to the god Byzas, a son of Poseidon. After about 1000 years, Constantine the Great, who had conquered pretty much all of the Mediterranean and Asia Minor, made it his Imperial capital, and first renamed it New Rome, and then Constantinopolis. The name of the city didn't become Istanbul until 1930, after the Turkish war of Independence.

Arriving in Istanbul, we first passed the two most famous places - the Blue Mosque on the left with 6 minarets, and then the larger Hagia Sophia. And look - scaffolding!!

Beside Hagia Sophia that large walled enclosure is Topkapi Palace, as we later discovered.

Much of the history and historical architecture of Istanbul comes from the Byzantine (330-1453) and Ottoman (1453-1922) empires, as they ruled the longest, with a brief 60 year blip under Latin rule by the Fourth Crusaders in the mid-1200s. There is as much archaeology going on in Istanbul as there is in Rome or Alexandria.

On Wednesday we had an all-day tour that was supposed to take us to the famous Blue Mosque. This was not in the original tour description, and when we got the notice that women had to wear skirts that reached (close to) their ankles and a shawl for head covering, we were a little panicky that we could come up with something to fit the bill. Fortunately I had both a long enough skirt and a pashmina with me. The only unfortunate thing was that our tour was on the ONE DAY that they closed the mosque for construction. That's our luck sometimes. The group who booked this tour on day 2 did get into the mosque. We went to the Mosque of Suleiman the Magnificent instead.

The aqueducts date from Roman times

There are many Roman structures dating from the Byzantine period, including the aqueducts, the Hippodrome where chariot races took place, the cistern under the old city and, according to our guide, the remains of a huge colosseum complex that will never be excavated because they would disturb both the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia.

The Suleiman Mosque was built for the Ottoman ruler between 1550 and 1557 and sits on the Third Hill of Istanbul. It was designed by the architect Mimar Sinan, who was responsible for many other significant buildings and mosques of that time. The Sultan wanted a mosque to eclipse all others, including the Hagia Sophia, so it is built in a similar style, but even larger. The mosque has a capacity of 27,000 worshippers.

One of the courtyard windows. There is beautiful
tilework all around the mosque

In order to enter the mosque as a visitor, we had to remove our shoes and go in with either socks or bare feet, and women had to have a head covering as well as the longer skirt. Our guide provided us with reusable bags to carry our shoes. As he said, you could leave your shoes in the area outside, but there was no guarantee that someone else wouldn't like yours better than their own, and they might disappear.

Muslims pray on their knees, and before going in to do so must perform their ablutions. There are taps and seats, in front of the arches on the photo of the mosque above, which were an innovation for the time. I can't imagine 27,000 people all waiting to wash their feet, hands and mouths before entering.

The interior of the mosque is quite beautiful, with gorgeous stained glass windows, tilework and calligraphy.

One thing we noticed was the large number of cats and dogs, as you will recall from our post on Ephesus. Many of the animals roam free and it is the responsibility of the municipalities to make sure they are spayed or neutered and remain healthy. In most communities, people will put out food and water for them, and in return they help control the unwanted pests. This particular cat came in and parked herself in just the perfect spot. All the people standing behind her moved just as I was about to take the picture, and here she is:

On the opposite wall behind the cat you can see the staircase
to the Imam's podium and the representation
of Mecca

A photo of us in the mosque. The orange things 
around our necks are our Vox Boxes, that 
we use to hear our guides give their commentary

The courtyard of the mosque, with a covered fountain
in the centre

Most large mosques have a number of outbuildings, 
often used for meditation and teaching.

Also outside the mosque and in the cemetery is the tomb of Suleiman. It is an impressive building itself and was erected by his son, the next sultan, after his death.

That certainly was an interesting visit. From the mosque, we went on to Topkapi Palace, which was the residence of the sultans and the administrative centre of Ottoman Empire. It is now a museum with exhibit halls showing among other things, the kitchens (500 cooks for 15,000 residents and workers), the treasury with its jewels, and most importantly and very interesting, the harem, where the sultan's wives and concubines lived.

The main gate to Topkapi

The entrance to the Imperial Council
pavilion

The harem rooms are very beautifully decorated, and probably the most popular section of the museum, although details of its use remain a well-kept secret. It was forbidden for anyone to speak or write about what went on in the harem section of any palace, so there's a lot of speculation about the conniving and posturing that went on to bring certain wives or concubines into favour with the sultan. There are stories about children even being killed by women here to make sure they could not become the favourite son of the sultan. If only these walls could talk.....

The only part of the harem rooms accessible to the outside world was where the food was brought across the courtyard from the kitchens. This area is known as the Courtyard of the Eunuchs - the Sultans obviously wanted to make sure nobody could poach on their preserves, and made sure in the most definite way that it could never happen. Even the eunuchs could only go into one room to leave the food, which was then picked up by female slaves to be served. The Chief Harem Eunuch was responsible for the schooling of the princes, which was also done near this courtyard.

The tilework all over the palace is amazing, but these tiles are coloured with an iron containing a substance called bole which makes the bright red. It is not used any more, but apparently even a small piece of tile dating from the late 1400s can sell for quite a lot of money.

A small section of a wall showing the Iznik
tile with its red bole

An interior fountain

There are apparently over 400 rooms in the Harem, of which maybe 30 are open to the public as part of the museum. 

And then there's the outside areas. There are 4 courtyards to Topkapi Palace, but most of the interesting exhibits are in the Second Courtyard. This is a terrace within the harem area. This building is the Twin Kiosk, the apartments of the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince, while being schooled, lived here in seclusion until he was sent to govern one of the provinces and prove his administrative ability to the sultan.

A fountain on the side of one of the buildings, with tulips in the garden. Tulips actually didn't originate in the Netherlands, but are from this area. The Dutch were just better at marketing, as our guide put it. There are tulip references and motifs all over the city. The bloom season for them is just about over, so they aren't looking at their best.

We also saw the treasury exhibits, which included jewel-encrusted swords, the Topkapi Dagger and the Spoonmaker's Diamond. The diamond is 86 carats, surrounded by brilliants. The guard was moving people along past it so I couldn't grab a photo. Some of the other pieces are quite beautiful, too.

The Topkapi Dagger, with 3 large emeralds on the
hilt, and diamonds and enamel. It was made in 1747

A collection of jewel-studded carafes
and mugs

Some lovely pieces that reminded me
of Christmas ornaments that Larry's
aunt used to make

One room had a number of copies of the Koran,
of varying sizes and in bejeweled and even
golden covers and cases. This is a beautifully
illuminated manuscript.

Once more outside, we found a few other pavilions with beautiful outer decoration and tilework.

On our way to the restaurant for lunch, our guide took us to the parks between the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia so we could get the best photos of both buildings, which we will have to see on our next visit to Istanbul, whenever that may be.

The Blue Mosque

Hagia Sophia

We had lunch (that was not listed in the original tour description) at a great Michelin-starred restaurant a 10-minute walk from the palace and mosques. I looked up the restaurant's website, which is amazing, to get the names of the dishes we ate.

We started with appetizer spreads like hummus, muammara, babagannous, and what they call 'spicy salad' served with fresh flatbreads.

Babagannous

Spicy Salad

 

We then had these small phyllo dough and cheese pieces they call Sailor Rolls

And for our main course, tandoori lamb served with bulgur

For dessert, the best baklava I've ever tasted. I always found the Greek version too sweet, but this has chopped pistachio in it as well and less honey. Delicious! Another one of those places that stay on the list to visit when we might next be in Istanbul.

After lunch, which went from 2:00 to about 3:15, we walked a little further to the Grand Bazaar. The outside part of the bazaar looked like any other shopping street anywhere in the world, but without the big name stores. Then we walked through an archway, past a mosque (no surprise there!) and into the covered part of the bazaar. Our guide told us to stick to the main passage, as we could easily get lost if we went down the side aisles. And we could see why! Even though there were crowds of people everywhere, the shopkeepers were all asking for customers. And they're all eagle-eyed. It was hard to sneak a photo of some of the more interesting places.

The main hall 

Multiple shops sold jewelery, especially the Evil Eye,
an amulet that protects the wearer from harm

One of the many shops selling Turkish Delight
sweets as well as baklava and other things

A lamp shop with beautiful pieces.

As everyone knows, we're no shoppers, and we don't like crowds, so we didn't last too long in the bazaar. In fact, everyone on the tour voted to cut the bazaar visit by a half-hour so we could get back to the ship a little earlier. On the way back, I found a couple of shops to take photos of:

This is a shop selling Turkish Delight, Baklava and
other sweet treats

A shop selling everything you need for tea, coffee,
and dessert

We had dinner in Umi Uma on Wednesday evening, and only managed to get through the sushi, sashimi and a small plate of tempura before we called it a meal.

On Thursday, we had a much shorter tour that involved quite a bit less walking. We visited the Asian side of Istanbul and the Beylerbei Summer Palace of the Sultans before boarding a tour boat to see Istanbul from the Bosporus Strait.

A mosque on a hill not far from the port. There are something like 3,000 mosques in Istanbul to serve a population nearing 20 million.

On our way across the bridge to the Asian side of Istanbul, we caught a glimpse of the latest, and largest, mosque in the city. It was inaugurated in 2019 by President Erdogan, and has a capacity of 63,000 people. Our guide told us that it is not just for use as a mosque, but also a place of shelter in case of earthquakes. Istanbul is on a fault line, as is much of Turkiye, so as long as this one stands up as well as Hagia Sophia has, the people will have somewhere to go if needed.

One of the small communities on the mostly residential Asian side. Small shops with apartments above, nice homes, and many people grow produce in their plots in community gardens. Many of the local greengrocer shops sell these locally grown vegetables and herbs.

We had a tea break in a lovely bakery/cafe. I was certainly tempted to buy something to take back!

Another one of the friendly local cats. Today's guide told us she and her neighbours take turns putting out food and water and giving the cats a little attention.

Beylerbei Palace was a summer residence of the Sultan Abdulaziz, built in the mid 1800s. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed inside, so the over-the-top French style of decoration of that period can't be shown here. It is a beautiful palace nonetheless, with gigantic crystal chandeliers, some coming from Murano, and French and Italian porcelain everywhere. It is said that the sultan even had a brief affair here with Empress Eugenie of France, the wife of Napoleon III.

One very plentiful tree that happens to be in bloom right
now is the Judas Tree, with its purple flowers.

One of the deer statues in the garden.

And another tulip. This is a beautiful one that
looks almost like a peony.

After this visit, we boarded our tour boat and saw some beautiful homes along the water's edge. They are among the most expensive real estate in Istanbul and many are owned by the richest families in the country.

Back on the European side of the Bosporus, we also passed some of the best hotels - the Four Seasons, recently voted the best hotel in Europe, the Kempinski Palace, which actually does include rooms in a former palace - for $2,500 US a night! - and another very nice site currently under renovation that is slated to become one of the exclusive hotels.

Some houses along the water on the European side

Yet another mosque! But a lovely one.

That's finally it for this post. I will leave the description of our sail back along the Dardanelles Strait for the next post. We had some commentary from one of our guest entertainers, Turkish pianist Naki Ataman, who also pointed out the memorials to those lost in the Battle of Gallipoli in World War I.

After today's day at sea, we're back into the ports and islands of Greece.

What's Kusadasi Without Flying Carpets??

 We arrived in Kusadasi - correctly pronounced Koo-sha-da-se - to a lovely day with expected high temperatures in the range of 26 degrees. Nice to know that weather forecasting here is just as good as it is a home. We hit an afternoon high of 32 according to my phone.

As we had already toured the archaeological site at Ephesus a few years ago, and were going to an evening classical concert there last night, we opted for an excursion to the Ottoman towns of Birgi and Tire. It involved a lengthy bus ride each way, but we got to see some of the rural scenery of western Turkiye (also the correct spelling).

We spent most of the excursion in Birgi, which has a very long history, dating back to the 1st Century BCE, and has been on the UNESCO Tentative World Heritage Site list since 2012. It seems to take UNESCO a very long time to make final decisions. Birgi has survived through the control of Greeks, Persians, Romans, Byzantines and Ottomans, so it must have been culturally and economically significant not to have been destroyed at some point.

This part of Turkey was on the original Silk Road, the trade route that sent good like silk and spices from China to Byzantium or Constantinople, which is now Istanbul. But we'll leave more about that until we reach Istanbul tomorrow. On our drive we passed a fortress high on a hill that dates back to the Silk Road days.

When we reached Birgi, our first stop was the public washrooms. You can't have cruise ship passengers go more than 2 hours without access to washrooms!! Our guide warned us that they weren't luxurious, but even according to Larry they were 'primitive'.  Some of the other comments made me think they dated back to the Ottomans, just like the rest of the town.

Our second stop was a silk weaver (no surprise there) to see how they make the fabrics. As pure silk is quite expensive, even though it lasts forever, many weavers have started to include cotton or fine wool in their materials, using them as warp (the up and down base threads) in their materials, and using silk for the weft threads and patterns.

After this visit and a little 'free time', we visited a mosque. The Grand Mosque is under renovation (surprise!) and is currently closed, so we went into this smaller mosque instead, and had the basics of Muslim religious observances explained to us. Turkey is 99% Muslim, with the other 1% made up of all sorts of other religions, including Jewish, who all coexist peacefully with each other.

All mosques are designed in a similar fashion, with the lower floor for the men to pray, and a balcony area for the women. The painted archway on the main floor is the representation of Mecca, the holy site of Islam. When praying, all Muslims must face Mecca, so this represents the direction to pray. Behind the doorway is a staircase leading up to a small platform is the Muslim version of the Catholic pulpit, where the priest makes his sermon each week. The Muslim Imam does something similar on Fridays, which is the Muslim holy day.

Next we hopped back on the bus (it was a small bus) and drove to our next stop which was the oldest part of Birgi that is still standing. These houses date back a couple of hundred years. Many don't look like much on the outside, but some are fairly deep with nice courtyards.

This last place was a shop that specializes in dried fruits, vegetables and herbs and also sells various juices and other products. It is also a tea room where we were served a refreshing little glass of Turkish tea.

They also sold toys and handicrafts like pottery
and these little things. I'm not sure what they are but
they're quite colourful!

Some of the spices, including dried mushrooms,
oranges and blood oranges as well. These
are used quite liberally in Turkish cooking

Hanging peppers, mushrooms, even eggplant, are
among the items sold here.

After our tea break,  we wandered around the town a little more and learned about Birgi's importance as a centre of theological learning. Up until the time of Turkiye's independence in 1923, there were still schools of learning that were led by the Imams.

For lunch, which we didn't know about as it wasn't in the tour description, we were taken to a small boutique hotel in one of the old houses. The grandson of the original owner took the house over, renovated it to include guest rooms, lounges and a restaurant, served us a lovely traditional Turkish lunch.

Our appetizer platters included dolmas (stuffed
grape leaves), zucchini salad, tomatoes and
baba ganoush. We were also served borek, which
is phyllo dough stuffed with cheese

The lunch was so good, I forgot to take a photo of the main course! It was tandoori lamb on pitas with rice. The rice had dried mushrooms and currants and some lovely spice flavours in it as well.

Dessert was a simple cake that was probably soaked
in orange juice or something similar. It was also
delicious.

This was the view from the restaurant in the 
rear of the hotel.

After lunch we headed back toward Kusadasi, stopping at the town of Tire. It has a history as a textile town, where much of the economy was based on weaving silk and angora (from goats) as well as being a place for the caravans to rest their pack animals. There doesn't seem to be much of an old town left here, except for the caravanserai, a high building with a large courtyard where travelers and traders could house themselves and their animals during the journey to Constantinople. We had tea, or coffee, there as well - these Turks sure like their coffee breaks!

One of the particular ways of processing fabric here is felting. As a knitter I know felting - that's where you knit a piece in wool, wash it in hot water and dry it. This messes the wool fibres up and knots them together so you get a thick, practically indestructible, fabric. Here they take some felted bits and coloured raw wool and make a design. Then they cover it with a small pile of raw wool and press them together. This used to be done by sitting on one's knees and pressing, but now they use a machine and press for an hour to create the felted fabric.

This family business used to make rugs, but switched to felting. Now they use their materials, which they also use to embellish silks, for everything from table cloths to jackets and hats, but especially shawls. It was so unique I purchased a shawl for myself.

So that was it for the tour. On the way back I managed to draw a little ink and watercolour sketch of some of the buildings in my mini sketchbook. Yes, I painted it on the bus too!

We had about an hour and a half after we got back to prepare for the evening's event - a classical concert at Ephesus. The dining room was opening 15 minutes early so the tour participants could have enough time to eat dinner before we left. We had to have something, even after that big lunch, so we opted for lighter dishes.

Our group of about 60 people arrived in Ephesus a little after 7 p.m., which was just after dusk. The area around the Odeon was scattered with tables holding nuts, vegetable crudites and the like, and waiters were serving Turkish red and white wines. We were told that we couldn't have the concert at the library because of some official edict. We're not entirely sure of that, since Silver Spirit was also in town with us and left just before we did at 11 p.m. Hmmm......

A trio serenaded us during the pre-concert canapes

We sat about 3 rows up the the Odeon, the smaller amphitheatre. These structures are 5,000 years old, and the acoustics are so good, we could hear every note, even whey they played very softly.

There is a colony of feral cats around the ruins, and a few of them came to visit before and during the performance. So it isn't just domestic cats that like classical music!

We also had a canine companion for the concert. He came and went, and came back, and was chased away by the waiters and tour staff, and finally plopped himself down on an upper bench until we were done. At times he practically stole the show!

We left port at 11 p.m., with the lit up fortress behind us. A busy day, and we had a sea day today to catch up on a couple of things.

Back to being busy tomorrow, as we have an all-day tour in Istanbul.