Istanbul for us Sept 25

Sights of Istanbul

The attached pictures are what we saw as we walked back to our hotel. So colourful, graceful and charming. We have nothing but good memories of this place that is the birthplace of civilization - in many ways.

We thought it wouldn't be right to leave Turkey without having a Turkish Bath. We had seen a sign in our previous hotel and had made an appointment for our final evening. It was a super experience.
First we had to shower, (no soap, just get all wet) – then we wrapped a light cloth around us and were guided to the sauna room. It was very hot in this room. The wooden bench that we sat on was the only one we could actually sit on – the others were way too hot. We may have been in there 15 minutes before she came to 'rescue' us.

We were taken to the bathing room where we sat by beautiful fluted, marble basins and our helpers turned the waters on and then dipped a copper bowl in and poured it over us. This was repeated for some time and then she instructed us to keep doing this for the next 5 minutes. From there we were taken to the actual hamam – that is a raised (and heated) marble bed which was big enough for both of us. Here more water is poured on us and then we are scrubbed with loofah pad. The job is thorough and feels good. Next we are foamed with 5 inches of soap suds, which, when it is being applied feels like a soft duvet being sloshed up and down our body. Then the ladies start a soap scrub, again, softly but firmly washing and rinsing. We are finally ready for the massage which is gentle (probably because of our age). Another shower rinse, towel off, wrap in towel and then we're advised to sit on a lounge chair for 5 minutes – just to let our blood pressure settle. After one hour we were done.

It was exhausting, and refreshing. It certainly left our skin feeling baby soft. We were very glad we experienced a real Turkish Bath.

No photos of the bath experience!!

Istanbul underground cistern

Bascilica Cistern Sept 25

Our next stop was a few blocks up the hill to visit an underground Basilica Cistern. It is a huge underground 'castle' with 336 huge columns with arches and enough water in it to supply Topkapi palace and the Grand Palaces of the Byzantines. I am constantly amazed at the ability of people, these in the 1st century A.D. to be able to build such an outstanding place. Of course many slaves lost their life while working on this task.

It is no longer in use and they have built walkways so that people can walk through the area. There are quite a few large carp swimming there now, I suppose they keep the water clean.

Istanbul, Orient Express

Orient Express Sept 25

We caught a return train to the European side of Istanbul and got off near the old Orient Express train station. It is the famous 'end of the line' for the train that ran between Paris and Istanbul.

Now the old station is used as a museum and cafe and office rooms and a newer station is built beyond it which manages all the trains that still come in through this area. It was possible to see some of the old romance of that era too.

We then strolled along the 'old city' streets and enjoyed many day to day sights. So many shops, and people, and places so foreign to us. We didn't spend much time shopping, there are always too many aggressive salesmen and we don't enjoy that.

Final day of Istanbul.

Istanbul finale Sept 25

Istanbul, Last Day September 25

On our last day in Turkey we awoke early so that we could fit it all in. We breakfasted in the hotel with the remainder of our tour group and then said our goodbyes.

Lewis' and us were only moving to the Home Hotel which was half a block away. They allowed us to put our luggage in our designated rooms, even tho it was not 9 a.m.

We walked up to the city train station and bought a ticket for 1.30 tyl (turkey lira) to Asian side of Istanbul and Dolmabahce palace. We were there shortly after 9 but were delayed entry until after 10 a.m. We gathered with a group who could understand English and were off with a high energy little Turkish gal who directed us through this incredible palace.

It was probably the most opulent living quarters in all of Turkey. In 1843 it was designed by an 16 year old Sultan who only lived until 23 because of Tuberculosis. Two successive sultans lived there, each adding their excesses. There are 285 rooms, 44 halls, 68 toilets, and 6 Turkish Baths.

The final resident was Ataturk. He lived there after bring Turkey into the modern era and he died in 1938 at 53 years of sclerosis of the liver. (A little suspect for a non drinking Islam.)

We were taken through many of the great rooms which have been restored. Beautiful carpets, intricate inlaid flooring, gilded walls and ceiling, and fabulous massive chandeliers. Most were gifts and the the chandelier from Queen Victoria weighed 4.5 tons and is made from lead crystal. Huge and ornate and an example of opulence from another era.

For some reason we were not allowed to take any photos inside the palace but the outside grounds were beautiful too. Inside photos can be seen on their website.

We spotted a little outside cafe and stopped for a quick lunch by the sea and in view of the palace. Noted a very conservative family beside us.

Leaving the Galipoli area we head east and back to Istanbul.

The wide flat valley is still full of goods to be harvested and fields already done.

The freighters on the Dardanelles make their passage east to the Black Sea and return only by this same passage.

Fields of sunflowers, many harvested, many ready to be harvested. In the next city of Callipoli they will be processed into sunflower oil.

We stopped for lunch at another open air restaurant right against the Dardonelles. Very pleasant.

Leaving Callipoli and entering Trace, homeland of Orpheus. His story ends with the lusty Trace women wanting him so much (he was a romantic poet) that when they got their hands on him they tore him to pieces.


Back to Istanbul

Along the gulf here is some of the best deep sea diving. Many summer homes in village type settings and right along the seaside.

Wide open slopes run from as far as you can see and down to the sea. They are all used for various kinds of vegetables.

As we move into the Sea of Marmara area there is a large island of Marmara which still exports very lovely marble. It was used for thousands of years.

The types of fish in this sea used to be 143, now it is 25. They are down to sea bass, mackerel, bonito, and other white fish.

Raki production is best in this area too.

And so we view this beautiful pastoral scenery for miles as we head toward Istanbul.

Galipoli Sept 24

On to Galipoli

The ferry ride is only 40 minutes and when we disembark we turned west to drive to the peninsula of Galipoli.

Our visit is to the National Memorial grounds of the battle of Galipoli. We travel past the area called Bloody Ridge – an area designated because the men were down to fighting with their bayonnets and the ground ran with their blood.

This peninsula especially honours the ANZAC (Australia New Zealand Army Corp) and Turkish soldiers. There were stories of how during times of 'cease fire' the two armies would exchange foods with each other. The Turks gave fresh fruit and vegetables and the ANZAC men returned chocolates and such like. The next day they would be instructed to kill each other.

The campaign for control of the ridge was a horrendous battle of 8 and a half months. 500,000 lives were involved. 85 thousand Ottoman and 60 thousand allies died.

There were terrible errors made by the British who sent the ANZAC in.

We first walked through Lone Pine memorial, a place where the ANZAC military are honoured and buried. Here alone 33 thousand are buried. It was a very poignant and sad walk. I was one of several who cried at the waste of life. It is a beautiful place in which they 'rest'. There are 30 ANZAC cemeteries across this knoll.

Ataturk was responsible for 19 Turkish divisions. Their monument said that they fought like they couldn't lose and then when fighting was over they became men again and bound up the wounds of their enemies. That was said by an Australian commander.

It really was an emotional and sad reminder of a tragic 8 month period of futile 'war games'. God help us all.

The ferry ride is only 40 minutes and when we disembark we turn west and drive to the peninsula of Galipoli.

Our visit is to the National Memorial grounds of the battle of Galipoli. We travel past the area called Bloody Ridge – an area designated because the men were down to fighting with their bayonnets and the ground ran with their blood.

This peninsula especially honours the ANZAC (Australia New Zealand Army Corp) and Turkish soldiers. There were stories of how during times of 'cease fire' the two armies would exchange foods with each other. The Turks gave fresh fruit and vegetables and the ANZAC men returned chocolates and such like. The next day they would be instructed to kill each other.

The campaign for control of the ridge was a horrendous battle of 8 and a half months. 500,000 lives were involved. 85 thousand Ottoman and 60 thousand allies died.

There were terrible errors made by the British who sent the ANZAC in.

We first walked through Lone Pine memorial, a place where the ANZAC military are honoured and buried. Here alone 33 thousand are buried. It was a very poignant and sad walk. I was one of several who cried at the waste of life. It is a beautiful place in which they 'rest'. There are 30 ANZAC cemeteries across this knoll.

Ataturk was responsible for 19 Turkish divisions. Their monument said that they fought like they couldn't lose and then when fighting was over they became men again and bound up the wounds of their enemies. That was said by an Australian commander.

It really was an emotional and sad reminder of a tragic 8 month period of futile 'war games'. God help us all.

Cannakale Sept 23

To Galipoli September 24

Cannakale was a lovely seaport town and we enjoyed our evening there. After our dinner at the very nice hotel we all went for a walk along the seaside promenade and then up a market street. I needed a toothbrush so we wandered around for a while and found one.

I walked into a store that looked somewhat like a small drugstore and quickly found the area where two kinds of toothbrushes were sold. Immediately a small boy (perhaps 10 yrs.) was at my side, ready to help me. I told him in English that I would like to buy 'this' toothbrush and what is the price. He whipped back to the counter (where his dad was busy with 3 other customers) and picked up a calculator and pressed 4 for 4 turkish lira. I said okay and gave him 5 lira. He went to the counter with the toothbrush and put it in a bag and brought it back to me now saying that the toothbrush was 5 lira. I cajoled with him saying I think it is only 4 and he showed me 5 fingers and I showed him 4. He finally conceded and gave me my change. It was such a totally Turkish salesman thing to do and he was so cute about it. A minute later he was back and trying to talk me into buying toothpaste.

Lots of people were out enjoying the evening air and sitting at sidewalk cafes sipping on drinks. It was a very comfortable feeling to be around there.

At 8:30 a.m., after a lovely breakfast in perhaps our nicest hotel, we are once more in the bus and 5 minutes later at the ferry dock where we cross the bay and will again be on the European side of Turkey.

Cannakale and Pergamon Sept 23

To Cannakale Sept 23

We left Izmir and started our next leg of the journey. We travelled around the gulf of Izmir and on parellel to the Aegean Sea as we travel north. We continue through fertile lands for 150 miles and Ziya talks to us about marriages in Turkey.

Our first stop along the way was at Pergamon Acropolis. Named for Pergamom, the grandson of the legendary founder of Troy.

Pergamon was an important place in the ancient times. It was the treasury center, also center of arts and intellectuals. Parchment was invented here – thus the name Pergamon on good parchment paper today.

Christianity found a home here. The Egyptian gods Serapes and Isis converted to Christianity and the gospel was preached in the temples which were converted to churches. They were occupied until the 6th Century.

Pergamon shows the remains of a very large library. It is claimed to have had 200,000 scrolls (and the first parchment books). Mark Anthony later took all the library books to give to Cleopatra and over the ages every book has been lost – none remain.

The platform for the Temple of Zeus is also here but years ago the actual statue was taken to Berlin and is in a museum there.

There are bits of the temple to Trajan and also Hadrian. A large theatre is embedded into the side hill. It was capable of seating 8000 people. That odd perspective photo is the theatre seating from the top.

From here it was 50 miles to Philadelphia.

Cannakale and Pergamon

To Cannakale Sept 23

We left Izmir and started our next leg of the journey. We travelled around the gulf of Izmir and on parellel to the Aegean Sea as we travel north. We continue through furtile lands for 150 miles and Ziya talks to us about marriages in Turkey.

Our first stop along the way was at Pergamon Acropolis. Named for Pergamom, the grandson of the legendary founder of Troy.

Pergamom was an important place in the ancient times. It was the treasury center, also center of arts and intellectuals. Parchment was invented here – thus the name Pergamom and good parchment paper today.

Christianity found a home here. The Egyptian gods Serapes and Isis converted to Christianity and the gospel was preached in the temples which were converted to churches. They were occupied until the 6th Century.

Pergamom shows the remains of a very large library. It is claimed to have had 200,000 scrolls (and the first books). Mark Anthony later took all the library books to give to Cleopatra and over the ages every book has been lost – none remain.

The platform for the Temple of Zeus is also here but years ago the actual statue was taken to Berlin and is in a museum there.

There are bits of the temple to Trajan and also Hadrien. A large theatre is embedded into the side hill. It was capable of seating 8000 people.

From here it was 50 miles to Philadelphia.

Now it's off down the hill and across the valley to Asklepieion (who was the god of medicine). He was the son of Appollo.

Three Asklepieions were built, 2 in this area and one on the island of Kos. There were built as sacred healing centres These were not regular hospitals but people came here when there was no help left at standard medical facilities.

In Asklepieion we saw the theatre area of temple ruins. There was a long roadway, paved with stones, and walkways on each side. A standard style for cities.

I walked through a large circular building that was almost totally underground. It was interesting with arches and large square pillars. It was probably a treatment center.

Ephesus and Izmir

To Ephesus Sept 22

It was a long but interesting drive from Pammukale to Ephesus. We drove across a verdant valley, seeing many fruit orchards on a great 4 lane divided highway.

We saw field workers busy picking crops. One man was cultivating his field by means of walking behind his horse which was pulling a plow. Something out of our past but current in this country.

So many orchards of citrus and olives. Lots of drying racks for fruits and vegetables like figs, grapes, peppers and tomatoes.

We also see stork nests, high atop the hydro towers.

We pass through the city of Audin. Noted that factories of Benneton and Levi are here. The plains of Audin is the heavy cotton growing area.

Also the best figs of Turkey are grown here.

This is ancient Ionia land.

We are heading toward Ephesus, an important city of several civilizations. There were actually 4 cities of Ephesus built on top of each other, or nearby. At one time it was a harbour city but that changed and earthquakes and floods changed the landscape.

The 3rd Ephesus ruin is from the times of Alexander the Great – it was the center of the province of Asia Minor.

Church history says that Mary (mother of Jesus) is likely buried here, the apostle John is buried here and Byzantine remains are over his actually burial place. Paul also visited here twice. There was an early church here dedicated to Mary.

For me it was a poorly put together attempt at reconstructing old ruins. It did cover a large area and there were enough places and pillars that let you know somewhat of what the buildings were for. There was a small arena and a lovely walkway of old mosaics. At the bottom of the hillside walk were the remains of what must have been a beautiful library. It was definitely the highlight.

I had expected to see more of Biblical times but of course those people were really small 'peanuts' in this vast area. There was a time when Christianity reigned in this area but the building of ornamented buildings, etc. was not high on their priority, at least for early christians.

Ephesus, at one time, was one of the seven wonders of the world. We spent 2 hours viewing.


Next stop. Leather factory. We were again welcomed and given a lesson on what material they used (sheep and/or lamb), one leather was lamb skin shaved to the finest skin and it was called lamb silk. Subsequently we were taken to a sitting room where we were offered something to drink, and then watched a live fashion show. Very well done and enjoyed by all.

After that we were invited to their store where we could try on, check out, find a jacket or purse or something leather that was perfect for us. They definitely had styles that were the latest in fashion and the very finest quality leathers.


Izmir September 22

Izmir is the 3rd biggest city in Turkey. In ancient times it was called Smyrna, another city that the apostle John wrote to in the book of Revelation.

Alexander the Great had his dream here of becoming ruler of all Asia. And so that spurred him on to try and conquer all of Asia.

The final battle between the Turks and Greek in their last war was fought here.

We stayed in a 3 star hotel in this city. It wasn't in the best area of town so we invited Marg and Dave over for a card golf game. Hadn't played for weeks and we were all brain dead but enjoyed the evening.

Pammukale

Pammukale Sept 21


The name mean cotton castle.
10,000 years ago and hot spring was running over an area of land. The water temperature was 33C and as it washed over the land it cooled to 29C and that action turned the mineral in the water into calcium carbonate. That mineral started to solidify and petrify and a hard, milk white substance covered the landscape.

It covers a vast area, twice as much as you can get in an overall photo.

In Roman times, because they loved their baths, they shaped some of the bathing pools and made areas for people to relax in.

The water was also thought to have medical properties and many came seeking healing.

In recent years the water has been diverted away from this incredible hillside of pools and is used in the town below and for watering fields, etc. Due to the lack of water now running over the hillside, the pools cannot be used by swimmers. The whiteness is turning yellow in some places, due to not enough water washing it clean. We were allowed to walk through some areas (shoes off) and that was great fun for me. I couldn't keep the smile off my face. Hundreds of people were there to enjoy what they could of the area. I'd go back to Turkey just to do this again.

There is a large necropolis (place of burial) nearby for all those who were never healed but died of their illness.

The place was full of tourists and locals alike. Jim counted 34 tour buses as we were leaving for the hotel – and that was late in the day.

To our surprise the backdrop of this gorgeous hillside is an ancient ruins. Many sights were available as we walked in but I was anxious to get my feet in the water so I didn't spend any time exploring that area. The Romans in particular had brought the place back to vitality.

It is now a Unesco site and I hope that they will somehow manage to bring the waters back where they belong and help find a different source of water for the farmers. I think it can be done.

Aphrodesius Sept 21

Inland to Aphrodesius through a pine forest and over a lower area of the Toros mountain range. Grain fields in the highlands and hundreds of goats being raised.

Small modern housing in villages and all around them were more orchards, fruit stands and farms. The higher we got into the mountains the more it was just like the Chilcotin country in colour and wild vegetation.

We saw tall, white trunk poplar trees. Lots of road construction to improve the good 4 lane divided highway.

Back into grape country, mostly for eating because Moslems don't drink alcohol. The fields varied from tobacco, quince, pear, grapes, melons, sunflower, cabbages, pomegranate, olive, figs and nuts (including pistachio). Plus more.

Aphrodisuis has the largest, best preserved artifacts in the world. The decoration was ornate and beautiful. There was a temple to Aphrodesia (no kidding), a theatre, a stadium and a bath. We were only allowed into one room of the museum but the 3 walls were covered with reliefs, 4 x 6 feet and still with great details, scenes of gods, etc. There were a total of 80+ found and we saw 47 of them.

I have never seen so many crypts and they had great carvings all around them too.

Because this was a place of the great theater, there were so many faces carved, perhaps of actors, or perhaps of the gods they depicted.


After crossing over the low mountain pass we were again on the Aegean side of Turkey and only 130 miles to the sea.

It is a temperate climate and farmers manage at least 2 crops per year. This area supplies 70% of the figs for Turkey, 60% of the cotton, and 50% of the tobacco.

Many poplar, and a river called Meandros. That's where we get the word meander!