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| Turkish Alison & Steve |
Before Christmas, we spent over a week in Turkey, an
inexpensive six-hour flight from the U.A.E.
We divided our sojourn between Istanbul, formerly Constantinople, the
seat of both the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires; and Selcuk, a stone’s throw
from the ancient Greek-Roman metropolis of Ephesus. Remember all of those second readings from Paul
to the Ephesians? Well, Turkey is the
place (also the former site of Old Testament Sumerian and Hittite rule).
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| Harem and Sultan Quarters at Topkapi Palace |
In Istanbul, we played tourists at the sites everyone on
Trip Advisor visits, including the Topkapi Palace, the Aya Sophia, the Blue
Mosque, the Basilica Cistern, the Grand Bazaar and a Turkish bath. Constructed in 1459, the grand Topkapi estate
once housed 4000 officials, military, and servants, including a friendly harem
and assorted eunuchs. With indoor
plumbing and a harem, the sultan had it pretty good, at parties tossing gold
coins along “the Golden Path.”
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| Outside of the Aya Sophia |
The Aya
Sophia, which you might remember from your history books as either the Sancta Sophia (Latin) or Hagia Sophia (Greek) was begun by Emperor Justinian in 532; the structure served
for almost a millennium as The Great Eastern Orthodox cathedral (then the world’s largest) before its conversion to a mosque in 1453 after the conquest of the Ottoman Turks.As such, the edifice comprises an amalgam of traditions, with bundled
angels, various Byzantine Christ-figures, and assorted huge, black Arab-script
medallions.
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| Inside Hajia Sophia - Angels |
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| Inside Hajia Sophia - Names of Allah |
The Blue Mosque is blue, and still functions as a mosque today. The interior sports intricate blue tiles from Isnik, formerly Nicea. Alison would like to visit there in the future and purchase some tiles; no doubt I will play the pachyderm.
On our way to the Blue Mosque, we met a Kurdish Turk who had
lived in Louisiana and South Carolina.
He gained entrance for us into the mosque and provided an “insider’s
perspective” right before the mosque closed for afternoon prayers.
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| Blue Mosque - Clouds enhance the blue |
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| Inside the Blue Mosque |
After the tour, we scurried back through the
drizzle to his family’s carpet shop to learn about carpets.
We sipped tea, discussed the city of New
Orleans, explored different types of Turkish rugs, and left with two new tribal
Kurdish carpets, which I carried for the remainder of the trip.
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| Runner for Entrance Hall |
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| Influenced by Noah's Ark |
We enjoyed the hidden gem of the Basilica Cistern, an
underground water structure, begun by Justinian (with the help of some 7000
slaves). You may remember Sean Connery
paddling a canoe through the dingy columns in the James Bond film From Russia with Love. Alison, a modern scientist, wants me to note
that all of the columns were recycled from other haunts around the empire. The Medusa head was the best, even if it was
in the dark and flipped on its side.
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| Cistern |
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| Medusa - turned sideways |
Although the Grand Bazaar did not sell a giant Medusa head,
it had everything else. In a hidden,
upstairs room (which caused me to flashback to “Midnight Express”), Alison
purchased a black-leather “Prada” purse for herself and a nice leather school
satchel for me. In addition, I got a red fez with a black tassel, which makes
me look, with my goatee, like a precursor to Atatürk.
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| Purchases secure! |
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| Steve with fez |
The Turkish bath was outstanding. There are no photos allowed of course, so Google
image provides a glimpse inside for you.
The outside light enters the bath just like it did 500 years ago. While our ancestors in Ireland, Scotland, and
other parts of Europe were busy avoiding water and the plague, the Turks were
living in humidor of luxury. My massage
had none of the niceties of the West: no
Windham Hill instrumentals, low lights, or endless convo about avoiding past
injuries. Instead, my masseur wrenched
my joints and cracked my sternum. Monty Python alum Michael Palin had an
Turkish bath experience similar to mine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij8YuHIpOjw. On the hand, Alison found herself pampered in
the hefty bosom of two Turkish grandmothers who sang lilting Turkish songs as
they bathed and then massaged her like an Ottoman princess.
The weather hovered around 35° F, about a forty-degree drop from Abu Dhabi, forcing us
to don light jackets. Near our hotel at
the Crowne Plaza, we found a restaurant with great schnitzel, and belly dancers
of both genders. After several
moderately priced taxis, we successfully transitioned to ultra-cheap public
streetcars with ease.
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| Crown Plaza decorated for Christmas |
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| Trolleys - easy to navigate |
After five days in Istanbul, we flew Turkish Air to Izmir (No,
we did not see Barcelona’s Messi or the injury-ridden Kobe on the flight
: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhFqSlvbKAM)
before renting a car to Selcuk.
Alison
managed the stick shift like a pro.
Anyway,
the pace in bucolic southeastern Turkey was relaxed, a nice respite from city
life.
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| View during our drive to Selcuk |
The Rebetiki Hotel abutted the
entrance of St. John’s Church, where the beloved disciple is buried. The hotel
was simple, but functional and included drinks on the roof and olive tea. The vistas from the roof were amazing,
especially the sunsets. We had a
singular view of three religions: Ruins of the Temple of Artemis, St. John’s
Basilica, and the Isa Bey Mosque.
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| Artemis, St. John, & Isa Bey -3 Religions |
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| Sunset from hotel roof |
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| Steve eating oranges we bought |
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| Rebetiki Hotel in Selcuk |
Because we seemed such gentle yet spirited souls, the innkeeper
Suleiman hosted a going-away barbeque for us on the Aegean Sea. We had intended to fish, but mostly drank
raki (Alison stuck with water and coke).
Like its Greek cousin ouzo, raki is a licorice-based liquor, called
“Lion’s milk” because it turns cloudy in water (A tidbit I learned from reading
the contemporary Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk). On the Winter solstice, Alison
spent a little too much time with her toes in the water and caught a
chill. How did yours truly manage to stave
off illness? MORE Yeni Raki of course.
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| Shopping for beach BBQ |
