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Turkey
The flight from Athens to Istanbul
was about an hour and, again, without event. The airplane
is performing flawlessly and, of course, our crew is without
equal. An entourage of friendly people met us at the Istanbul
airport and quickly delivered our luggage and us to a waiting
black Mercedes S600 and we were off to the Four Seasons. (As
you can tell, travelling is a bitch.)
The Four Seasons Hotel in Istanbul
is the best hotel we have every experienced. It is centrally
located in the old part of the city within walking distance
of most of the sights. It is a converted prison so I guess
you could say that we spent three nights in a Turkish prison
(Midnight Express). The building is beautiful both inside
and out. It has only sixty rooms so, although it had all the
amenities including a wonderful bar and glassed-in dining
room, it felt intimate. We upgraded to a Deluxe Suite for
an extra $200 per night, a decision we did not regret. Our
living room had windows on three sides with views of the Bosphorus,
the Blue Mosque, and the inner courtyard of the hotel. The
staff was very friendly and well trained. This was the beginning
of what we were about to discover was a warm relationship
with the Turkish people.
Our guide was a twenty-eight
year old young man, Artun Ertem. His uncle is a physicist
working in quantum physics at the Jet Propulsion Labs in California.
He works with Steven Hawking (black holes and stuff). Wow!
Friday, we took the day off
and enjoyed the hotel. We both had massages, I worked on my
journal, edited the pictures we took in Greece, and watched
CNN International. Ashley sent out a number of Emails and
relaxed.
Saturday morning, we began our
tour by visiting the underground cistern that was built by
the Eastern Roman Empire back when Istanbul was known as Constantinople.
It was built in 532 AD. This was known as the Byzantine period.
The city had previously gotten its water from aqueducts that
were also built by the Romans. These aqueducts proved to be
unreliable during wartime therefore they built the cistern.
They were having a lighted art show the day we were there
and we took some snapshots that you can see in the Gallery.
We next visited the St. Sophia
Church that was built in 537 AD by Justinian who, by the way,
was a Christian. The church was later converted into a Mosque
after the conquest of the city by the Ottoman's who were Muslim.
Turkey is now over 99% Muslim. St. Sophia's was the first
church in the world constructed with a large dome.
We then went to the Archaeological
Museum where we saw many artifacts from the Hellenistic period
that preceded the Romans. It seems that Alexander the Great
roared through the area in the 4th century BC and established
Greek rule. We saw what is purported to be the Sarcophagus
(fancy coffin) of Alexander.
We next visited the Chora Church
whose walls and ceiling are covered with mosaics from the
12th century AD and frescoes from the 14th century AD. We
then went to the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent that was
built in the 16th century AD. We were there when they had
one of the five daily calls to prayer. The sound echoes from
minarets (tall towers) all over the city.
The day's tour ended with a walk
through the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market. Ashley was
dressed in black pants, a black top, and had a black scarf
tied on her head. She fit right in with the traditionally
dressed Turkish women. She was a hoot. Several of the shopkeepers
pointed at her as they laughed and said, "Turkish Woman" in
English of course.
Sunday morning, we visited the
Topkapi Palace that was built in 1465 AD. It was the home
of the Ottoman Sultans and their harems. Four thousand people
lived within its walls. The harem was quite large and housed
the Sultan's wives and favorites (wife wannabes). The hanky-panky
room was quite interesting. It had two large, elevated lounging
areas that they would cover with pillows before lying down
for their recreation. When I asked the guide why there were
two areas, he said I should use my imagination. The Sultans
apparently had good imaginations of their own.
Everyone we met in Istanbul was
friendly and hospitable. The masseuse even tried to explain
Islam to me in very broken English. It was as though he wanted
to share his great joy. The Turks all described Islam as a
religion of love and tolerance. They all condemned the terrorists
and stated emphatically that they were not representing the
Muslim faith. Everywhere
we have visited there is suffering from the result of September
11. Business is down and people are losing their jobs. The
pain was particularly evident in Turkey.
The ride back to the Istanbul
airport Sunday afternoon was especially touching. Our driver
was the same one we had had when we arrived three days before.
We had a little extra time so we asked him if he would drive
us up the Bosphuros to the part of the city that lies in Asia
Minor. It was a rainy dreary day so that the views were not
as good as they could have been. We began a conversation with
the driver and discovered that he had not had a single fare
since we had arrived. Almost all of the tourists, both American
and European, have cancelled their travel plans.
We asked him about his family
and he said he had a wife and two daughters, five and nine
years of age. He said his older daughter's school tuition
had been due the week before but he had not been able to pay
it. He was hoping to pay next week. It made us very sad but
also angry at the terrorists that have caused so much pain
throughout the world.
I feel a sense of responsibility
as an American that I never understood before. It comes with
being a citizen of the most powerful nation on Earth. Our
economy and our military are depended upon to provide opportunity
and stability for people everywhere. I suppose the best way
we can help everyone else is to keep America strong. Guess
I'd better quit before I get too heavy.
We arrived in Izmir Sunday around
5:00 PM. We approached from over the Aegean Sea and had a
great view of the city and its harbor. We checked into the
Hilton and retired to our room on the 30th floor with a view
of the water.
Monday morning, our guide met
us at 9:00 AM with a driver in a twelve passenger yellow minibus
(just Tom, Ashley, and me). It was about an hour drive to
Ephesus. The city was rebuilt three times on the site we visited.
The main reason it was rebuilt so many times was earthquakes.
The Romans built the latest version in the second century
AC but the city was originally Greek. At the height of its
glory, 250,000 people lived there.
We finished the day with a visit
to a place where they hand make rugs. We observed the process
of pulling the silk from the cocoon and we watched the girls
tie the knots as they created the rugs. We concluded by enjoying
a presentation of some of their inventory and, yes, buying
one. Again, their business was severely depressed by the events
of September 11. We then returned to the hotel to prepare
for our departure from Western culture the next morning.
Till next time, Pat
Well, y'all get a lot of detail
from everybody about the history of different areas that we've
visited, so I'll try to give you more of a "what it's like
to be here doing this". Most of you have asked, "Aren't you
going to get tired of living out of a suitcase?" The answer
to this is not to completely unpack every night. In one of
my carry-ons (bag #1) I have all underwear, socks, a pair
of jammies, slippers and a couple of clean shirts as well
as my dop kit with all make-up, conditioner and hair stuff.
I also have an outfit that doesn't wrinkle for dinner & 1
pair of big earrings. Another small bag (#2) contains all
my shoes (9 pair, guys, and that's cutting back!). The third
bag (the biggie) has all the rest. Since we have a small army
that meets us at each stop, I don't have to worry about how
heavy it is. (Pat puts a towel on the bed and lifts the biggie
for me whenever I need something.) They take it all (all three
bags) through security, and I just walk behind like I don't
have anything to do (which I don't). When we get to the room,
I just unzip bag #1, and everything's in there for about two
days. If I need or want a change from the biggie, it's there.
We send laundry about every third or fourth stop. When we
leave the room, it all fits back together on wheels, and all
I have to do is get it down to the lobby, and somebody comes
running as soon as I step off the elevator. There's usually
plenty of time to do this, because at some time during the
day or evening, one of us is using the laptop to stay in touch.
Enough of that.
We just left Turkey Istanbul
and Ephesus. I'll begin by saying that the Four Seasons in
Istanbul is in a class by itself. They opened it in 1997 after
renovating it from serving as a Turkish prison. Couldn't find
out any information about it's history, nor a "before" picture
of the place strange. Anyway, the outside is painted a bright
golden ocre, and all doors and windows are surrounded with
stone. A terracotta box of geraniums is in every window, and
the dining room is round and glassed-in. Very small and intimate.
There's a sun room off the dining room with a glass ceiling.
If the dining room's closed, you may have a late lunch here
(which we did).
We had a guide and driver in
Istanbul. He was 28 but turning gray and was very mature for
his age. He still lives with his parents, as do most young
men until they go off to school or get married. He was very
knowledgeable and literally drowned us with facts, names and
dates. Pat remembers all of it, and I kept wondering when
we were going to move on, window shop or eat lunch. (You find
out just how different you are from each other on a trip like
this but opposites do attract.)
I'm writing this as we approach
the Persian Gulf, so I'd better take a break and pay attention.
Ashley
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