TURKEY – November, 2005

Thursday/Friday, November 17-18: Alitalia flight from Miami to Milan (9 hours) and on to Istanbul (2 ½ hours). Istanbul is 7 hours ahead of EST. We were happy that we were able to carry on all of our “luggage”: a pack for clothes and a backpack (each). This bodes well for future trips—not having to check luggage is the best insurance against theft or tampering. We are very happy with our clothes packs and recommend them highly. It is incredible how much they hold yet allow your hands to be free. (Here's the link.) First item of business: hit the ATM in the airport for local currency (New Turkish Lira or YTL). It’s raining and we are expecting this might turn out to be the norm for weather—we’ll hope for better. We were met as promised and transferred to our hotel (Bulvar Palas). It’s a pretty typical tourist hotel—very much like the Regis in Buenos Aires—which is to say, nothing to write home about (yet here we are, “writing home”). Rick wanted to explore a bit, since we had a few hours before meeting our tour group and dinner. Rory lay down and went to sleep, so Rick just went out for water and noted the nearest ATM and internet cafe. We met our (female) guide, Serap and most of the people in our group.

Saturday, November 19: Early wake up call (6:30), luggage outside the room by 7:00 and down to breakfast before leaving for Gallipoli and Troy. The breakfast buffets in Turkey are elaborate: breads, pastries, cold meats and cheeses, cucumber, tomatoes and olives, eggs, sausages, fresh fruit and more. There will be 22 of us (all from the US and Canada). Since our bus seats at least twice that many, we will have plenty of room. It’s a 4 hour ride to Gallipoli. Serap gives us a nice overview of Istanbul. Rick was here 30 years ago and is impressed by how much the highway system has improved. We’ll have rest stops every couple of hours. Along the way we pass through several towns comprised mostly of vacation/weekend houses along the Sea of Marmara. Unlike similar places in the US where there are year round residents, these communities seem almost deserted. We see very few people or cars. Also notable are the colors of the apartment buildings: green, yellow, brick, blue, pink, purple, and beige tones give the towns a very contemporary look.

We are interested to learn (among other things) that eggplant (which is a major export of Turkey) contains nicotine, and people develop addictions to it similar to cigarettes; and that the Navajo language can be traced back to Turkish. We arrive in Gallipoli in plenty of time to catch the 2pm ferry across the Dardanelles. We wandered the town, stopping in shops for snacks. Rick had his first doner kebab (a sandwich of meat, sliced thinly from a rotating spit). It starts to rain pretty hard and continues until we reach the ruins at Troy. Fortunately, just as we arrive, the rain stops and the sun peeks out. It’s still pretty cold. We have a guided tour of the ruins. Interestingly, people spend as much time taking pictures of the mock-up wooden Trojan horse as they do of the ruins themselves—which are extensive and very impressive. These ruins are the smallest we will see on this trip. The ruins at Pergumum are larger and those at Ephesus larger still.

Our hotel for this evening is in Canakkale. We have time to wander the town, but it’s cold and windy, so we return to the Hotel Akol. Rick’s wi-fi finder reveals a hotspot in the hotel. We are able to check email and update our website. Dinner in the hotel is again included, so we meet up with several of our tour mates in the hotel dining room.

We have another early wake up call tomorrow…..

Sunday, November 20: After a good breakfast we’re off to Pergamum. Rick has become Serap’s “assistant” and takes plenty of kidding from the others. They have learned what others have learned before them: never give Rick an open microphone…. It’s rainy and cold again. We have some snow flurries—but they don’t last. We’ve spent a lot of time on the bus so far because the sights are pretty far apart; but our group is friendly and Serap is quite knowledgeable. We learn about the Turkish family and the traditions of how marriages are arranged. When we get to Pergamum, it’s still very cold (in the 30s) and windy, but fortunately it has stopped raining. The ruins are located on the acropolis (built by Alexander the Great). The road twists and turns up the hill; barely wide enough for two buses to pass. These ruins are more impressive than what we saw yesterday, especially the Temple of Trajan and the amphitheater at the top of the acropolis, and the sub-levels below. The amphitheater is built into the side of the hill, so it is narrower and higher than traditional ancient amphitheaters. The sub-levels are reached by a maze-like path through a series of archways. Ultimately we find our way back to the parking lot that faces a row of the inevitable souvenir stands. Fortunately, the wind is less penetrating down here. Rory finds a scarf she likes and we have our first taste of bargaining. She is satisfied with the negotiated price. Our friend Ed is looking for a meerschaum pipe, finds an extraordinary one, does very well at bargaining, and we all board the bus for the drive to Izmir. Izmir is the third largest city in Turkey after Istanbul and Ankara, with a population of 4 million. Since it’s late Sunday afternoon by the time we get checked into our hotel, we settle for a walk around the area. It’s still cold and windy. The first priority is a bottle of water and we find an open kiosk that meets our need. We wander through a street market lined with stalls of booksellers and ultimately more souvenir vendors. Dinner tonight is on our own. Tomorrow we will spend the day on a tour of Ephesus.

Monday, November 21: The sun is out!!!! It’s still pretty chilly, but at least it’s not raining. Today we are going on a tour of Ephesus, which are some of the most extensive ruins of ancient Turkey. It’s only about an hour outside of Izmir, but first we stop to visit what is purported to be the house of the Virgin Mary. It’s about 1000 feet up a hill approached via a very winding road—interesting to witness the ride from the front seat of the bus. At least the road is well-paved, but, of course, no guardrails. Then, down the hill again to Ephesus. We wander down the Sacred Way, Chariot Way and finally to the library. The library is probably as impressive a sight as any ruins has to offer—the two-story façade gleams in the warm sun. The library is located next to what was the ancient, commercial agora (market) and across the way from the bordello. Apparently archeologists discovered a tunnel from the library to the bordello. The story is that when the men and women went to the market, the men would tell their wives they were going to the library, and then take the tunnel to the bordello! The second most impressive sight at Ephesus is the ancient theater. It can hold 25-30,000 people; live performances are still held here. Elton John gave a concert there earlier this year.

After lunch, we visit the Church of St. John—still pretty impressive after 2000 years. Then it’s back to Izmir. A bunch of us decide to go out in search of the bazaar. Turns out, the bazaar in Izmir is really a huge outdoor mall. This is where the locals shop for clothing, shoes, jewelry, and just about any other consumer product you can think of. We get a pretty good idea of the “real” price of things. For example, men’s long sleeve shirts sell for 5 YTL (about $3.75). Seven of us wandered around for about an hour and spent a grand total of $0—hard to believe. 13 of us meet in the hotel lobby and head out for dinner—some by cab, the rest on foot. We meet at the Altinkapi restaurant (recommended by Serap) which is comprised of what appears to be 5 separate establishments. Some specialize in seafood; others meat. We choose the latter. The food was OK, the bread was superb (like pizza without toppings; just sesame and roasted onion seeds) and the group made the evening. Rick led the walkers back an alternate route, and despite their doubts, found the hotel without getting lost. Tomorrow, we’re off to Pamukkale.

Tuesday, November 22: Another beautiful, sunny day greets us. What we expected to be a pretty dull day of driving to Pamukkale and the site of 2400 year old necropolis (cemetery) and hot springs, was enlivened by a mid-morning stop at a leather factory. Rather than the usual hustle of high pressure sales people, we were greeted with a 15 minute fashion show. The highlight for us came when Rick was picked out of the audience by one of the models to participate. Donned in a gorgeous leather sport jacket, Rick “boogied” down the runway with a tall, dark-haired (female) model, did a little techno-dancing, and strolled back to the dressing area. Rory captured it all with our digital camera. The coats were very high style and several of our group made purchases.

By mid afternoon we reached Pamukkale. This is the first site that we’ve encountered any significant tourist traffic. There must have been at least 50 buses and a proportionate number of people. Unlike at Ephesus, it was impossible to take a photo without a crowd in it. The necropolis was quite extensive. These tombs and ruins go back to the third century B.C. Further up a narrow, unpaved road we arrived at the Travertines—thermal calcium pools. The calcium-rich water runs down the side of the hills forming a marble-like white coating of calcium deposits that look like great white cascading water falls that have been flash frozen. The attraction is for people to remove their shoes, roll up their pants and walk in the pools. Despite a temperature barely into the 50s, hundreds of people from all over the world (Germany, France, Japan, Russia, Turkey, and USA to name a few) go walking ankle-deep in the water. Several wade up to their knees in one of the many pools. The water is quite warm and the deeper the pool, the warmer it gets. Neither of us chose to try it, so we became the guardians of several pairs of shoes and a purse or two. There is also a thermal pool for swimming. None of us opt for this, especially since our hotel has its own indoor thermal pool. The hotel is the only building of any consequence near the sites. It’s a resort hotel. The dining room would put any cruise ship dining room to shame in terms of the number of people it can serve. We spend a lot of time after dinner chatting with others of our group from other buses (there are 3). We planned to go to the belly dancing show, but poop out before it starts.

Wednesday, November 23: At breakfast we learn that the show was pretty good and many of our group participated. Today will be spent traveling to Konya. It’s windy and cold at our mid-morning stop, but the wind disappears by the time we stop for lunch. There isn’t much to see along the way; but we are heading to 4000 feet and pretty soon the snow we’ve seen only on the Sultan mountains now covers the ground (but not the roads). Along the way we see sugar beet farms and a huge sugar factory. We also notice several mosques without minarets. Turns out, that since the muezzins no longer climb to the top to call the Moslems to prayer (it’s done with PA systems), there’s no need to erect minarets. There are more mosques in Turkey than there are in all the rest of the countries in the world combined. Every little village has at least one, and even the smaller towns have several. Mosque construction is paid for by private funding. The government has called for the cessation of mosque construction; requesting instead that contributions be made to education.

We are greeted at our hotel in Konya with glasses of pomegranate juice. Konya is the fourth largest city in Turkey (population around 1 million). It is where the poet Rumi wrote his masterpiece of 26,000 couplets. There’s no internet in the hotel and the local internet café won’t allow access to Yahoo, so we’ll wait until tomorrow to update the website and check email. We walked to a local shopping mall—very modern. Interesting to note that some of the women and girls wear head coverings and some don’t. This is true for both sales staff and shoppers.

Thursday, November 24: It’s another beautiful sunny day. First stop this morning is the Mevlana (or Whirling Dervish) Museum. The poet Rumi is buried here along with his sons. We must remove our shoes before entering. The tombs are draped in silk cloth with turbans mounted at the heads. The walls are covered with calligraphy and tapestries. The museum contains a display of very old Korans, art work, and other artifacts. The visitors are primarily American, Japanese, and, surprisingly, Turks. There is a Turkish family: father, mother, grandmother and two small children. The father is quite proud of his family and they willingly pose for pictures. The father thanks each person who photographs his family and wants to see the results from those who have digital cameras. The old Turkish women are also anything but camera shy, and have smiles for everyone. There is an elaborate exhibit of the history of the whirling dervishes including life-size models in authentic dress. The whirling is part of their religious ritual of purifying themselves. It is very solemn. Tomorrow night we will attend a performance. We are told not to applaud when they finish, since they don’t consider it entertainment.

After a short drive we stop at a caravansary. Caravansaries were like roadside rest stops (or ancient “Holiday Inns”) for travelers along the Silk Road. They were typically located about 25 miles apart—which was considered a day’s travel. This one has been restored; we will see others along the way to Cappadocia most in ruins. The day is so clear that we get a great view of one of the three (inactive) volcanoes that define the boundaries of the Cappadocia region. This one (Hasan) is 11,000 feet high and beautifully snow-capped. It is the only twin peaked volcano in the world we are told. Later in the day we will be able to see the second of the three which is over 13,000 feet high. We are heading to Nevsehir for two nights, but first we will stop and tour the ancient underground city of Kaymakli, cave networks “carved” out of the hillside. The rock is called “tufa” and is a relatively soft rock, making it easier to create the caves and tunnels. There are eight levels to the city of which five are accessible. After the second level, several return to the beginning because the passage ways are very narrow and the ceilings so low that you either bend at right angles or squat down and “duck walk” between the chambers. We get to all five levels. This is quite a unique experience.

Our hotel turns out to be quite nice; dinner is the best buffet we’ve had on the trip. Several of us sit around the dining room until they throw us out! It’s nice to have two nights in the same place—no early wake up call with luggage out by 7am….. It’s been a very full day; one of the best so far.

Friday, November 25: Today is cloudy, but very mild—no extra jackets needed. We spend the first part of the morning roaming the Troglodyte dwellings of Cappadocia. These are similar dwellings to those at Kaymakli, except they are “constructed” directly into the cliffs. We are able to wander the site, climbing up into some of the “houses”. These dwellings are all over this region, but the ones we visit are the most elaborate. Many of these were actually inhabited until 1952, when the government forced the people into more modern facilities. In some places, the new houses are constructed as facades to the cliff dwellings, but at least electricity and running water are provided.

Next we visit a Turkish rug factory. We expect the typical touristy “factory stop”, but this one is a bit more sophisticated. We witness a demonstration of how Turkish rugs are made—the only place in the world using a double knot technique. The labor that goes into the creation of these rugs is extensive—the more dense the number of knots, the longer it takes to make (and the more expensive they are). Rory finds one she really likes, but we can’t agree on a price, so we leave with the rest of the group. We decide to make one last offer and Serap calls the factory on her cell. They still won’t meet our price, so we thank them and move on.

We have lunch in an old caravansary that has been converted into a restaurant—nice change from the roadside rest areas we’ve been eating at. From here we will see the “fairy chimneys” of the Goreme Valley. These are natural pillars of tufa rock with “heads” of basalt. They look quite phallic……and our group is not short of semi-crude jokes about them. We have a second “factory” stop—this time at a pottery factory. Each of the families in the area creates their own trademark designs of decorating their pottery. We are told that “if a man cannot make a pot, he cannot get married”. (Really, I don’t make this stuff up.) One of our group, Leslie, is chosen to try her hand at the potter’s wheel. The master potter helps her get started. Leslie (easy going with a great sense of humor) is the perfect choice for this and immediately forms her lump of clay into a mini fairy chimney (if you get my drift). Although we gave serious consideration to a couple of unique pieces, we left without making a purchase.

During dinner, we learn that the carpet factory has contacted Serap and is willing to sell the carpet Rory liked at our price. They bring it to the hotel; we examine it, and sign the papers. The price includes all duty, shipping, and insurance. Great!! We don’t have to haul it back on the bus, let alone on the plane. After dinner, we are off to see a performance of the Whirling Dervishes. This is a mystical sect, not recognized by the government, that originated with the poet Rumi. The dervishes perform at a restored caravansary. The show lasts 45 minutes and is comprised of music and the “sema” (the ritual dance) where five dervishes whirl around in a mystical state with their arms held out expressively. It’s amazing how they are able to do this with their eyes closed. A sixth dervish, the seyh, moves among the others to assure that each dervish is performing the ritual properly. He also recites passages from the Koran. After the performance we are given a traditional hot sweet drink. We are back at the hotel by 10:30.

Saturday, November 26: Today will be spent busing to Ankara which we reach around 2pm. It’s cloudy, but mild today. We visit the tomb of Ataturk, a very impressive monument and museum on a hill overlooking the city. We all agree that Ataturk was probably the most positively influential leader, certainly of modern times. He established the Turkish alphabet, monetary system, created a non-secular government, reformed the education system, and led the Turkish fight for independence. He died at the age of 58 and is still revered by all Turks. We witness the changing of the guard and everyone gets a picture taken standing next to one of them. It starts to rain so we head to our hotel which is the best yet—we have a great room overlooking one of the four-minaret mosques. There’s no wireless in the hotel, but there’s an Internet Café across the street. It’s the first time we’ve used one and are able to use our own laptop wirelessly. We check our email accounts and update the website; total cost is ½ YTL (less than 40 cents). No more hotel dinners—tonight we’re on our own and a group of us are going to a local kebab restaurant a few blocks from the hotel.

22 of us had dinner at the Hanedan Restaurant. It was raining lightly when we finished and several of us wanted to find a place to have some wine. There are apparently very few bars or clubs in Ankara. None of us were up for a taxi ride. Six of us found a “MiGros” store that had a nice wine section. We wound up back in one of the hotel rooms and went through four bottles of Turkish wine of varying quality and some munchies, before calling it a night.

Sunday, November 27: We get to “sleep in” this morning—we’ve opted out of the Anatolian Civilizations Museum tour. We’ll be busing back to Istanbul most of the day.

Istanbul is the only city in the world on two continents: Europe and Asia. Most of the historic sites are on the European side in the “old city”. We cross the Ataturk Bridge from Asia into Europe and arrive at our hotel (same one as before) in the late afternoon. It’s already getting dark and Sunday traffic is not much different than any other day at this time. That is to say, there are cars, buses and trucks everywhere. This is compounded tonight because the most important soccer game of the year takes place at 7pm between the European side and Asian side champions. (The Asians wind up winning 1-0.) We’re on our own for dinner tonight. Susan and Ed find a place a few blocks from the hotel and promise the proprietor that they’ll be back with a group. When we all arrive, we are greeted like family. The food is excellent, the service is great, and we spoil things for tourists to follow by leaving too big a tip! A few come back to our room for some wine and snacks after dinner.

Monday, November 28: The weather today is without doubt the best we’ve had the whole trip—sunny and mild—perfect for seeing some of the major sites in Istanbul. We start at the Blue Mosque, so named because of the blue tiles and designs on the inside. The Blue Mosque sits on the old Hippodrome (once 400x1600 meters; now only about two city blocks remain). There is an Egyptian obelisk across from the entrance to the Blue Mosque that is over 3400 years old. The Blue Mosque is one of only two in the world that has 6 minarets. There are no rules about the number of minarets or the number of balconies on each. Typically number has been a symbol of wealth; but not necessarily so. Istanbul has over 8000 mosques. We must remove our shoes before entering, but we are allowed to take whatever photographs we want. This mosque is an active one and, though it is not one of the 5 daily prayer times, several men are praying. Rick remembers visiting the Mosque 30 years ago but it doesn’t look familiar. This causes him to wonder if he is confusing it with another mosque. The confusion ends when he learns that the original blue carpets that covered the floor of the mosque were replaced by the current, dark, reddish- brown ones, after people started stealing the original hand-made blue ones. The originals are now in museums; the replacement carpeting is machine made and has delineated kneeling areas for individuals to pray.

Next stop is the Topkapi Palace; home of the sultans until late in the 19^th century. We will visit all five courts, and have access to the kitchens (where a small portion of the third largest collection of porcelain is now displayed), the armory, the sacred rooms, and the treasury. The latter building houses the famous topkapi dagger and an 86 carat diamond, the fourth largest in the world. This diamond was originally found in a rubbish pile, traded to a merchant for 3 spoons, and eventually sold to the grand vizier at the time for the ruling sultan.

After lunch outdoors at a local eatery, we spend the rest of the afternoon in the Grand Bazaar. There are over 4000 shops here, selling primarily jewelry, antiques, copper, carpets, leather jackets, meerschaum, textiles and pashmina scarves, ceramics, glass lamps, clothing, and souvenirs. The shop owners call out to shoppers in several languages to attract their attention to their wares. Some are pushier and follow you a little way trying to get you to look at what they have for sale. Occasionally you have to be a bit sterner with your “no thank you”. Bargaining is the order of the day. If you ask the price of something, it is merely the opening of negotiations. If we are really interested in something, we will offer ¼ the asking price, and the negotiations begin. It is considered very bad form to negotiate, reach an agreement, and then change your mind. If we ask the price of something and are not interested in bargaining, we simply say, “thank you” and walk away. Most times that works; occasionally the merchant will call out or follow you a little way and try to get you to name a price. We make a couple of purchases, and Rick is pleased to get out of the Bazaar only 85 YTL “lighter”. It is now after 5pm and it’s already getting dark. We opt to take the tram back to the hotel; an interesting experience during rush hour. Each car is packed and somehow every time we stop, more people get on (and few get off). Thank goodness we have only 4 stops to go. Turns out, we could have walked back in about 20 minutes, but then we would not have “met” so many Turks!

We opted for dinner on our own tonight, just the two of us. We found a real restaurant, and enjoyed really good fish (for a change): sea bass for Rory, swordfish for Rick. There are no Americans in this place so we are a bit of a novelty. The restaurant is crowded and we are given a table in the back, with apologies from the manager. We’re not sure why, but they keep offering to move us to another table, especially when our dinners arrive. We’re quite happy where we are; and are rewarded with complimentary dessert (fresh fruit) and coffee for our “flexibility”. We both agree it’s the best dinner we’ve had in Turkey.

Tuesday, November 29: Last day……and it’s raining. Good thing our plans call for us to be inside most of the day. We notice some break in the clouds during breakfast, but it’s still raining when we get to the Egyptian Spice Market. This is one of the sites Rick missed when he was here before. The market is laid out in a “+” shape and we enter at the bottom. The hundreds of stalls and displays of herbs and spices, candy, nuts, cheeses, teas, etc. are overwhelming—like works of art. This is also the place to buy caviar and other delicacies (at prices far below what they would be in the states). Each purchase is vacuum packed on the spot—they’ll stay fresh and can be easily packed. Rory buys some spices and apple tea. Rick buys a sesame bread ring. There is no “bargaining” for these items as prices are clearly marked (although there are also some shops selling scarves, jewelry, etc—like in the Grand Bazaar—where bargaining is the expected).

It’s stopped raining by the time we leave the Spice Market. Next, we head for the underground cisterns—almost 1500 years old. The cisterns held the water supply for the city of Istanbul. Today, they are just another tourist site, made famous in the James Bond movie, “From Russia with Love”. The main attraction, other than the cisterns themselves, are the carved Medusa heads used as bases for two of the 332 marble columns that support the ceiling of the structure. It’s an eerie place, made more so by the lighting and the dripping from the ceiling because of the rain. A short walk from the cistern and we’re at Aya Sofya, Istanbul’s most famous monument. We are told this is the most expensive building ever built. The most well-known feature of Aya Sofya is probably the series of huge wooden medallions inscribed with Arabic writing. Although the inside of the dome is being restored and is obscured by scaffolding, there is plenty to see and experience here, including original mosaics, extremely well-preserved. A stone, spiraling walkway provides access to the balcony areas.

We will be spending the rest of the day at the Grand Bazaar. It’s the last we will see Serap and there are smiles and hugs all around. Our guide was a major reason for our enjoyment of this trip and for how much we learned about Turkey and its history. She is an archeologist as well as a tour guide, speaks several languages, and has a great sense of humor. We hope she will visit us, if she comes to the states again.

We don’t get out of the Bazaar as “cheaply” as yesterday, primarily because we are in search of a long, hand-carved, meerschaum pipe. The first shop we visit has some really nice ones. They can run as high as several hundred dollars (before bargaining, of course). Since we are just starting, we don’t talk price, although the merchant tries to get us to tell him what we will pay (a standard ploy). We spend the rest of the day looking at (what seems to us) every pipe in the bazaar, without finding anything that really grabs us. We get close with one, but the merchant is way too pushy, and we don’t trust the quality. In the meantime, we find a very large, colorful “throw” that can go on either our bed or living room sofa, and stop to have some lunch. Then it’s back to pipe shopping. By about 4pm, Rick has had enough, conceding that it’s not that important. We decide to go back to the first place. There is one we really like and bargaining begins in earnest. We are a long way apart and after a while we reach an impasse. The question of how we want to pay (dollars, lira, and/or credit card) will also be a factor in the final price. Finally, we reach agreement, but we don’t have the whole amount in any one currency (and using the credit card will increase the price). We also have to save enough YTL to pay for dinner. We DO NOT want to hit the ATM again!! Rory waves some dollars at the merchant and lets him count it. Now that he has it in his hand he certainly doesn’t want us to change our minds. There is still a small difference, which we split, and end up paying YTL.

This afternoon we decide to walk back to the hotel and on the way we pass a restaurant that looks good. There is always an “outside man” to encourage people to patronize the establishment. We tell him we’ll be back and note his skepticism. We have an early pickup the next morning for our transfer to the airport (2:50 AM!!!!), so we decide to do our packing before going to dinner. When we return to the restaurant as promised, we are greeted warmly. The meal is noteworthy for the calamari appetizer we share. We both agree it’s the best we’ve ever had.

Wednesday, November 30: We actually get about 4 ½ hours sleep. We get to the airport in plenty of time for our flight from Istanbul to Milan. We spent our last 13 YTL for coffees with Frank and Anna from our group. We change planes in Milan for Miami and arrive safe, sound and ON TIME. We rent a car for the drive back to Ft. Myers and get home before 7:30pm. We had a wonderful time; but it’s great to be sleeping in our own bed again.

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