Cappadocia


                           

Cappadocia, Turkey

Istanbul was possibly our favorite city but we are moving on.  The van picked us up as scheduled at 9:30am for our flight from Istanbul to Cappadocia.  I think we mentioned before that Calvin had downloaded as many travel videos as he could find of the areas where we hoped to travel prior to leaving Vancouver.  The first time I saw Cappadocia was a few nights ago while watching an old Pilot Guide (Globetrekker) episode.  To say the least, we were VERY excited.

Cappadocia is a an area in Central Turkey and it is best known for its unique moon like landscape, underground cities like Kaymakli and Derinkuyu (which we visited), cave churches and houses carved in the rocks.  The most recognizable, unique geological features are the Fairy Chimneys.  The large, cone like formations were created over time by erosion of the relatively soft volcanic ash around them. 

The eruptions of three volcanos over two million years ago deposited a soft tuff layer 150m thick in the valleys we are visiting. Years of rain and wind have reduced the tuff to these bizarre shapes that look like large mushrooms or like Flinstones’ Bedrock. Past cultures have dug into them to create dwellings, castles and hiding places – especially the early Christians.  There is such an otherworldly appearance to this landscape that parts of Star Wars and Planet of the Apes were filmed here.  

We landed in Kayseri and were met by our rental car company and unbelievably, our GPS worked but have you ever been asked by your GPS if you were OK with driving on dirt roads?   There’s nothing more exhilarating than starting your driving adventure with a gas constraint.  The dashboard read 10kms to empty and we were told that there was a shell station 4kms away.  Gas in Turkey is VERY expensive.  I’m not sure what a litre costs in Vangroovy these days but it’s over $3 in Turkey so the car comes empty.  We loaded our backpacks in the trunk and started our 1 hour drive to our cave. Yes, we rented a cave in Goreme….and we found the gas station.

We didn’t rent just any cave; we rented a luxury cave house……which basically means it has inside plumbing.  It had all the original character but included all modern conveniences. Most families in Goreme still live in caves passed down over many generations and we wanted to live as much as we could like the locals.  Upon arrival, we were given a tour of our cave and picked our bedrooms and headed out to explore.

Noah’s room used to be the stable and our room was where they made the wine...how perfect. We grabbed some groceries and were back for a homemade dinner.  The kitchen and family lounge were on the second floor and the roof top terrace had an incredible view of Goreme. Our first morning up there Calvin and I met the neighbours who are from Seattle-Bellingham. They come all the way to Turkey every year for 3 months...after the crowds leave.

The following day we planned to go to Rose Valley for some exploring.   The stone in Rose Valley is the color of red roses and it’s beautiful at sunrise and sunset.  I don’t think we made it there as we found a mountain with caves and windows everywhere.  We pulled the car over and the boys were at the base of the mountain before the doors were locked.  We started exploring.  We scaled the side of the mountain to 20 meters and belly crawled through a few openings to get to rooms in the depths of these caves. 

You can still see some of the frescos and the various notches and areas dug out by the founders for storage of food, water and sleeping quarters.  Thanks to our neighbor Darryl for his flashlight recommendation.  It was a godsend while tunneling and identifying frescos on ceilings 10 meters above.  The boys each had their headlights on as it was pitch black in many areas. I was way out of my comfort zone but I had to keep up so I let them go first and I quickly followed behind them.

The Smith Family that we met in Istanbul also travelled to Cappadocia and we made plans to meet them for dinner. We met in a small restaurant and the kids acted like old friends. We took off our shoes, sat down on couches and ate in the traditional style. I didn’t find the meal very good but with the fire going and the live music, it didn’t seem to matter. The two families compared notes on experiences and where we would be travelling next and decided to meet up again once we moved to the western coast next. 

Our cave came with a game board and the boys have been asking us to teach them backgammon.  Calvin sat with Noah and Aidan and within an hour Noah had got the best of his dad.  They now play a game when they can and I can tell that Calvin is not the best loser nor is Noah the best winner but they are having a blast and the game is played on almost every corner, veranda, restaurant and tea shop in Turkey. There was also a Monopoly game that we all played one afternoon and finished 4 hours later with Calvin the big winner and Aidan a close 2^nd.

We got up early and started our one hour drive to Derinkuyu, the underground city.  You really have to get to these locations prior to the hordes of tourists that start to invade the sites at approximately 10:00am. We arrived at 9:00am and negotiated a good rate with a local tour guide to take us down into the depths of this ancient city.  The Christians, in fear of their lives, dug eight stories underground and spent months hiding from their attackers.  At one time up to 20,000 people lived in this underground city. 

We were able to visit eight floors of meeting rooms, homes including bedrooms and living rooms, storage areas, stables, schools, wineries, tunnels and passageways.   The guide’s English was as good as most but his humour needed some polish.  At the first wine making area, he asked me “do you want some wine?, too bad, all gone!” and laughed at himself.  He repeated that joke at least three more times  and the boys said it was at that point that he received the infamous ‘Deanna stare’. 

The construction of this world is remarkable.  Ventilation shafts provided fresh air throughout the city and a tunnel connected Derinkuyu to Kaymakli over 10 kms away.  It was a very unique experience and not one you’re likely to have anywhere else.  Some of the tunnels are VERY tight and we were on all fours a couple of times.  If you have an ounce of claustrophobia, this is not the place for you.  Calvin pretty much spent his time crouched over but had no problems navigating the tight spaces.  

 It really feels like you are in parts of Indiana Jones when you are down there.  There are a few doors that connect important areas of the maze that can be blocked by a one ton stone wheel that required eight men to roll into place.  The tour guide left us after 45 minutes and we explored for another 45 minutes prior to returning to the sun….and it did burn our eyes, I can’t imagine staying months underground – NOT pleasant.

After Derinkuyu, we decided to make the trek over to Selime Rock Monastery.  We input the point of interest on the GPS and followed as instructed.  At one point, we were in the middle of nowhere – literally, the middle of nowhere.  We had turned on to the dirt road as instructed and after 10 minutes, we started to wonder.  We could not see a thing in any direction until we saw a shadow crest the hill in front of us.   We made bets on what it might be - Aidan guessed a shepherd with his flock, Noah suggested it might be a horse but as he approached, we could tell it was an old man riding his diminutive donkey to town for rice.  

We know he was going for rice because two hours later, while driving home, we saw the same man and his donkey carrying two large bags of rice.  

As we continued our drive, we saw many women harvesting potatoes in the fields. We finally got the courage to pull over and take some pictures and the women were very welcoming and friendly. 

We spent hours climbing through the tunnels and churches of Selime Monastery and it was the first time we had to pay to explore but at $2 each, it seemed more than reasonable.  We ran into 3 people the entire time we were there.  The drive is well worth the effort as it is much more exhilarating to be wandering through these places by yourself rather than with 10 busloads of tourists.

Hot air ballooning is something that should be done at least once in your life time. We decided that our initiation was going to be in Cappadocia. Cappadocia is a great place to do this for couple of reasons: 1) Great unique view of the rock formations, valleys and hills, and; 2) there are literally at least 30 to 60 other balloons in the air which makes the experience that much better. 

 Apparently the balloon pilots (Auzzies, Brits, Americans, locals, etc) left their day jobs to make the trek to Cappadocia as they consider it to be the best ballooning spot in the world.  One of the pilots described balloon piloting like surfers – everyone wants to go to where the waves are best and for ballooning, it’s Cappadocia.   

For those not familiar with the hot air balloon process, it begins very early in the morning before dawn.  It was a crisp 3 degrees that morning.  Calvin was wearing every piece of clothing he brought with him for the trip.  We found toques and gloves for the boys the night before and I was wearing my scarf that Karen made for me (love it).  We were picked up at the cave and escorted to their offices for breakfast which was nothing to write home about (although I am writing home about it).   

We were then shuttled to the launch area and put in the basket (about the size of an SUV). There were about 16 of us in there and the view was great regardless of where you stood.

Our pilot, Ali, with Urgup balloons was the best.  He is an entertaining daredevil. He would get really close to rock formations, hills, trees and other balloons and then let out a few words of concern and at the last minute, pull up and away.  At one point he reached over the edge of the basket and grabbed some leaves from a 50 foot tree on the valley floor below.  But there was no point during the ride that I felt I was in danger.  


"Every where I go, I see something that reminds me of her", Calvin

 

I was a little nervous before we lifted off but it was so incredibly smooth that within seconds I was totally comfortable, and it really felt like we were on a cloud.   Ali spun our balloon around so everybody could get great views and pics of the landscape including an incredible sun rise.  When we soared through the valleys, the boys could do shadow puppets off of the rocks of the valley walls.  There were a few larger than life rabbits and alligators shadows and a few shapes I have never seen before. 

We were in the air for over an hour and we climbed to approximately 1,000 meters at one point to see the dormant volcano 70 miles away and the one primarily responsible for creating this fascinating landscape.  Ali then delivered a 10 score, from us judges by landing the balloon directly on the flatbed truck waiting for us in a field.  He poured us champagne and the boys got some cherry juice afterwards and he gave us certificates. They dropped us off at our cave afterwards and we unanimously agreed it was one of the best experiences of our life let alone this trip…all before 9am! 

We were hoping to find a place to take some pottery lessons while we were in Cappadocia.  The Cappadocia area is world renown as a leader in Turkish ceramic art for being the creator of a colored glaze technique using Sapphire Blue, Golden Yellow and Turkish Red.  We found a place online that is considered one of the best locally but no address was provided – just the town name – Avanos.   

So, off we went to find this Ceramic production company and after driving around for 20 minutes we were about to give up when in the middle of our U-turn, there it was!  Firca has been making pottery in their family caves for over 250 years using a 5000 year old tradition.  When we arrived we were lead into their cave workshop.  Ali Kasap’s is part of the original family that created this facility and is very knowledgeable and low key.   They are very proud of their artists and finished products and wanted to show us around as if we were family visiting from out of town.  

He asked his cousin, a master craftsman to join us and to give the boys a chance to make a clay pot or bowl on the pottery wheel.  We toured the facility and saw where the artists hand painted the outlines on each of the pieces they produced.   Calvin and I were served Turkish Tea and Apple Tea as we watched the artisans at work.  We didn’t buy anything as we are trying to reduce our cargo load but it was a great afternoon and we sort of regret not getting a plate or two while we were there.  

We thought we had saved the best for last when we woke early on our last day to go to the Open Air Museum in Goreme.  We knew it was the busiest location in Cappadocia as we saw the dozens of tour buses parked in the lot each day as we drove by.  We were confident at 8:00am we would be the only group there and we were not entirely disappointed as there was only one bus in the driveway when we arrived.  

We started our hike that for the first time was well mapped with plenty of signs to herd the tourists in the planned directions.  We cruised through the first few churches that were very impressive but I think we are now spoiled from the incredible sights discovered early in the week.  There was one particular church, the Dark Church that was truly mind blowing.  Its frescos dating back to the 1100s were in amazing condition. 

The eyes of all the paintings within reach were removed but paintings on the ceiling were fully intact and quite impressive especially when you consider their age.  We spent an hour hiking around the Museum and as the tour buses began to arrive, we made our way to the car to get some breakfast.

We leave this bizarre yet beautiful place via airplane tomorrow morning to the Turkish Riviera (Kalkan) on the Mediterranean Sea.  We have booked 10-12 days there to recharge our batteries and get caught up on our school work.  We are all looking forward to the high temperatures but not so much to the school work 

Istanbul 2

The Grand Bazaar

I have always heard about this fantastic giant market and I couldn’t wait to get there! The Australian family had already been there but wanted to go back so they showed us the way using the public transit tram ride. It didn’t take too long but a very crowded trip. The people of Turkey love children. So many people, including men of all ages ruffled Devin or Aidan’s hair or patted them on the head. One older man touched Noah’s cheek and looked to say something like “nice boy”. The Bazaar is a maze of approximately 4000 shops under a painted vaulted roof selling a dizzying array of wares. The problem was I could have bought something in every shop. Purses, leather goods, jewellery, carpets, shoes, jeans, and light fixtures…to name a few. We only covered a small area but did get some jeans, shoes for Noah and a leather bag for me. We said goodbye to our Australian friends and moved slowly through the maze.  The shopkeepers are relentless, so if you even glance at something they have, they hound you to come take a look, how much you want to pay and of course bargaining is a must. Calvin negotiated so well he had me convinced a couple of times. “I can only pay X because that’s all the money I have, so that’s it”. I almost piped up, “Honey I have some money in my purse “! Luckily I didn’t or he would have left me there, I’m sure.  

Bosphorus Cruise

We seem to always do some sort of a boat trip and Istanbul was no exception. We took the tram line to the port to hop on one of the ferry boats. It was close to lunch time so we grabbed some fresh bagel type bread and went to the pier, where all the fish restaurants are located on boats. They cook up the fish and slap it in a bun with some veggies and presto …fresh fishwich. This is done while the boats are rocking like the Pirate ride at the PNE and none of the 5 guys on the boat skip a beat.

We bought one to share between the 5 of us and it was ok but not great. We boarded the boat and ate our lunch while traveling. It’s a really relaxing trip and offers views of palaces, a fortress, mansions, fishing villages and a view of Asia. We disembarked at the last stop which is a small village on the Asian side and walked around before boarding again and heading back to the port.

That evening we also bought tickets for a traditional Turkish dance show so we stayed in the area to grab some dinner and then head to the show. We checked a few menus and finally found one that looked promising. The restaurateurs are as relentless as the vendors at the bazaar. Constantly asking you to look at their menu or to come and see their tables with a view. We sat down next to a family that were obviously tourists like us and by the time I headed back from taking Devin to the bathroom Calvin and the boys were in deep conversation with the parents and their daughters. The family is travelling with their 2 girls, 7 & 8 around the world and wait for it…they are from Vancouver! How tiny this world really is! I will call them the Smiths. I sat down and was blown away at the similarities of our families. Even our travel itineraries have many similarities. Of course the boys and girls hit it off…probably starving for non-sibling interaction. We told them about the Turkish dance that was happening after dinner and they decided to join us and buy tickets at the door.

The show was amazing. Live music performed by an 6 piece band of guitars, drums, and horns. They were really talented and each performed some sort of solo. The dance troupe included men and women performing dances from each region of Turkey. The belly dancing routines were outstanding. I lost all 4 of my men to these women for the 2 hours and only got them back when the lights came back up.

After the show we said goodbye to the Smiths and debated the benefits of grabbing a cab vs. public transport.  We have rarely chosen the taxi option as some of the best experiences happen while travelling like a local.  We hopped in the only cab in site, to get back to the apartment. The taxi driver turned out to be a bit psychotic. We must have been in his cab for 1 minute before he starting ranting in some nasty broken English:  why ya stayin' in Taksim square - it's full of gays. Calvin said later that he could hear me breathing in the back.  Then it was the kurds - those damn kurds.....he recited the bombing numbers and kills from the past twenty years including some reciprocal action in Iraq from there it was straight to a tour of local hotels that fell during the past 5 earthquakes including numbers of dead spanning 50 years.  Calvin was in the front and just nodded a lot never agreeing or disagreeing. I was hoping Calvin hadn’t given him the address of our apartment and that we would get out at the square and walk the rest of the way and of course that was exactly what he had done. I think we'll stick to the tram next time. We got out of the cab and the boys wondered what kind of parents would bring their kids to a place like Istanbul.

Thanksgiving in Istanbul and Round Two at the Grand Bazaar.  

It did sort of slip my mind but I know how much my boys love the traditional dinners with mashed potatoes and the entire fix in’s so we headed to the grocery store to see what we could round up. We couldn’t find a turkey in Turkey! We settled on a chicken instead. Without many staples I managed to cook a pretty tasty dinner of roast chicken, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy. We enjoyed our 2011 Thanksgiving in Istanbul.

The next day we headed back to the Grand Bazaar to cover a bit more ground and make a few more purchases. Aidan was in dire need of a haircut and surprise, surprise one of the 4000 shops was a barber! Abdullah the barber had a spot open and so Aidan jumped in. They served us all apple tea and then he used his salesmanship to convince us that Noah needed one too. He did, so Noah was the next customer and Abdullah was a happy man.

On our way out of the Bazaar who do we see but the Smith family – now we’re thinking more like 15 million than 18 million (what are the chances or running into the same family twice in a city of this size?).  We all boarded the tram back to our place to drop off our bags and then the 9 of us headed out for dinner. Found out that he used to work with one of our good friends back in Vancouver and days later found out that she knows one of my good friends as well. How crazy is that ? We are waiting for the other degrees of separation to fill in soon. We had a nice meal and the kids got along well. It turned out to be a very wet and cold day in Istanbul and the worst weather since we started this trip. We needed to break out the jeans and the MEC raincoats.

Devin lost one of his front teeth this morning and what a cute smile!

No trip to Istanbul is complete without visiting a Turkish bath house. On our way to the Hamam we stopped at the Spice Bazaar to take a look as it was on the way. Aisles of brightly colored and aromatic spices lined the path along with many Turkish delight vendors. Some make their delights with sugar and some with honey. The honey is the best. We found pomegranate and lots of pistachio. Noah and Aidan really love the stuff but Devin, Calvin and I are pretty indifferent to the little cubes of gel. On to the bath we went.

Hamam (Turkish bath)

The Hamam we chose is a family and couples only bath house. No singles are permitted. When we arrived we were shown into a family change room where we changed out of our clothes into wraps for the boys to wear around their waists and shorts and a bikini top for me. After slipping on our wooden sandals they showed us to the steam room where we relaxed in a large room with taps to cool off with around the room. It was a large marble space with individual massage rooms that opened to the center. It was hot but not as hot as a sauna. There was a sign on one of the rooms that the Sultan had bathed there – so we were not to be the first royalty.  While we waited for our turn to go into the massage / bath rooms, we planned on Calvin, Aidan and Devin going to one room and Noah and I to another.  The strong, hairy bather approached and grabbed Calvin.  Without much conversation, he directed the three boys and me to one room and he went to another room with Calvin.   Noah and I received the bath and massage but Aidan and Devin were too young for the vigorous massage.  They started with an exfoliating body scrub carried out BRISKLY with a course soapy mitt and then followed by a pummeling with warm soapy water. He thumped and slapped and DEEPLY massaged my muscles. This was no Spa Utopia but I loved it. While I was getting this treatment I was watching Noah on the other marble slab, getting the same. At one point I heard Noah let out a bit of an Oomph…followed by a sigh so I knew he was enjoying it. Devin and Aidan sat by the fountain and the men would pour cool water over them and pour sudsy water over them. Calvin was receiving the same treatment but at a different level of ‘vigor’  from what can only be described as an angry Turk.  Calvin did mention he had no plans to allow a man of his age to bathe him again anytime soon. 

Afterwards we were shown into the next room where we shed our wet wraps and were given soft warm towels to wrap around us and then another wrapped around our heads and another around our shoulders. Once we were all warm and snuggly we were shown to the room to sit down and sip some water or apple tea. Didn’t really want to leave this warm and cosy place but we changed back into our clothes and headed back out into the city smelling so nice and squeaky clean.

Walked around for a little bit and then grabbed lunch at a recommended restaurant and it turned out to be very good. Many bowls of lentil soup around the table and some traditional Ottoman dishes like chicken in an apricot stew and lamb of course. Devin and Aidan are fond of the meat filled mini tortellini type dumplings that they serve with a yogurt /tomato sauce.

With our bellies full and our skin aglow from the scrubbing we headed to the Basilica Cistern. It is magnificent - probably not a surprise as it was built by the Romans in the 6th century to meet the demands of the Great Palace. It was over a century after the Ottomans conquered the city when they rediscovered the Cistern after seeing locals collecting water and even fish by lowering buckets through holes in their basement. Now, you walk through this huge space that is dimly lit while you hear classical music playing and water trickling. The roof of the Cistern is held up by 336 columns each one over 8meters high.

There was a “dress up and take your picture” kiosk at the entrance and instead of the saloon girl, gunslinger ones we have at home this one is a sultan and harem girl. We had to do it and the 3 little sultans were quite pleased with the costumes. Aidan had hoped he could wear it while we walked around but not the case. Of course one picture was supposed to be 5 euros but after you see all 98 pictures that they take they hope you will buy the whole disc.

The price for this is also negotiable. Calvin refused to pay the asking price and pretended to only want two pictures and would leave and sure enough he eventually came down to Calvin’s price. I am growing really tired of the “everything is negotiable” attitude. Every day you have to grind someone down or they don’t respect you. Can’t you just tell me your lowest price and I tell you mine and we skip the stuff in between???

I woke up with a sore throat and cough that ended up lingering for almost 2 weeks. We only have a couple more days in Istanbul so I took some meds and we walked to the Istanbul Modern which is the contemporary art museum. We were lucky with our timing because we were able to take in the Biennale Exhibit that had two sites at the museum.

I was confused by many pieces but appreciated the expression. The boys walked around and stopped at what appealed to them and passed over those that didn’t. Smart way to view a museum, I think.  

After a few hours at the show we walked to the Galata Tower for a panoramic view of the Istanbul skyline. On the way home we picked up a chocolate caramel cake to have for dessert to celebrate Calvin’s European “birthday” !

Istanbul 1

  

Our next country of choice is Turkey. Neither Calvin nor I have ever been. I was a bit hesitant about Turkey at first but so many people I talked to back at home and while travelling had such great things to say about the people, culture, food, water pipes, belly dancing and the landscape. We plan to spend about 5 weeks here traveling to very different areas. Starting in Istanbul and ending in Ephesus with much ground to cover in between.

So let’s get to it…Istanbul - home to approx.… 18 million people or 15 (depending on who you talk to). Either way it’s a heavily populated, sprawling city. Rome to Istanbul was a pretty pleasant flight on Turkish Airlines.

 As usual we bought our sandwiches and fruit ahead of time to eat on the plane only to be totally surprised when the flight attendant delivered our tasty hot meals soon after takeoff – for those of you born prior to 1975, you may recall an Air Canada era where food (actual food not those ham sandwiches) was served.  After being in the air for 2 ½ hours we touched the ground in Istanbul.

The owner of the apartment we are renting arranged for a driver to pick us up at the airport so when we collected our bags and walked through the exit doors we were faced with many people holding up signs with names and a large crowd waiting for people to arrive. We scanned the crowd from different directions so we wouldn’t miss our driver and finally found him with a sign for Clavin McIInns (Turkish for Calvin MacInnis). The ride to the apartment took about 45 minutes and gave us a chance to see the city a bit. Lots of cars on the road and traffic jams that would make Torontonians go a little crazy. We were so thankful that Calvin didn’t have to drive. We will be without a car during Istanbul as our apartment is located close to a tram line, the metro and Taksim Square which is a main center.

The apartment owner and manager were waiting for us when we arrived at the apartment and showed us up to our 3^rd floor apartment. They were extremely helpful and we felt like we were in really good hands. The place had 3 bedrooms and a really spacious living room and kitchen. We have a balcony for hanging the laundry and a view of Asia. Did you know that Istanbul straddles 2 continents? Yes it does Europe and Asia. We are staying on the Europe side but you can cross a bridge or take a ferry over to Asia.

After unpacking and relaxing a bit we ventured out to get some dinner and pick up the groceries for the week. We took the instructions that the manager had given to us to find the grocery store but within a couple of streets we were lost. I saw a couple walking with grocery bags and approached them to ask where the store was in very slow English and I may have used some sign language pointing to their bags and of course they gave me directions in perfect English. I was embarrassed that I assumed they couldn’t speak any English but it was my first interaction with Turkish people who I found out throughout our trip were always eager to help and usually spoke some English. We soon came upon a busy main street with many supermarkets and restaurants. We stopped at Kafe Klimit and shared some main courses of grilled meatballs (popular dish in Turkey), chicken and lentil soup. This started my habit of ordering lentil soup before every meal in Turkey. It was always different but always delicious.

The boys have grown to love lentil soup since we arrived in Turkey as well.  After a great first meal in Istanbul we headed to the grocery store and in typical Devin fashion he had to go to the bathroom while we were shopping. I asked one of the staff and found they were one of the few who didn’t speak English but he finally got it and led Devin and I down many stairs to a dark and nasty basement where the bathroom was. Devin took one look at the hole in the ground and said…”I can wait”. Can’t blame you kid, but if you have to go you have to go! No, he decided to wait until we got back to the apartment so we hurried to the checkout and quickly made it back home just in the nick of time.  

 

Over the next couple of days we caught up on some school work and laundry. Once we did go out to explore, we wandered the streets of Istanbul and were enchanted by the call to prayer. We went to a Café for some dinner and most of the local men and women were relaxing on bean bag chairs and couches either playing backgammon or puffing on a water pipe or both. The owner brought us over a pipe that had apple flavour in it with 5 filters for us all to have our own. I was surprised he brought them over for the kids but he assured me there was no tobacco. Noah is all about the experiences and was pretty eager (a little too eager) to give it a try. Calvin had used a water pipe on his visit to Saudi Arabia so he showed us what to do. The boys took a puff and passed it to me but it reminded me a little too much of smoking cigarettes (no really, cigarettes) so the boys experience was cut short.

Istanbul Tour Day

The owner of the apartment was also involved in a tour company so for the first time on our trip, we joined a tour group for the day. We decided to do this partly because of our lack of the Turkish language and because we would visit many sites that we would have wanted some details of the history and architecture. The tour started at 8am and the owner told us that there was an Australian family that was renting the apartment below us that would be going on the tour as well. We met them in front of the building at the 8am time and we all walked to the tour bus together. We quickly got to know the mother and father son Alvin, 12 and Jasmine, 5 (going on 16).

We met our tour guide Ufuk (yeah, I know – it’s like we’re cursed with these distractions) across the street from the Blue Mosque. Ufuk was excellent and delivered our tour in English and German – we were very impressed as he also spoke French, Japanese and Turkish fluently….seriously, why is this guy not a spy? The Mosque gets its name from the mainly blue tile work decorating its interior. We removed our shoes and went inside. It was built in 1609 – 1616 by the Sultan Ahmet I. He commissioned 6 minarets around the mosque which was considered a sacrilegious attempt to rival Mecca (which had 6) so apparently he had an extra one built in Mecca. The inside is quite beautiful with the tiled domes and low hanging lighting. We snapped away while listening to our guide.

Next was the Hagia Sophia which is also an amazingly large building. It is more than 1400 years old and had great influence on Byzantine architecture in the following centuries. It was originally built in the 6th century as a church for the Byzantine Empire and then in the 15th century the Ottomans converted it to a mosque. It has frescoes and mosaics of Christian figures and then you see Islamic calligraphy and this is why it is not used as a religious facility but instead a museum. The interior is a staggering vast space that is covered by a huge dome reaching to a height of 184 ft. HUGE!  

We walked to the Hippodrome which was a stadium where chariot races took place in Roman times but we really couldn’t appreciate it as the actual Hippodrome is 10m below the ground we were standing on and we lacked the imagination or maybe it was lunch we lacked.

The Islamic Craft Museum was across the courtyard where we saw antique carpets, tiles and artifacts. It was a tiring day but it wasn’t over yet. For lunch the tour took us to a traditional Turkish restaurant that served us a tasty lunch that included a stew that is baked in a clay vessel and then they ignite the base of it on fire at your table and then they tap it in the middle and crack the lid off and serve it to you. The boys thought this was pretty cool. The meal was included in the tour price but the drinks are extra and very expensive.  After lunch it was a bit of a long walk to the next site, Topkapi Palace (which was great after the big meal). Topkapi

Palace housed the sultans and their harems for hundreds of years while the Ottomans were in power. We visited the treasury which displays many exquisite jewels including a 96 karat diamond (slightly bigger than my own). At the end of the palace tour we were all exhausted and the tour was supposed to then take us to the Grand Bazaar which we really wanted to go to but couldn’t muster up the energy. We could do this on our own. We would say that we are not very fond of tours in general as they pack too much in, in too little time. We prefer our own pace but our guide was very knowledgeable and taught us a lot about ancient Turkey and Muslim traditions and beliefs. We learned a lot.

By the end of the tour we were also chatting a lot with the family from Australia so they invited us to join their family for dinner at a restaurant close to the apartment. Jasmine the 7 year old girl took quite a liking to Devin and the boys and was stuck like glue for most of the day. We walked up to Taksim Square and to a restaurant that the family had visited the night before.  It was the first time we had explored Taksim Square and it was extremely cool.  There’s a pedestrian only street that dips down from Taksim towards Sultanhamet that is approximately 40 meters wide and many kms long and there were people moving in both directions for as far as you could see – we guessed closer to 18 million than 15 million.  Gap, Nike, Benetton and many, many other top brands lined the street.  

The restaurant was a traditional place that served Ottoman inspired dishes and their speciality was the Gozleme which is a savory traditional Turkish handmade and hand rolled pastry. Fresh pastry is rolled out, filled and sealed, then cooked over a griddle.  We had one with spinach, minced meat and cheese and it was really good. We tried most of their house favorites and it was all really, really good…and wait for it…affordable! Yeah! Good food at a good price was music to our ears.

After dinner the waiter brought the kids complimentary ice cream. The ice cream is quite different. It is made of goat’s milk and cow’s milk and is very sticky and stretchy. You can hold it on your spoon upside down for hours and it won’t fall off. Can’t say I liked the taste and neither did the kids really but we appreciated his kindness and I secretly welcomed the break from ice cream for a few weeks. 

After leaving the restaurant we walked slowly back to the apartment and really took in how vibrant, busy and pulsating this city is. We like it! It is the first country that really feels foreign. Of course Spain and Italy are foreign but Turkey is very different. The call to prayer that comes through the loudspeakers 5 times a day reminds us that Turkey is 97% Muslim. Most women (but not all) wear the hijab (headscarf) and many wear the burqa (the full cover-up).  Calvin had downloaded a diversity video produced by the Chicago police department on Islam that really helped the boys understand the Islamic religion and Muslims.  The boys have a great new perspective on the cultural differences and similarities between the world’s two largest religions.