In November last year 5 of us spent a fabulous week in Turkey, well Istanbul really, as we only had a week, we stayed mostly in the capital with a day trip to Galipoli. Turkey is a vast country and you would need at least a month to get to most of the places of interest, and coming into winter many places become difficult to visit. A week in Istanbul wasn't enough to see everything that everyone wanted but we covered most of our wish list.
Istanbul is a fascinating, beautiful and bustling place – very much a fusion of West meets East. Sitting on the confluence of the Sea of Marmara, The Golden Horn and the Bosphorus, this ancient city has grown around the water with it's history of maritime based trade and this is where much of the action is, with boats of all sizes coming and going, avoiding each other and action aplenty on the shoreline. However getting to the shoreline is somewhat difficult as pretty much any available space is taken by shoulder to shoulder fishermen - and I thought Kiwis were pretty keen anglers, Turks ( in Istanbul anyway ) set the benchmark.
Although 98% Muslim, Turks have a pretty relaxed approach to Islam being at the very liberal end of the spectrum. People generally dress in western style clothing and it is a rarity to see men in the traditional white thobe, dishdasher, khandara or gutra ( cloth headwear ) or more interestingly women dressed in black abaya and shayla ( headscarf ) or the full over Burqa, as in many areas such as school, university or offices the headscarf is banned. They don't seem to have a problem or attitude toward alcohol and you can drink and purchase beverage at any restaurant or cafe – it's really all quite sensible, where religion is a part of life rather than ruling life. Visibly then the only manifestation of Islam are the many ancient, architecturally ( Byzantine and Ottoman ) stunning mosques with the trademark( postcard ) spires and domes.
We stayed in the old part of town, Sultan Ahmet, strategically placed to enjoy walking to many of the tourist hotspots such as the Blue Mosque, the Aya ( Haggia ) Sofia, Topkapi Palace, the amazing Basilica Cistern, the spectacularly colourful and busy Grand Bazaar and much more.
Our first full day was begun with a walk to the harbour to catch a ferry for a day return trip up the Bosphorus to the Black Sea, a must do for any visitor. With all the bustling activity on the water and the stunningly beautiful architecture of the buildings ( mosques, Palaces, houses etc. ) the glistening water and a gorgeous clear blue sky and a pleasantly warm day – a perfect day. Although you don't quite make it to the Black Sea you can see it in the distance. A couple of hours in the middle of the trip were spent exploring a very pretty seaside village, a nearby fort, and a seafood lunch with a few wines and beers at a waterside cafe. Delicious. What a fantastic introduction to Istanbul.
The next day we visited Topkapi Palace which has a very intriguing history, starting with it's first resident Selim the Sot who drowned in a bath after consuming too much champagne. Then inhabited by so many Sultans over the years , it is now a Museum with a multitude of courtyards holding the various Palace buildings all beautifully decorated inside with mosaic tiles and panels and intricately carved ( inlaid with Mother of Pearl ) wooden doors. A highlight of the visit is a visit to the Harem, a fascinating place with all its stories of young girls bought in as slaves, Eunuchs, Concubines and Grand Viziers etc. When functioning it was run by the Sultan's mother – kind of an olden days madam. The Sultan was allowed only 4 wives but could have as many concubines as he wished, the record being some 300 – amazing really as they didn't have Viagra back then, these guys must have had equal amounts of superhuman stamina and insatiable desire. At least half a day is required to see this fantastic place.
Lunch followed , then a visit to the Grand Bazaar ( a must see with it's labyrinths of vast curved roofed lanes and just so much colour and crafts/ goods on offer) – this place is the largest under cover Bazaar in the world and to my mind would leave any shopping mall in the dust. They say a minimum of three hours is needed to see this place however three days is said to be better. We were all pretty tired after our morning and you really do need to be in peak condition to do the place justice, particularly if bargaining/ purchasing is to be undertaken. Unfortunately being Eid the place closed down for the rest of our stay which is probably a good thing pocket wise, as it is handcraft shoppers heaven and you could very easily spend a lot of money there, else we would have been back.
Galipoli – an early start was required for the 10+ hour return bus trip to Galipoli. Words cannot convey the emotion in visiting this historically sad and important memorial to the utter stupidity of war. Any Kiwi, Aussie or anybody really must visit Galipoli if in Turkey. It would take a seriously hard, unfeeling, emotionless and thoughtless person to not come away having shed more than a few tears after having visited and hearing many of the stories of heroics, the tens of thousands ( possibly over 100,000 ) of lives lost on both sides and folly of the many battles fought valiantly on this peninsula.
Interestingly a major contributing factor was the British refusal to deliver two ( three? ) warships paid for by the Turks through public donation ( still never recompensed ) allowing the Germans their strategic entry by giving the Turks 2 ships and thereby allowing the Ottoman Empire to join WW1 on the german side.
Perhaps the most poignant words about Galipoli would be from Ataturk who wrote a tribute to the ANZACS in 1934:
“Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives... You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side now here in this country of ours... you, the mothers, who sent their sons from faraway countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land. They have become our sons as well.”
I am not ashamed to say that in writing this I have had to stop, blow my nose, wipe my eyes and have a cup of tea such is the profound effect that a visit to this place has.
Over the next few days other places we visited that blew us away were the Aya ( Haggia ) Sofia – completed in 537 is arguably Istanbul's most famous monument. Once the most magnificent church in Christendom just to stand underneath the massive, supremely beautiful domed ceiling stuns most people into awe inspired silence – exquisite.
Sitting nearby across a lovely garden with gorgeous fountains is the Blue Mosque. Built to rival or excel the beauty of the Aya Sofia and named for the interior tens of thousands of blue tiles in it's mosaic work to my mind it is somewhat more impressive on the exterior. Viewed from a nearby rooftop cafe at sunset ( with a nice glass or cup of something you fancy ), the voluptuous main dome surrounded on four sides by semi domes and the six spires, burst into spectacular colour when the gentle floodlights come on – just beautiful.
Also nearby is the Basilica Cistern built in 532, an elaborate multi columned ( 336 in total )underground water storage once capable of holding 80,000 cubic metres of water supplied by 20kms of aquaducts. It is a supremely calming place and the symmetry and grandeur of it's construction is extraordinary – again just beautiful.
So if you want to visit a country that has culture, beauty, ancient amazing buildings, Roman ruins, varied geography and landscapes, friendly people, good food and so much more I recommend Turkey – I'd love to go back and see more of this fascinating country.
Stay in a cave hotel and balloon ride over the pinnacles in Capadoccia, visit the calcium terraces of Pamukale ( apparently very much like the once famous pink and white terraces ) and see the many and various Roman ruins and archaeological sites at places such as Ephesus and Troy plus the Aegean Coast - just some of the places we have been told you must see and we didn't.
To end this blog I have to say that the food is fantastic ( not too mention the many varieties of fresh Turkish Delight ) and two dishes that captured our taste buds were Lentil soup and Guvech so I am going to give you the recipes.
Lentil Soup:
Gently fry 1 chopped onion, 1 chopped carrot, 2 cloves garlic and a little chilly ( to your taste/ heat requirements ). Add 1 cup soaked lentils ( any variety is o.k. ) but I have used small red ( actually they are brown ) lentils and I'm going to experiment with others like the small off white and yellow lentils used in indian dahls such as Moong or Urid . At the same time add up to 5 cups of stock ( vege or chicken is fine ), salt and pepper to taste, and simmer for about an hour until lentils are well cooked.
Blend this well until ingredients are very finely blended. Replace in pot and bring to simmer. Add extra boiling water if necessary - needs to be thinner rather than thick. Serve with lemon wedges and bread to dip – Delicious and very healthy.
Guvech:
Guvech is kind of like a drier, slightly spicy ratatouille. Chop and roast aubergine, capsicum, courgette, onion, garlic ( you could add mushrooms ) – the more colour the better. If you wish you can add browned beef or lamb pieces or chicken but I prefer the vege version as that is what we had in Turkey. When nicely roasted put in a large flat baking dish so mix is about 50mm deep ( an option is to sprinkle a little cumin powder or whole seeds over the mix ) and add up to one tin of chopped tomato so that everything is, coated in but not so much that dish is swimming in, tomato . Also add over the top some cheese of your choice, could be grated cheddar but I quite like small cubes of haloumi. Bake in the oven for ½ - 1 hour at about 160/ 180 until cheese is cooked or browned nicely and serve – Yum. Also very healthy.
Bon Appetite and consider starting to save for that holiday to Turkey. You'll love it.
