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in Turkey by Alex MacKenzie I have been living in Istanbul since November 1994 and I am returning to a job in England at the end of August 1997. While in Turkey, I have tried to get in as much sightseeing as possible. I have seen quite a few interesting places including Konya (home of the Whirling Dervishes), Gallipoli, Hattusas (capital of the Hittites, near Ankara), Catalhoyuk (reputed to be the oldest city in the world, where we had a school trip and could take part in a dig) and also eastern Turkey - where we visited old Georgian churches and the old Armenian capital of Ani, on the Armenian border. In Erzurum, also in the east, there is even a very respectable ski resort, which is largely patronised by Russians. It has been a privilege to live in this beautiful and fascinating country, whose people are so naturally kind and hospitable to strangers. I would like to recommend two excellent books: Turkey: The Rough Guide published by Penguin (ISBN 1-85828-088-5) and Strolling Through Istanbul by Hilary Sumner-Boyd and John Freely, published by Redhouse Press (ISBN 975-413-045-0). The former is encyclopaedic in its scope and accuracy; the latter details 23 itineraries through the city, each of which can be accomplished in between half a day and a full day. I think it has been reissued as a Blue Guide to the city. Both books are extensive (770 and 500 pages respectively), so they are only suitable if you can spend more than a few days in the country / city. I would be happy to give information and advice to anyone thinking of visiting Turkey or Istanbul [see end of article for contact details]. I took a week's holiday during July and visited various places in Istanbul. The first day took me to Fener on the south side of the Golden Horn. Istanbul is separated between east (Asia) and west (Europe) by the Bosphorus Sea, which runs from the Black Sea in the north through to the Sea of Marmara in the south. Not too far from where it opens into the Sea of Marmara, the European side is itself split "horizontally" by the Golden Horn, a waterway which runs into the Bosphorus and which divides Old Istanbul (south of the Golden Horn) from "New Istanbul" (north of the Golden Horn). I started on the south side at a really nice Turkish bath, complete with loofa, massage and joint twisting at the Kucuk Mustafa Pasha Hamami, a sixteenth century bath. The cost was less than three dollars. A lot of visitors hesitate to visit a hamam because of security concerns: in fact, they give you your own cubicle and key, so there is nothing to worry about. Next stop was the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate at Fener (HQ of the Greek Orthodox Church) and the attached church of St George. It was a Sunday, so I was able to see the church's lovely icons and golden trimmings between services. Further along is the Bulgarian Church of St Stephen, which is entirely constructed of cast iron and was prefabricated in Vienna and shipped in pieces down the Danube. I was lucky to see inside this as well as a service had just ended. It was bedecked similarly to the Greek church. There is a small Bulgarian community in Istanbul and, apparently, the Bulgarian church asserted its independence from the Greek church at the end of the last century. Further along is the area of Balat, one of the parts of the city which was inhabited by the Sephardic Jews who were expelled from Spain by the Catholic Kings at the end of the fifteenth century. I saw the gateway to a very ancient synagogue, but was unable to enter. Next day, we visited the Topkapi Palace. We passed on the Harem, having seen it several times before, and concentrated on the other sights. We had lunch at the Konyali restaurant, which is to be recommended both for its splendid food and for the lovely view out onto the point where the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus meet. Tuesday was a cruise with the family on the Bosphorus. The boat starts at Eminonu on the south side of the Golden Horn and near the Galata Bridge. The boat leaves about 10.00am, but it is advisable to get there much earlier to get a good seat. It stops six times before its final destination on the north side of the Bosphonis and takes two hours each way. Like most people, we stopped off at Anadolu Kavagi - Anatolian Castle - on the Asian side for a lunch at a fish restaurant before taking a later boat back. It is well worth doing on a beautiful day - very inexpensive and much better value than the hustlers and their private boat rides. Wednesday - we visited the BeyIerbeyi Palace, a summer patace of the sultans on the Asian side, just near the Bosphorus Bridge. This is a less overwhelming and more intimate palace than the Dolmabahce Palace, the main palace on the European side, and much more attractive. On Thursday, we had a day trip to the Princes Islands, which are reached by a boat not too far from the boat for the Bosphorus cruise. There were four islands to choose from; the boat stopped at them all. We got off at the main one, Buyukada ("Big Island"). You would never believe that you were only one hour from central Istanbul. It was a beautiful unspoilt island with no cars. The highlight was a two hour tour of the island in a horse-drawn carriage - only $12 for the whole family! Friday was a walk through the lovely Belgrade Forest to the north of the city, lunch and a swim at Kilyos, the main Black Sea resort on the European side. Saturday was for rest and shopping. On Sunday we attended the enchanting Dervish ceremony at the Dervish lodge near Tunet, at the bottom end of the long boulevard called Istiklal Caddesi which starts at Tacsim Square. The ceremony is on the last Sunday of each month. You need to get in at least an hour early, preferably more, in order to get a seat with a good view. Unfortunately, it was so hot that one lady spectator fainted. Our 11 year old son found it ineffably boring, but Emilia (13) described it as the weirdest thing she had ever seen (a compliment). She also calculated the average whirl rate as 55 rpm. You can visit the Dervish lodge every day except Mondays. Call 245-41-41 for information on the times of the ceremoniesjust to be sure. Also, don't forget to try the Metro from Tunel to the Galata Bridge. It is the shortest and the third oldest in the world. In all, the week was a great low cost holiday. In an effort to see more sights before our departure, I took a car tour of the Black Sea region (my wife was absent in England). The Black Sea immediately to the east of Istanbul is not visited much, partly because the roads are so poor and also because all the main sites are much further east. On the advice of a work colleague, I took the main highway east towards Ankara, intending to turn north and hit the coast road at Inebolu. After some difficulty in getting off the Ankara road at the right place, I headed north earlier than intended and visited Safranbolu, a lovely unspoilt Ottoman-style village. The best place to stay is the Havuzlu Konak (tel 372-725-2883 fax 372-712-3824), which is very expensive by Turkish standards - $35 single. I paid $25 for the annex, but the main building is a beautiful old mansion house with a fine garden and the rooms are very large with high, beautifully carved wooden ceilings. It is a delightful and relaxing place to spend a few days. I visited the old hamam in the village and, the following morning, enjoyed a personal guided tour in Turkish of a large Ottoman "stately home" in the village. After that, I headed across to the main road going north and briefly visited Kastamonu - famous as the place where Ataturk made his anti-fez speech, but not worth a diversion. The second night was in Sinop, an agreeable town with a fine seaside promenade. Close to the west is a fjord, the only one in Turkey. Next stop on the way to Trabzon was Samsun - not highly recommended in my guide book. But the "Russian Market" sounded interesting and I paused to visit. Only two of the people I saw were Russians; the others were all Turks. The market is a gigantic enclosed area where ali kinds of day-to-day bric-a-brac are sold. I only reached Trabzon at the end of the day. There is a long market street running through the town and all the hotels are located around "Ataturk Place" to the north east of the town. As the first major town west of the fonner Soviet border, this place is full of Russian ladies intent on doing their bit for the Russian balance of payments ("invisible exports"?) This gives the area a very seedy feel. I visited the (Byzantine) Sumela Monastery, a long and hard climb up a steep hill; the Ataturk Kosk; and the Aya Sofia Byzantine church. All of these are outside the town. I then drove east and briefly visited the lovely Hemsin vally, whose dramatic natural beauty defies description. I enjoyed an opulent meal at a restaurant near the sea - about $12! The sound of the crashing waves was like a lullaby that night. On the way back, I visited Amasya - another unspoilt Ottoman town, although a lot larger. Many old houses hang over one side of the river that runs through the town. Above them, one can see the massive tombs of the Pontic kings carved into the cliff face behind.The trip was around 3,000km in all in six days - and far too little time really to enjoy a fraction of all there is to see. Still, I can recommend Safranbolu and Amasya in particular as places worth visiting if you have the chance. Alex is happy
to help if you would like to know more about Turkey, especially Istanbul.
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