`The devastating earthquake that struck Turkey on 6 Feb
2023 evoked memories of our trip to this fascinating country in July
2022.We( my son Siddharth, daughter in law Kivya, grand daughter Ziya and I )
landed in Turkey on Saturday 2 July.
Right after landing , we hired a cab for
the entire duration of the trip.
Apartments were booked through
Air BNB in each locality which we planned to visit. This gave us a chance to
acquaint ourselves with the local population . The people were cordial and the
apartments were well furnished with all the required amenities. On one or two
occasions we experienced some unpleasantness on account of a disruption in water
supply, lack of AC , small rooms etc. But this did not deter us from exploring
all the interesting facets of this wonderland.
We started our journey from Anatolia . From the apartment where we stayed , the
nearby Adalar beach and the adjoining café manned by a Turkish family could be
accessed by a steep flight of steps. The seat in the café provided a splendid view of the Mediterranean , with
rocks forming a cove , deemed to be safe for swimming. Our water baby Siddharth
made a beeline for the crystal clear water, taking little Ziya with him. This
was Ziya’s debut swimming session in the ocean and she was thrilled as well as apprehensive. When the initial
excitement wore off she insisted on having her Mom by her side all the time .
From morning to evening we lazed about in the café eating grilled fish,
sandwiches , fries, water melon and an assortment of beverages. In the evening
we ventured into the nearby park which was teeming with life. Well laid out
flower beds dotted with lamps, tall palms, evergreen shrubs and statues at
strategic points enhanced the beauty of the place . The restaurant in the park
was vibrant with music, ilght and laughter. Romance was in the air and we felt
enchanted.
A mix of tradition and modernity was evident everywhere. Women
wearing hijab and long kurtas shared space with women wearing hot pants and
mini dresses. Most of the men were bearded though we spotted a few clean shaven
ones too. Families could be seen loitering around the garden and park, some
with picnic baskets , their children running about and playing on the grounds.
Most of the ladies were well turned out, in stylish costumes and make up. All
the streets were well lit and clean. Even in the older parts of the city, the
cobbled pavements were spic and span. Toilets were available everywhere, well
equipped with tissues, running water and all amenities.
One curious aspect of the country is the presence of cats everywhere. The feline
creatures could be seen stalking the pavement, hiding in the bushes, rubbing
against your feet while seated at a restaurant. In many places people were seen
patting and feeding stray cats. Perhaps
the Turk’s love of cats may be the reason for such fearlessness of the cats of
that country.
Another ubiquitous feature is the aromatic Turkish tea served in a tower
of two kettles stacked one upon the other. The lower one is for boiling water
and the upper one for the brew. Both the kettles are continuously heated by a
chunk of charcoal kept underneath each kettle. Turkish tea is served in a tulip
shaped glass called ince belli and is
best when consumed black but sugar and milk are provided on
request. We got so carried away by the elegance of the tea tower and the aroma
of the tea that we drank glass after glass ,
consequently finding ourselves
sleep deprived on account of the excess caffeine in our blood.
From Adalar beach we walked to the old city to see Hadrian’s
Gate, which dates back to 130 AD. Originally built to commemorate the visit of
Roman Emperor Hadrian to Anatolia, it is
a typical Roman triumphal arc , with three similar archways. The streets were paved with cobblestones and they led to
historic houses, restaurants and shops. We bought two beautifully carved vases
as souvenirs. In the evening we shifted to an apartment in the older part of
the city and had dinner at a restaurant which had a mesmerising performance by belly dancers in their glittering costumes gliding
to the tune of soft music .
Our next destination was Pamukkale, the thermal l springs.
Though cabs were available for hire we took the unwise decision to brave it out
on foot. The heat of the blazing sun
took us unawares. We had to circumvent an amphitheatre in ruins and scale a
hill to reach the springs. I wondered at
the lack of shops and stalls offering water and snacks to weary travellers. In
India we can expect a small shop or stall
at every nook and corner. But this was hilly terrain, offering no
shelter from the scorching heat of the sun. No wonder then, that we had to deal with
frayed nerves and differences of opinion by the time we reached the thermal
springs. Another dampener was the lack of toilet facilities
near the springs. We had to walk to the restaurant about half a kilometre away
to find refreshment and toilets. My
pleasure in the trip took a deep plunge at this juncture and left me in a foul
mood.
In Ephesus we saw the ruins of a well-planned city – a
commercial market place going back to the time of Emperor Augustus , a two
aisled Doric basilica built during the time of Emperor Nero. In the Temple of
Hadrian, around 300 inscribed bases of Emperors were preserved while the
statues were destroyed in a series of earth quakes. So earthquakes were a
familiar phenomena to Turkey as could be gauged by the ruins of the fountains
and theatres found at Ephesus.
On the way to Istanbul we visited the Temple of Artemis which was destroyed by Herostratus. . Impossible to fathom the depth of depravity in
a mind that could reduce one of the wonders
of the ancient world to mere columns and foundations just to attain notoriety if not fame ….
“… and much it grieved my heart to think , what man has made
of man..”
No wonder that the term Herostratic fame originated from the
nefarious act of that vainglorious man.
The next place of interest was The House of Virgin Mary , a
stone built house where Virgin Mary had spent the final years of her life. A
modest chapel, with a single room . On an altar stood
the statue of the blessed Virgin
. We prayed and exited with Ziya sleeping on the pram beside us , but when Ziya woke up Siddharth insisted on paying a second visit with Ziya awake . As
we came out we were surprised to see a few young men, probably the cleaning
staff washing the garbage bins with soap and water . What a wonderful precedent for cleanliness and
dignity of labour! The same cleanliness was evident when we visited Grand
Bazaar. It was closing time and we couldn’t do much shopping . Once the stalls
were closed, the cleaning staff came in vehicles and started cleaning the pavements
with soap and water using hoses connected to huge water carriers. We can take a
lesson in cleanliness from the Turks.
Istanbul’s timeless
charm was evident in every facet of the grand city. Numerous architectural
marvels stood tall in the heart of the
city. We visited Hagia Sophia, the mosque which had once been a cathedral built
by Constantine, , rebuilt by Justinian and converted into a mosque during the
Ottoman conquest . Finally when Turkey became a republic, Gen Kemal Ataturk
declared it to be a museum .In Hagia Sophia, it is mandatory for ladies to
cover their heads and we were well prepared with scarves and stoles .The place was over crowded. We had to remove
foot wear to enter. There was plush wall to wall carpeting inside. We sat down
and observed the intricately carved ceiling , the splendid chandeliers, the
inscriptions and the motifs on the walls and half walls. Men and women were
sitting engrossed in prayer. The
brilliant work of art as well as
the spiritual atmosphere that pervaded
the holy place was absolutely awe inspiring.
The next day’s visit started with the Blue Mosque, alias Sultan Ahmed mosque, where
the procedure of removing footwear and
covering the head had to be repeated. The most intriguing
monument proved to be the Republic
monument at Taksim square , which depicts
the establishment of the young Turkish republic. One side of the monument
represents the war of Independence and
the other, the Republic of Turkey. Statues of two Soviet generals are
incorporated into the monument, seemingly to express gratitude to Soviet help during the war.
Bosphorus Bridge, connecting
the European and Asian sides of Istanbul , had a continuous stream of traffic. It is one
of the three suspension bridges spanning the Bosphorus Strait, that forms the continental boundary
between Asia and Europe. Previously one
could walk along the length of the bridge but now bridge walk is allowed only
during Istanbul Marathon which takes place in November.
The viewing platform on the Golden Horn Bridge gave us a splendid view of
graceful cruise ships and speed boats sailing in the Bosphorus Strait.
We were startled at the sight of flying fish which we later realized were fish
caught by the men sitting on the side-lines with fishing lines . The lower part
of the bridge was mainly occupied by restaurants and we had delicious calamari
and mussels there. Though much acclaim has been made of Turkish food we did not find the food
delectable to our palates in most of the eating places which we frequented. The
bread was rather tough and the meat
tasted bland to our Indian taste buds.
But the fare served at the restaurant
on the Golden Horn
Bridge surpassed our expectations and satiated our appetites.
From where we sat we could see the Galata Tower. Originally built as a light house by
the Byzantines, it became a dungeon during the Ottoman conquest and later
turned into a fire tower. Ziya was
entranced by the hustle and bustle at Golden Horn bridge. All through the trip
and during the flight she enchanted us with her antics and childish pranks.
Hugging her favourite doll, she made her way through the streets and pavements
of Turkey, giggling breathlessly at the pranks of the ice cream vendor and
later crying her heart out when the vendor playfully took away her ice cream.
Finally he had to pacify her with a soft toy which belonged to his own child. When we returned to London, we carried with us
indelible memories of this beautiful land along with plenty of souvenirs. A statue of Cleopatra ,
reclining on the barge now proudly sits
on my showcase , bringing to mind the memorable lines of Mark Antony:
“Age cannot wither her,
Nor custom stale her infinite variety … “
