Istanbul Istanbul ...

Istanbul is the only city in the world that falls on two different continents: Asia and Europe. It was the third Ottoman capital after Bursa and Edirne. The picture to the right is that of Hagia Sofia (the holy wisdom), and in front of it is the so called Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmet mosque). In Istanbul also there is the famous Topkapi (cannon gate) which used to be the residence of the Ottoman Sultans and their harems. Some of the holy relics contained in Topkapi are: Staff of Moses, sword of David, pan of Abraham, footprint of Prophet Mohammad, keys of the Kaaba, cloak of Prophet Mohammad, his beard hair and his seal. I joined the Fez Travel magic carpet tour which showed us around Istanbul and other cities in Turkey as I will explain next.

Next to the area of Sultan Ahmet mosque and Hagia Sofia there is the remnant of the ancient Hippodrome which was built at the time of Emperor Justinian. To the left you see a picture of the Galata tower north of the Golden Horn (Halci in Turkish). The nine-story tower is about 67 meters high and you can see a beautiful 360 degree panoramic view of the city from the top. Other landmarks of Istanbul are the Istiklal street and the Taksim square which were in the news during last July's failed coup that took place in Turkey. I took a public ferry boat along the Bosphorus and enjoyed the voyage by sea very much. We went under three bridges that cross the Bosphorus. The name of one of the bridges was changed to "The Martyrs of July 15" after the failed coup. Another one is new and was opened recently in August. Other landmarks of Istanbul are the Spice Market "Eminonu", and the Grand Bazaar. The next day we went by bus to Gallipoli where we saw the ANZAC cove and the trenches from WWI. Then from Gallipoli we crossed the sea of Marmara by a ferry boat to a city called Canakkale where we spent the night in Iris Hotel. The next day we visited the ancient city of Troy, but most of its treasures were looted by a German treasure hunter in the nineteenth century. Then we drove to a nice city by the sea called Kusadasi, and along the way, near Izmir, we stopped

to visit the high city "Acropolis" and Bergamo. The next day we visited Ephesus which was built 3000 B.C. from the time of the Hittites. The picture to the right shows the remnants of the library inside Ephesus. There is a nearby town there called Selcuk where the Seljuk Turks of the 11th century ruled before the Ottomans. There is also nearby Sirince which is famous for its wine. In that area there is also the church of Virgin Mary where she is believed to have died, as well as apostle St. John. We visited the temple of Artemis which has nothing left really except one column. The next day we drove to Heriopolis near Pamukkale. There we swam in an antique pool of thermal spring water among historic columns. We stopped at Denizli to buy some towels for the pool first. That area is famous for its Denizli roosters that can crow for 30 seconds, and for its textiles.

Pamukkale's thermal springs have calcium carbonates which gives it its therapeutic effects and its white color. The picture to the left is that of Pamukkale's thermal springs, and its fantastic white slopes made of calcium carbonates. We spent the night in Pamukkale, and the hotel had thermal spring water pool for those who want to partake more of its therapeutic value. The dinner in the hotel was nice and had a big buffet with a large variety of foods and desserts. There were also many tourists in that area especially from the far east and the middle east.

The next morning we drove towards Cappadocia, or the Land of Beautiful Horses. But first along the way we stopped at Konya where we visited the tomb of Jalaluldeen Al Rumi, the mystic who founded the whirling Dervish practice. Near Konya we also passed by the village of Hodja called Akshehir. Hodja was famous for his humorous stories but he was also a philosopher and wise man. We also saw caravan sarays, or caravan depots that were built along the Silk Road during the Seljuk dynasty. Finally we arrived to Cappadocia seen in the picture to the right. It is a beautiful land of wonderful rock formations and where houses and churches were carved out of the mountains. There were also whole cities that were built underground, where early Christians took refuge from the Roman persecution at the time. We spent two wonderful nights in a nice hotel at Cappadocia, and the next day we went on our way to Ankara but we decided not to visit Ataturk's mausoleum there and continued on our way back to Istanbul. I really enjoyed my tour of Turkey so much and I would recommend it to anybody who wants to see the best of Turkey in ten days.