Does our Turkish Experience Look like it is a fit for you?
Travel Book: Rick Steves Istanbul Tour: Thirteen Day Turkish Treasures with Gate1 (our official review below) We recently returned from the thirteen day Gate1 TurkeyTreasures Tour. Food and accommodation exceeded our expectations. The trip was informative, well planned, and provided numerous opportunities for local experiences. Gate1 was flexible to work with allowing us to extend our returning flight one week in order to spend more time in Istanbul. The Gate1 flights were booked with Turkish Air which was a real treat. This is our second Gate1 trip and we have already booked again for Cambodia/Vietnam in January. VRBO Stay: As of November 2014 #1015935ha (our official review below) What an exceptional find! Conveniently located close to buses that go basically everywhere this well equipped apartment will provide an oasis for your time in Istanbul. Is the Balet District for you? Do you think happiness smells like bread sticks pulled straight from the wood stove? Do you think shopping at local markets is an adventure--especially when the vendor takes his time to teach you how to signal half a kilo? Are you up to trying local breakfast pastries from the carts that travel down your cobble stone street? Have you ever wanted to be the only one, alone with your camera, with incredible mosaics surrounding you? Would you climb up to the top of the ancient city walls to get an incredible view of Istanbul? If the answer to these questions is yes, then you would indeed reverence the moment you are caught in the rain with one of Balet's own (in conservative dress)...she smiles at you..reaches up toward the heavens as if to tell you rain is a blessing from God...now you know you belong in Balet. Many thanks to our incredible hosts. General Hints:
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Yesterday we headed down to the Galata Bridge to watch the sunset as the Eminönü ferry headed out on the Bosphorus. The silhouette of the minarets against the skyline will definitely be an enduring memory of Istanbul.
Turkey has exceeded our expectations in every way. It has pushed us physically, emotionally and spiritually. Physically: I'm not kidding when I say that everything in Balet/Fener is uphill both ways! San Fran has nothing on this. Now that I'm in a bit better shape I think I'll leave that old car at home more when I'm back in Listowel. Emotionally: Even though we've been married for 33+ years we don't always find the same things funny. For instance, when you have just poured Ayran (a salted yogurt drink) on your Corn Flakes because you bought it thinking it was milk. Dad thought this was hysterical and started googling soup recipes. Silly me, I thought "what are we going to put on our cereal?" Spiritually: O.K., I've had fun with the Rumi quotes, but anyone who has been on a boat with me knows I haven't been given the spiritual gift of whirling. Rumi also said "Sit, be still, and listen, because you're drunk and we're at the edge of the roof.” Clearly, I don't totally get Rumi. I have been asked several times over the last week how being in a predominately Muslim country effects my faith. I believe that when I gain a deeper understanding of all those God loves it enhances my walk as a Christian. When I hear the Call to Prayer I am reminded that we are encouraged to pray without ceasing. When I visit the mosque I am challenged to reverence God. When I visit Muslim or Orthodox relics I imagine the healing power in just a touch of the hem of his garment. I will not boast in anything, No gifts, no power, no wisdom; But I will boast in Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection. Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer; But this I know with all my heart - His wounds have paid my ransom. (Stuart Townend) One last thing...you all really need to come to Turkey. You are always in my prayers. Love Mom. Your Dad enjoys an early morning run through the Balet Disttict and down the Golden Horn--I enjoy hearing about it!
You wander from room to room hunting for the diamond necklace that is already around your neck!~Rumi In Dolmabahçe Palace there were crystals everywhere with each chandelier bigger, brighter, and heavier than the next. Then we entered the Ceremonial Hall--wow! I've been to Versailles and nothing compared to this room. The Bohemian crystal chandelier, a gift from Queen Victoria, weighs 4.5 tons. My first thought was...somebody has to clean this! On our way back to the apartment for lunch we stopped off at the bakery to pick up our fresh bread for one TL (about 50 cents Canadian). The baker reached into the stone oven with his paddle and offered us two piping hot bread sticks with his compliments. They smelled like happiness--those crystals didn't smell like anything--another life lesson? When we first came to Istanbul we had a copy of the Tortoise Trainer hanging in our room at the Ottoman Legacy. I have to admit I mocked it, perhaps suggesting that the turtles were coughing up wee bits of lettuce after being beaten with a stick. The original is at the Pera Museum here in Istanbul. After spending a considerable amount of time with this 3.5 million dollar painting I believe I have developed a fondness for it. The tortoise whisperer, so to speak, is trying to train the slow learning creatures by coaxing them with a flute and feeding them choice greens. It is an apparent satirical comment on the Ottoman Empire. Sorry Osman Hamdi Bey. I simply didn't understand--another life lesson! You are always in my Prayers. Love Mom. Try not to resist the changes that come your way. Instead let life live through you. And do not worry that your life is turning upside down. How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come?~Rumi
Give up to grace. The ocean takes care of each wave till it gets to shore. ~Rumi
Friday is a holy day for Muslims. We took this opportunity to take the poor man's cruise up the Bosphorus Straight. This magical ferry ride passes mosques, palaces and fishing villages on its way to Anadolu Kavağı; which is the final fishing village before the Bosphorus meets the Black Sea. Once there it was a bit of a hike (understatement) to the castle ruins at the top of the town where you can kick back and watch the endless stream of ships enter, and exit, the Bosphorus. The stupid tourist moment of the day was watching some lady take a picture of the "no photographs allowed" sign while we passed through the military base! We are developing some skill with the transportation system that includes ferries, trams, buses and cable cars. Yesterday we took a bus to a ferry, a ferry to a cable car, then a cable car to Peri Loti where we sipped tea as we looked out on the Golden Horn. Afterwards we wandered downhill through a fascinating cemetery to the Eyup Mosque which is considered a pilgrimage site. This area wasn't very touristy so we know we saw a young boy dressed like a sultan in his ceremonial pre-circumcision costume, but we are only guessing the the delicious candies we were offered were blessed. Nonetheless, we felt like we were part of something special. Another excellent day that ended with Turkish ice cream. You are always in our prayers. Love Mom Giving thanks for abundance is sweeter than the abundance itself. ~Rumi
It may be that the satisfaction I need depends on my going away, so that when I've gone and come back, I'll find it at home.~Rumi
Yesterday, after Dad having a brush with adventure picking up our key (it involved rain, jumping in some random stranger's car and overpaying a child for a pack of Kleenex in exchange for information), we headed off to our home away by taxi. As we unlocked the iron bars to the door of our apartment in the Balet district "my goodness what have we done" quickly changed to "my goodness what a find"! It is both perfectly comfortable and perfectly Turkish. This morning, after finishing our fresh simit from the local bakery, we headed off to the Fatih Çarşamba (Wednesday) market. For twenty dollars CAD we came home with bags and bags of groceries. After the onions we learned how to purchase quantities by the half kilo, which is a good thing because a kilo of olives, eggplant or fresh figs is A LOT! If you miss the market, no worries, all day men with baked goods, vegetables, or cans of milk, call out as they push their carts up the street selling their wares. The layout of this area is definitely not on a grid, and every direction is uphill, but I think we are getting the hang of it. You are always in our prayers...love Mom Note: the entrance to our apartment is the metal door on ground level of the green apartment building on the far left. Some would say that I am somewhat apolitical. I tend to recognize the efforts of those who govern, their apparent successes and their apparent failures, as I sympathize with the difficulty of being "in charge". So, although I have no intention of commenting on the policies of the Turkish government, I have observed that those we have met are proud to be part of an independent secular republic. On Friday we visited a school in the Cappadocia region. The primary children lined up at the end of the day in front of a statue of Ataturk (the father of independence) to sing the National Anthem. Their headmaster encouraged them to show "how much they loved their country". This is a sentiment I can appreciate! ....God keep our land glorious and free...O Canada You are always in our prayers. Love Mom |
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Ray & Diane
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