Turkey – Glorious and Surprising

Turkey has always been at the crossroads between the east and west, but today it stands at the intersection between modern and traditional as well as secular and religious. This makes Turkey a fascinating place to visit. My wife and I had been discussing taking a trip to this country of antiquity with our friends whose ancestors came from Turkey. This September we toured this land of grandiose mosques, monumental churches, extravagant palaces and well-preserved ruins with our dear friends.

Our Turkish experience started as we arrived at JFK airport and checked in for our flight to Istanbul. Next to our gate, we found a Turkish food kiosk and discovered some interesting snacks, Gozleme – a Turkish crepe with different types of fillings – chicken, cheese, potato, etc., and Borek – a cross between spanekopita and a spinach knish. The flight to Istanbul was uneventful but we found the airlines’ magazine and a Turkish English daily chockfull of useful information. Unlike US airlines, the onboard food didn’t taste like plastic and it was served with real silverware.

We arrived at our hotel which was located in the old historic district of Istanbul – Sultanahmet – about 200 meters from the Blue Mosque, a 17th century landmark. We could see the mosque from our room. After resting a bit we set out for a walk to the Hippodrome which was about five minutes away from the hotel. The Hippodrome was a place for chariot racing and games during Greek and Roman times, but today it is a park that connects the two most important sites of the town: the Haghia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. It was middle of the day and there was not much activity in the area.

Our next stop was the Haghia Sophia – the Church of Holy Wisdom. Nothing remains of the original two structures which were destroyed by fire. The current building is over 1400 years old - inaugurated by Emperor Justinian in 537. The dome was so massive that it started to collapse and had to be buttressed by various retaining architectural structures. This has made the outside of the building somewhat asymmetrical and less attractive. The inside still looks magnificent and enormous. When the Ottoman Turks conquered Istanbul in 1453, they converted the church into a mosque by adding four minarets and other architectural changes. The addition of the Mehrab (the place for the Imam to lead prayers) and the Mimber (the place for the Imam to deliver sermons) right under the paintings of Christian saints and angels gives the place an incongruous look. After Ataturk declared Turkey a republic, he converted the mosque into a museum in 1937.

The sights and sounds at the Hippodrome that evening were totally different. It was brightly lit, full of people and there were live bands playing music at outdoor cafes. Food stalls around the Hippodrome were doing a brisk business and the park was full of people in festive mood. Entire families had spread out their blankets and were picnicking in the park. We learned that this was a daily ritual in Istanbul during the month of Ramadan. I grew up in a Muslim country, but celebrating Ramadan in such a joyous manner was totally new to me – I loved it. We went to a café where young and old, men and women alike were enjoying music by a traditional Turkish group. We stayed there till late night.

Our hotel served breakfast of all sorts of fruits, jams, wonderful Turkish yogurt, breads, and other goodies on the terrace that had a terrific view of the Sea of Marmara. While sitting at the terrace having breakfast and enjoying this marvelous view of Istanbul we would plan our day’s activities.

Three percent of Turkey’s landmass is in Europe while the remaining area lies in Asia - the Asian part is known as Anatolia. The Strait of Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmara and the Strait of Bosphorus separate the two landmasses. Istanbul is the only city in the world that stretches over two continents. It has over 12 million inhabitants. The European part is further divided by the Golden Horn, a scimitar shaped 5-mile long estuary that flows into the Bosphorus.

We started our day with the Blue Mosque – so named because of the blue tiles used in its internal design. Built in 1616 on orders of Sultan Ahmet I, the mosque was designed by the architect Mehmet Aga. The mosque’s design prompted great controversy at the time because its six minarets were considered a sacrilegious attempt to overdo Mecca. One of its most unique features is the stain glass windows – quite unusual for a mosque. Tiles from Iznik beautifully adorn the walls of the main prayer hall and windows make it very bright and open. The soaring dome gives it a cathedral-like feel.

From the mosque we went to the Topkapi Palace – the sprawling Ottoman palace built by Sultan Mehmet II. It remained the imperial residence till 1853 when Sultan Abdul Majid II abandoned it for another more luxurious palace. The most visited part of this palace is the harem – where the Sultan’s concubines lived under the watchful eyes of the Queen Mother. Eunuchs from Africa were the only servants allowed in the harem. The Sultan or his representative selected beautiful girls from various countries. It is said that most Sultans preferred woman from Eastern European countries. One such concubine who rose to become the Queen was Roxelana - a Russian who got married to Suleyman the Magnificent. Topkapi is a series of lavishly decorated rooms and pavilions with intricate tile work within four courtyards. In the harem there is a huge pool as well. In the beginning it served as the Sultan’s court and the seat of the government, but later the official work was moved away from the palace.

We left Topkapi to go to Taksim Square. It is one of the busiest places in the modern neighborhood of Istanbul called Beyoglu. A pedestrian mall – Istiklal Street – starts from this square and runs almost through the entire neighborhood. This is somewhat similar to Piccadilly of London – very touristy, lot of restaurants and other stores. According to a 2008 Gallup poll about 45% of Turkish women wear headscarves, but the percentage much lower in the cosmopolitan cities like Istanbul and Izmir – between 10 to 15%. Walking down this street you encounter even less women wearing such head covering. It seems that Istanbul is culturally divided according to its geography. Generally the south side of the Golden Horn is considered conservative and the northern side modern. Whereas the Hippodrome seems to be the center of the traditionalists, Istiklal represents the modernists.

The next morning we decided to check out a few small neighborhoods/towns – one on the European side and two on the Asian side. Our first stop was Ortokoy, just north east of Istanbul. The beautiful Mecidiye Mosque on the waterfront right next to outdoor cafes and restaurants gives the town a typical Turkish-European look. On a sunny Ramadan day while some people were praying in the mosque, others just outside were eating, playing music and enjoying life – a good example of peaceful coexistence between the religious and the non-religious. This is only possible due to the secular constitution of Turkey. This might appear insignificant to Americans, but for a country with 600-year history of Islamic Sultanate rule, this seemed very impressive to me.

From Ortakoy we took a cab to Uskadar on the Asian side by way of the Bosphorus Bridge. Although such a bridge was conceived during Ataturk’s time, the construction was delayed due to political reasons and was finally completed in 1973. Uskadar is a middle class conservative town and mosques dot the road along the water. On the way we noticed that the cab driver had fiddled with and reset the meter. When we reached the center of Uskadar the meter showed very little amount and the driver asked for quite an unreasonable fare. We were at the taxi stop and surrounded by a sea of yellow cabs when an argument over the fare ensued. A lot of people got involved – onlookers, other cabbies and a reluctant policeman. Finally the taxi driver accepted the money we originally offered and everybody was fine – a bit of Turkish excitement.

We rode a bus from Uskadar to Kodokoy to have lunch at a restaurant that served food from various regions of Turkey. One of the major problems in Turkey is the lack of detailed maps and street signs. We had the address of the restaurant, but without clear street signs and building numbers it was very hard to locate the address. After asking several people we reached our destination – Ciya Sofrasa Restaurant. It was definitely worth the effort, the best meal we had in Turkey.

Bazaars are important to all historic cities situated on trade routes and this city has always been crucial for trade between Europe and Asia. The Grand Bazaar and its merchants are synonymous with Istanbul. After visiting various bazaars in my native Pakistan and in Morocco, I had formed a mental picture of what the Grand Bazaar would be and was anxious to verify my assumptions. I was totally surprised by this centuries old market. It is unimaginable that when Mehmet II ordered the construction of this bazaar in 1453, he could have thought that his bazaar would be more vibrant almost six centuries later. Unlike the picture in mind, the streets of this bazaar are covered by vaulted ceilings and partially painted in geometric designs. The streets of two third of the bazaar are laid out somewhat like a grid and it is easy to find a location while the other one third is a labyrinth. It is an enormous space partitioned into sections for different types of goods – leather, carpets, jewelry, etc. I was totally surprised by this clean, well laid out and easy to move around antique shopping center.

Walking with my wife into an area where any kind of merchandise is on sale is a bone of contention between us. We are a very conventional couple in the sense that I hate shopping and she loves to browse. So we always set some time limit before venturing into such dangerous territory. Both my friend and I made an agreement with our wives that we will spend two hours with them in the Bazaar and then leave to discover the city on foot. We wandered into a carpet store where all four of us spent the rest of the morning. Our friends ended up buying some beautiful carpets.

After the sale was completed, we left our wives at the Bazaar and headed towards another unique experience – the hamam or the Turkish bath. These baths are similar to the ancient Roman baths. At the start you are given a locker where you strip and wrap a Turkish towel around your waist. You are then led to a heated domed structure with marble floors and a marble slab platform in the center. Your Turkish masseuse, who looks like a wrestler, then asks you in a curt manner to move into the sauna area. You sweat for about 10 minutes and then led back to the marble platform where you are given a full body massage (including some intense pummeling) while lying down. Along the walls of the domed structure are sectioned washing areas containing ornate marble basins with hot and cold water taps. A small silver basin is used to pour water over the body. When the massage is over, the masseuse orders you to move to a designated washing area where you are given exfoliating body scrub. The masseuse wears a mitt and starts scrubbing your body with various soaps. Finally he washes the soap away, your body is wrapped in soft cotton towels and you move into the lobby area where you are offered tea or coffee. The whole bath takes about 45 minutes to an hour and your body feels totally relaxed and clean!

My friend wanted to try a bulgur drink. I was not interested in the drink, but thought that it was an interesting way to discover the older parts of the city. Since we also wanted to see some well-known sites – Istanbul University and Suleymaniya Mosque, we started our exploration with these famous locations first. As we reached the university, we were surprised to find that the common public was not allowed to enter this institution of higher learning after 3 PM. In the land of Ataturk, religious institutions are open to people of all faiths and gender at all times even when prayers are going on while secular institutions have imposed tight control on access.

Walking through the narrow meandering streets of old Istanbul and stopping at every other corner to ask for directions, we finally found the shop that sold fermented bulgur juice. We rushed towards the store. As we approached the door of the shop, all our hopes were dashed, the store was closed. No fermented drink for my friend - we bought a few figs and a couple of bottles of water from a nearby store and started walking back to the hotel. The next day we left Istanbul for Izmir.

On the flight to Izmir, as I was looking out of the window seeing Istanbul from above, various thoughts about this unique city passed through my mind. For a metropolis of millions of inhabitants it is a relatively clean, well functioning and safe place. We rarely saw any beggars or homeless people. Trams are modern, spotless and efficient. Turkish people are extremely friendly and helpful. One has to be careful with the taxi drivers, but apart form that one incident in Uskadar, all other cabbies were reasonably honest. I was looking forward to returning back to this great city after a few days.