Through Western Turkey Thomas Cole

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Through Western Turkey Thomas Cole There was a great mixture of tentativeness and excitement after Krista and I were fortunate enough to be rewarded the Roger Short Scholarship.

1 Through Western Turkey Thomas Cole There was a great mixture of tentativeness and excitement after Krista and I were fortunate enough to be rewarded the Roger Short Scholarship. This tentativeness was caused by waiting several months to venture to Turkey, a country we had no experience with, and the excitement was derived from the two week challenge that was to face us. Our plan was to travel down the Western coast; starting from Istanbul we aimed to end in Bodrum, which would be a 900km journey. The scale of the journey reflects the scale of Turkish history as we also encountered 1400 years of history. We arrived late on a humid September evening to Ataturk Airport, and the first notable instance was that Krista, the Finn, was allowed through without a Visa, whilst my Britishness meant I had to queue and pay for a visa. I feel this was testament to the fractious history between the two nations, as the legacy of conflict between the Ottoman and British Empires has still left a 21 st century legacy. The half hour taxi ride was nearly the end of our trip as `road safety` does not appear to have a Turkish translation. The narrow single-lane streets of Sultanahmet were incredibly different to what I had experienced in London earlier that day, and the cluster of stone buildings rising from the undulating cobbles seemed to beckon us back to 6 th century Constantinople. Despite it being nearly midnight Istanbul still proved itself to be a vibrant city with tourists and locals alike out on the streets for kofte and raki, and after sampling meat under the imposing sight of the Blue Mosque, we ventured back through the lively streets for sleep. Being woken up by the adhan of several mosques in the area was an early reminder that unlike the rest of Europe, Turkey was an Islamic country. Whilst Istanbul and the rest of the country are secular due to the reforms of Ataturk, Turkey is a predominantly Islamic country and this reminded us to accept and embrace Turkish customs as a mark of respect to our new hosts. One of the most remarkable features of architecture and history we saw was the Hagia Sofia, one of the most impressive buildings in Turkey with one of the most impressive histories. It was built in 532 by Emperor Justinian as an Orthodox cathedral and was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years. What I found most impressive was that the majestic dome was built in search an early age with none of the building resources we have today, the awe the Hagia Sofia inspired in my eyes must have been dwarfed with the wonder the citizens of Byzantium would have felt. The Cathedral was converted into a mosque after the Siege of 1453 by Sultan Mehmed, who wished to convert the city of Constantinople of Islam. The Christians who sought refuge inside were killed or enslaved and the Cathedral whose doors had been battered down became a mosque. It remained a mosque for nearly 600 years until Ataturk ordered it to become a museum to help foster a sense of nationalism in the country, and the building remains testament for Turkey as a meeting point between the Eastern and Western Worlds with its minarets and mosaics of Christian figures. The hectic day grew even more hectic with our trip to the Grand Bazaar. All we had read about the busy alleys of commerce proved true, and the smells of spices clung to us as we tried to make the distinction between bargains and knock offs. Krista went away with some dubious Kashmir and I left with a handcrafted flute for my sister, but the visit was more about the experience than what we came away with. The Turkish heat forced us underground into the Basilica Cistern which was built by Justinian I. It was used to store water and was an impressive reminder of the feats of the Byzantines. The dark cavernous nature of the place made it suitable enough to have been in a James Bond movie, and walking between the narrow concrete lanes we were able to see many large fish who had made their home there, unknowing of the manic life that resided up ahead.

2 The following day we arose early to attempt to beat the queues to see Topkapi Palace, the home of the Ottoman Sultans. Tucked away within Sultanahmet one could be excused of imagining it to be small before visiting, but the sheer size of the gardens dominates the district. What I found most impressive were the views over the Bosphorus, a view that was reserved for hundreds of years to only the select few of the Ottoman Empire. The vivid greenery and exotic plants inside the gardens beautifully juxtaposed the blue of the water, and the high vantage point of the palace and view into Asia showed the vast tracts of land and civilisation that would have been owned by one man. Inside the palace was, however, slightly underwhelming compared to the grounds. The palace seemed to have been gutted in the inside and carefully ordered into exhibits, in which one was expected to queue from one room to the next to see. Whilst there is a necessity for this due to Topkapi being a huge attraction, it somewhat detracted from seeing how the Sultans would have really lived. Later that evening we had a different view of Istanbul, Istanbul at night. The view from the rooftop restaurant we ate at had a 360 degree view for miles across the city, from the lights on the hillside to the boats navigating the Bosphorus, we could see it all. We attempted to see the Blue Mosque in the morning, but due to restricted entrance times to non-muslims we were unable to go in. We decided to go across to the other side of the Bosphorus, and to do this we had to get a tram to Karasay. After a few minutes of attempting to work out the Turkish maps we were off. The tram scaled the steep hills through the Beyoğlu district and we could peer down the narrow alleys with their cosmopolitan shops. The European district ended for the more business oriented district of Taksim at the top of the hill where we departed. After a further twenty minute walk up more hills we reached the military museum. Heavily subsidised by the Government it was only 50p to enter. I noticed a big difference between this museum and ones we would see in Britain, as there was far less concern for objectiveness. The museum aimed to describe the entirety of Turkish military history from Attila the Hun to World War Two. However, what made me most uncomfortable were the two rooms dedicated to denying the genocide of Armenians. This visit showed me the darker side of Turkish history. After the visit we started the long walk home. There was a much more relaxed feel to shopping here than in the Grand Bazaar, taking to the side alleys to find shade we were able to see another side to Istanbul. The further juxtaposition of Istanbul was seen with the main high street having a fundamental Western feel with all of the modern shops. Our time in Istanbul was soon to come to an end, and I was delegated the task by Krista to go and buy the bus tickets for the journey to Canakkale. Rather than having to pay the exorbitant costs of sourcing the tickets through a travel agency I decided to venture further out of town to Capa, an area of the city where I could buy them directly. Capa does not feature on any of the guide books, and for good reason. It had many high-rise, run down, and terraced buildings with an anaemic pale colour. More so, by being out of the cosmopolitan centre English was not a spoken language. With gesturing and use of an iphone, the lady and I at the ticket desk were able to resolve the language barrier and sort out our tickets. Later that day we jumped on a ferry boat to the Asian side of the city. We had expected it to be different to the European side of Istanbul, but, it did not prove itself to be. There were, however, fewer tourist sites to see than the European side with Nightingale s Scutari Hospital being run by the military and closed to the public. We visited a recommended mezze restaurant, whose semi-canteen style led us to picking our food in the dark, but the reviews stood up to the test and we returned to Europe on full stomachs.

After saying goodbye under the shadow of Galata Tower we made our way out of Beyoğlu, and were seen to leave Istanbul.

3 That evening we visited Victoria Short at her amazing apartment, with panoramic rooftop views of the entire city. She later took us to a tucked away mezze restaurant that only a local would be able to recommend and was able to give us an invaluable insight into, not only Istanbul, but Turkish culture in general. After saying goodbye under the shadow of Galata Tower we made our way out of Beyoğlu, and were seen to leave Istanbul. The coach journey to Canakkale lasted over five hours with no toilet facilities provided on board. A saving grace for the long journey, however, was the beautiful scenery of the Turkish countryside as we hugged onto the Sea of Marmara and were able to stare across at Asia. We crossed over at Eceabat on a short ferry to Canakkale. Eceabat is the largest town on the Gallipoli Peninsula, which was the main focus of our visit, but Canakkale was a larger town with more facilities to accommodate tourists. The ferry let us of in the main port and the most striking feature upon our arrival was the compactness of Canakkale compared to the sprawling Istanbul. The town had developed around Australians and New Zealanders visiting the area to commemorate ANZAC Day, and we stayed at the aptly named ANZAC Hotel. Arising early the next day we headed through the city to jump on a dolmuç (a communal taxi) to go and see the ruins of Troy. What was unfortunate about Troy was that due to undeveloped architecture techniques, Schliemann, the original excavator, destroyed a large part of the city trying to uncover it when he dug his large trench. What I learnt about Troy was that it was not one city; it was many cities built on top of each other. Troy I would have been a minor settlement, whilst Troy V would have been much closer to the Troy that Homer described. After giving our best impressions of Hector and Andromache, we re-joined another dolmuç and drove back through the Turkish countryside. Walking around in the uncovered 30 degree heat had made us tired so we visited the local hamam. Canakkale provided a much more authentic hamam experience, and one of the earliest indicators of this were the separate male and female entrances. The male entrance was into a grand 19 th century changing room, whilst the female entrance was down an indiscrete side street into a far less impressive concrete façade. Unfortunately, due to my lack of Turkish I used the female entrance and was promptly chased out by screaming, half naked women. Undeterred and utterly embarrassed I used the appropriate entrance. The hamam has a high dome, a style used for hundreds of years, which keeps the warmth in and works in the same way as a sauna. After ten minutes of sweating a masseur enters with a variety of soaps and wrestling methods, and at first attempts I believed I was becoming a human contortionist. Luckily this was not the case and I left feeling incredibly relaxed, albeit tender.

We visited different cemeteries of the fallen soldiers, in a campaign that claimed over 120,000 soldiers.

4 The area of great historical importance to not only Turks, but Antipodeans, is the Gallipoli Peninsula. Warfare there during the First World War helped forge nationalism, especially for Turkey as it was where Mustafa Kemal, later to be known as Ataturk, came to prominence. We visited different cemeteries of the fallen soldiers, in a campaign that claimed over 120,000 soldiers. ANZAC Cove was a tiny stretch of beach on the peninsula, but, due to British military blundering thousands of troops landed there to start a campaign that would last for months. We were unable to enter the trenches due to fear of collapse and poisonous snakes, this further reminding us the hostile conditions the soldiers would have faced. An area of natural beauty has been tainted with the bloodshed of war, and nearly a hundred years after the conflict the landscape remains scarred by the shelling. Our visit to Izmir was far less eventful than the previous two stops. Formerly known as Smyrna, it was one of the largest cities in Turkey with brilliant buildings and a vibrant port. Unfortunately in the battle for independence from the Greeks there was a great fire and much was destroyed. From the view out of my coach window I could only see high rise buildings jutting out of earthen coloured hills. Our hotel was in the park district of the city, in the middle of many streets full of a variety of cafes the dominated the curb. The beach front was a particularly nice part of the city, in which we walked for over a mile along the Mediterranean Coast. We had originally intended to visit the Government House, which was one of the first buildings Ataturk had taken back in the 1920s in the drive for independence. Unfortunately it had been closed for renovations so we had to make do with the local Ethnography museum in which we were able to see an exhibit of a circumcision room that a 19 th century Ottoman would have used. Our final stop in Izmir was the Agora, which was tucked away in a central district of Izmir. The Agora is one of the Ancient Wonders of the World, built by Emperor Marcus Aurelius as a centre of government for Smyrna. The frequency of earthquakes and lack of upkeep in the area unfortunately meant that little of the grandeur remained. Our trip to Selcuk started eventfully as our train needed to be stopped and an ambulance called for a medical emergency that had happened on another carriage. Selcuk was the smallest town on our visit, a huge contrast with Ephesus which had been one of the largest cities in the Ancient World that was based nearby. The impressive aqueduct greeted our entry into the Selcuk and we found great hospitality from the brothers who ran the Urkmez Hotel. After checking in and having lunch in the hotel, joined with a variety of local cats, we went to the Basilica of St John which was on top of one of the hills. It has been claimed that St John wrote part of the Bible here after he fled from the Romans, and this belief led Emperor Justinian to build a grand church here to commemorate it. A Biblical history is further present in the area with the House of the Virgin Mary being in Ephesus. Whilst it is

unclear whether Mary actually lived her, the messages to her and the site being used as a pilgrimage give it a greater importance for worshippers.

5 unclear whether Mary actually lived her, the messages to her and the site being used as a pilgrimage give it a greater importance for worshippers. The final stop of our tour of the area was to Ephesus, one of the grandest Ancient Cities. It was incredibly well preserved and is still currently being dug out of the hills. It seems to emerge out of the fields, but it was once a port. The sea had moved further out and the power of Ephesus had waned, leaving it merely as a shell of its former self by the times the Ottomans had arrived. My two weeks in Turkey provided me with a fundamentally unique experience which I could never have experienced without the benevolence of a Roger Short Scholarship. I found the Turks to be a welcoming and friendly people, whilst the country presented much more than two weeks could satisfactorily fill.

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