The Turkey is Finished Before Thanksgiving

Constantine IV, JC and Empress Zoe
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By Dan

As a matter of convenience more than anything, we saved Istanbul for the end of our time in Turkey. I hesitate to say that it’s leaving the best for last, but it is certainly leaving something huge for the end. We have given ourselves five nights here, and as those five nights wind down, we feel that we have barely scratched the surface of this fascinating city.

Christina, in her role as Minister of Tourism, once again shone in her hotel selection. In my role as Minister of Finance, I’ve got to grumble a little that it isn’t in the budget, but we’ve really enjoyed the Empress Zoe. It’s a somewhat funky, rambling place that is built in and around what remains of a 13^th century Turkish bath house. Empress Zoe was apparently a strong woman who is featured in a mosaic in the Aya Sofia. Her husband is featured with her. Unfortunately, the first Mr. Zoe died, so he was erased and the second Mr. Zoe was substituted in his place. (That’s the great thing about mosaics – easy to replace those little pieces!) Same thing happened to the second Mr. Zoe. The third Mr. Zoe (Constantine IV) was apparently a little sharper than his two predecessors, and he managed to outlive the Empress. So, his likeness remains on a wall of the Aya Sofia. It is said that the Empress Zoe slept in a house where our hotel is located….but, who knows?

Grayson's carpet
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The Empress Zoe is in a spectacular location, in the Sultanahmet area of town. We’re about 3 blocks from the Aya Sofia, 4 blocks from the Sultanahmet (Blue) Mosque, and 3 blocks from Topkapi Palace. We’re even closer to the old Sultanahmet Prison, which was made famous (infamous?) by the movie “Midnight Express”. Back in the old days, when I was heading off for obscure corners of the developing world on a fairly regular basis, my dad used to make me watch “Midnight Express” before every departure. I guess the idea of visiting his son in a Turkish (or, fill in the blank) prison wasn’t really appealing. The Turks, by the way, hate the movie, and think it (i) was totally racist and encouraged stereotypes, (ii) failed to recognize that the Turks were trying to stop the drug trade, which supposedly the US wanted them to do, and (iii) had a very negative impact on the Turkish economy by reducing tourism significantly. The ironic end of the story is that Sultanahmet Prison has now been closed, and after extensive remodeling (and fumigation) a Four Seasons hotel has opened in its place. Can an actual Hanoi Hilton be far behind?

Galata Bridge with Beyoglu in background
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“Land of contrasts” may be a clichéd term in the travel world, but we can’t help but think of it a lot as we look around Istanbul. We spent time yesterday walking down a beautiful pedestrian shopping street in the Buyoglu neighborhood, which is a real up-and-comer. We saw Starbucks, Levi Strauss, Benetton, and all sorts of other international brands, and prosperous Istanbulis strolling the street who could have been in Paris, Madrid, or New York. Time warp back a few days, though, and we’re in the hinterlands, watching headscarved women driving their horse-drawn carts down bumpy roads. One could probably find nearly the same contrasts in the US or anywhere else, but it really jumped out at us here. The other amazing thing is all of the different ethnic looks that one sees in Turkey. It makes sense, with Turkey being such a crossroads of Europe/Asia/Middle East, but we saw all sorts of people: lots who looked very Western European, lots who looked like classic Middle Easterners, some who might be Indian, and some who almost looked Asian. Very interesting.

Where the Bosphorus meets the Black Sea
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The Turks continue to win prizes from us (or, most of us) as the most friendly people we have encountered. They are especially engaging with the kids, although the kids don’t always appreciate the attention. After one particularly exuberant Istanbul fish salesman went beyond pinching Abby’s cheeks and actually kissed her, she sort of went over the edge. She now wears a woolen beanie on her head all of the time, with her hair tucked into it, and insists that we call her Joe in public. Actually, Grayson can call her Abigail, because “Abi” means “brother”, and “gail” means “come”, so he is just bossing her around when he calls her by name.

Grand Bazaar
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Among the way the kids keep themselves entertained is to read the bad translations on multi-lingual menus. We remind them that they’re being prepared by people for whom English is a second, third, or fourth language, but it nevertheless brings out all sorts of hoots, howls, and giggles from the kids to see some of the things that appear on menus. There have been lots of opportunities to order lentil- or tomato-flavored soap; several to order samwiches; a selection of artichokls at one point; and one chance yesterday to buy a selection of olive oiled dishes, for instance. I’m sure we’ll see some more memorable ones in the future.

Weather in Istanbul has been a little shaky for us. We have had torrential downpours, howling winds, and bitter cold, although generally only one at a time. The storms in the Black Sea that had the tragic consequences (oil spills, deaths, environmental catastrophe) you’ve read about in the papers blew through here, too. Fortunately, we haven’t had our style cramped too much. It’ll be nice to head south, though, and get back to warmer climes.

The kids were thrilled to find two American kids staying at the Empress Zoe. They were on a short visit with their family from Ankara, where their dad is with the US military at the embassy. Not having had a chance to hang with American kids in about 2 months, Grayson and Abby were like pigs in mud. We had a nice dinner with the family. It was really interesting to hear from people who were so well-positioned to comment on US-Turkish relations, the Kurdish problem, Iraq, etc. And, I was really pleased to have some of my stereotypes on American military people shattered – this guy was extremely thoughtful, open, and honest, and it renewed my faith in the American military to think that people like this are out there working on our behalf.

We did a fun excursion out from Istanbul, riding on a ferry boat up the Bosphorus all the way to the Black Sea. If you pull out your atlas, you’ll see that the Bosphorus is the second narrow stretch of water (along with the Dardanelles) that connects the Mediterranean to the Black Sea and separates Europe from Asia. Istanbul straddles the Bosphorus, with most of the old stuff on the European side. In places, the Bosphorus is only 700 meters wide, yet a huge amount of shipping goes through it around the clock all year long. It’s quite a thing to see. There are spectacular mansions called “yali” along its shores, most of which were built in the 19^th century, along with 15^th century forts, palaces, and public buildings. Sitting out on a balcony watching the ships flow by would not be a bad way to pass the time.

Speaking of not bad ways to pass the time, wandering Istanbul falls into that category. But, there’s a big world out there, and it’s time for a change. So, we’re off to Cairo, which should provide us all with a significant dose of culture shock. Should be exciting, though. Tune back in for the next installment, coming your way soon. . . .