Canakkale and Troy

June 27, 2008

Canakkale

(Amber)

So we plan to spend about 3 weeks in Turkey before heading into Eastern Europe for about 5 weeks in Macedonia, Albania, and Romania.

In Istanbul, we decided to buy a hop-on-hop-off bus pass that would enable us to hit every single sight that we wanted to see, starting along the Aegean coast through several historic sites and port towns, working our way around the Mediterranean coast, and then heading up to Cappadocia before returning to Istanbul. Actually we figured out that we would go the exact same route with the hop-on-hop-off bus and hit twice the number of sights. The method is absurdly easy, and I think it's actually cheaper than buying tickets one at a time for all that we plan to see...or at least it is not more expensive. So it's perfect. We hopped on at 7am Friday morning and headed to the port town of Canakkale.

(Matt)

From Istanbul to Canakkale, you drive along the Marmara Sea coast of Thrace, which is the southeastern part of Europe that borders the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara. Technically it includes parts of Bulgaria and Greece, Thrace is often used here to refer specifically to the part of Turkey that is on the European continent. To the left side of the bus was the Sea of Marmara before it narrows into the Dardanelles, both dividing Asia from Europe.

We crossed the Dardanelles on a modern ferry from Europe into Asia, arriving at Canakkale, a scenic port town that did not look in any discernible way different from the part of Turkey on the European side of the water. The small town is perfectly European with a lovely marina and a strip of waterfront seafood restaurants that look out into the Canakkale bay and the Dardanelles. From there, you can watch sailboats, freighters, ferries, and fishing vessels go to and fro for hours.

Next to the marina is the first sign of what Canakkale is really known for....the ancient city of Troy, which is near the city. As the ferry comes into Canakkale, you can see the Trojan Horse used in the movie Troy, which starred Brad Pitt....but kind of starred the Trojan Horse too. The thing that I think everyone looks forward to during that movie is the Trojan Horse plan getting executed (by Brad Pitt), and the filmmakers did a great job making a cool horse out of what was supposed to be scraps of wood from their ships.

Well, the movie donated the Trojan Horse to Canakkale, and you can see it as you come into the bay. I randomly watched that movie before we came on this trip, and I was stoked to see that horse. In a way, it was more probably exciting than the site of Troy, which I visited the next day. More on that later. So of course the first thing we did in Canakkale was walk the waterfront and get a shot of the Trojan Horse from the movie Troy.....even though hardcore travelers would probably think that was lame.

We then walked off the waterfront, where the cobbled stone streets led us to various eateries and local shops. It was a nice stop.

(Amber)

The drive was beautiful. We drove through a variety of landscapes, but all was characterized by rolling hills covered in tall wheat and blooming sunflowers. We also had views of the blue Marmara Sea before getting to Canakkale, which sits on the Dardanelles strait....of huge historical and geographic significance.....as it's the strait that connects the Aegean to the Black Sea....and connects the east to the west.

Canakkale is home to about 88,000 people, 20,000 of which are college students. It's beautiful and peaceful...with an alive and fun feeling that you get with university towns. We didn't expect much, but we really liked it there.

We spent the day in Canakkale wandering along the harbor and looking at boats, walking through the serene cobbled streets, and eating fantastic kofte for prices that were next-to-nothing. We also visited the wooden horse used in Brad Pitt's movie "Troy." The sight of the Trojan war is just 30km from Canakkale, and the horse used in the movie sits on the waterfront in Canakkale.

Friday night, we went to a mediocre dinner on the waterfront and then went for a beer at a hole-in-the-wall bar that had a band playing covers that, of course, included Californication by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. We had flashbacks to Khao San Road in Thailand, where several cover bands repetitively played this song, singing it in a strong Thai accent. The song also continuously played on the menu screen for the Qattar Airways on-board multimedia entertainment system....as did a map that pointed toward Mecca so that you'd know where to face while praying (just an aside I remembered).

The bar reminded us, for the first time since we left home, of a bar in Austin. It was packed with locals on a Friday night out. I know it made Matt homesick for his band and a crowd of friends at the Flamingo Cantina.

It was fun and really odd. We've been away from anything familiar for so long that familiar is now officially unfamiliar. Being there...watching all of the young Turks with their friends out for a Friday night listening to a live band in a black and smoky bar....made me really want a table full of friends around me and an Austin band screaming in my ear. Interestingly, like Austin, Turkey has apparently banned smoking in bars, though there were many lawbreakers, and all the tables had ashtrays on them. A smoky old bar and really loud music triggered a short bout of homesickness? What in the world does that say about me? Ha!

We slept in a tiny but perfectly clean room, got up early, ate a version of the Turkish breakfast, which is uniformly the following.....cucumbers, tomatoes, black olives, green olives, watermelon, white cheese, a hard boiled egg, and French bread with butter, cherry jam, and cream cheese or chocolate spread. We then hopped on another bus headed for Selcuk via the historic sites of Troy and Pergamon.

July 28, 2008

Troy

(Matt)

Who has not heard of Troy? Because all students study Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey, everyone knows about his version of the Trojan War. Or at the very least, everyone knows about Helen of Troy, described in Christopher Marlowe's play Dr. Faustus as "the face that launched a thousand ships," and if this still doesn't ring a bell, the quotation of this line was an ongoing source of irritation to character Shakespeare in the movie Shakespeare in Love, for which Gwyneth Paltrow won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 1999. According to Homer, the ships were launched after Helen left her husband, King Melenaus of Sparta, for the Trojan prince, Paris. According to Homer's Odyssey, the Greeks attacked Troy for 10 years to regain Helen. Ultimately, the Greeks feigned retreat and left behind a wooden horse in which soldiers were hidden. The horse was brought into Troy, and the soldiers emerged and opened the city allowing the Greeks to win the Trojan War.

It was thought for a long time that Troy was pure Greek mythology, having been invented by Homer in The Iliad and The Odyssey. But using the epic poems, archaeologists/treasure hunters located Troy in the 19th Century and began excavations, though the German, Heinrich Schliemann, damaged a lot of things he found.

Troy is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it is really disappointing. In fact, Troy is the least impressive World Heritage Site that I have ever seen, and if it was not for the fame of Troy as an important setting for the most famous of Homer's poems, it would likely not be a site at all. But Troy did exist, though it is not well preserved, and the archaeological record at the site of the city supports the Trojan War taking place.

Troy had nine incarnations, Troy I-IX, beginning in 3000 BC and ending in 500 AD. The city burned down several times. The Trojan War is believed to have taken place during Troy VIIa. The Greek Empire claimed Troy VIII (called Ilion), and the Roman Empire claimed Troy IX (called Ilium).

For the most part, the site of Troy sits on a hill overlooking farm land. The walls are partially excavated. My favorite part was the lookout where you can see the Aegean from the place where the Trojans would have watched as the Greek ships arrived and the Greek troops attacked at the beginning of the Trojan War.

There are plenty of marble carvings from the  Greek period, such as capitals and coffers from the ceilings and various chips and shards from different things. But some of the best remains of Troy's history are from the Roman period. There is a small theatre, a bust of Hadrian, Roman baths, and an agora (market).

On the whole I'm glad I went to see Troy. Amber read that "even hardcore Homer fans might be disappointed" and stayed at a coffee shop while I went in. You have to use your imagination in Troy more than in any other ancient city that I've ever been in. There isn't much there now, but just knowing how important this city was in the ancient world made it worth walking around the site of it for an hour or so. Oh....and did I mention that there is a cheesy Trojan Horse there? How could I miss that?

(Amber)

The site has such a bad reputation, and I needed an excuse to save $8....so I sat at a roadside stand and drank 3 cups of stout coffee and blogged while Matt went and confirmed that the site was nothing (or I guess very little?) to write home about. From there, we headed to Pergamon. Three cups of coffee and then back on the bus. Not the best idea!

Next post, Pergamon.

Random thoughts...

• Turkish delight, the sweets pictured above, are everywhere. They are sort of like a mix of jelly beans and taffy and that strange mint flavored candy that lingers around the house at Christmas-time....and they are covered or filled with a variety of things. Neither of us are big fans. Give us baklava or give us death. Didn't a famous orator once say that?
• Gas is about $12 a gallon here. It's always been high, but in recent history, it's increased from about $7 to about $12 per gallon (3.5Ytl per liter). Insane. People are no doubt very unhappy.

For photos, click here: http://share.shutterfly.com /action/welcome?sid=8AatmbZk0Zt FH_o