Sultan Ahmed ordered his mosque built (1609) with six minarets — the same number that Mecca had at the time.

 You can’t go inside a mosque during Friday prayer time — we were there just before. We toured the mosque and as we came out, men were washing their hands and feet, a ritual done before entering a mosque and praying. The Muslim’s Friday noon prayer time is like the Christian’s Sunday morning, or Saturday Sabbath for the Jews — the most holy part of the week.

 The beautiful cascading domed ceiling of the Blue Mosque.

Our next stop is the grand Hagia Sophia.

Built between 532 and 537AD  by Emperor Justinian, this Byzantine architectural masterpiece is known for its massive dome and was the largest church in the world for almost 1000 years.

 The Hagia Sophia was turned into a mosque in 1453 when the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople (aka Istanbul). Mosaics and paintings depicting Christ and The Virgin Mary were plastered or painted over as Islam does not allow for the use of images of people or animals.

 After the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century, Turkey became a secular state, the Hagia Sophia was turned into a museum, and the Christian paintings and mosaics were uncovered.

Another historical and magical structure in Istanbul is the Basilica Cistern, built in the 6th century it shows just how seriously the Romans took their water systems.

 336 columns support the domed ceiling of this underground cistern. While the cistern has a capacity of 100,000 tons of water storage, it currently holds only a few feet and some big fish. Wooden walkways have been added so that the cistern can be explored by foot.

  The beautiful columns in the cistern are of varying types of marble and their capitals are inconsistent — some are Corinthian and some are Doric. It is believed that the columns came from around the Roman Empire in a sort of recycling effort. Interestingly, there are a few Medusa heads used as bases of columns — they are placed sideways or upside down. The mythological character Medusa was said to be able to turn people to stone with a single look. The Roman builders of the cistern may have placed the heads any way but upright to negate Medusa’s spell!

For intrigue and drama it’s hard to beat Topkapi Palace. More of a small town than a palace, Topkapi was the official residence for the Ottoman Sultans for almost 400 years, and at its busiest housed 4000 people.

 This stone path led into the Harem. Returning to the palace with the spoils of of war, the sultan would ride his horse through this door where he would be greeted by “the ladies” and shower them with gold coins.

 The Harem hung out in this room until summoned by the Sultan. The women were guarded by eunuchs; the Sultans did not like to feel threatened. The eunuchs that guarded the harem lost all of their genitalia, others that performed some secretarial duties were simply castrated. They weren’t the only threatening males — when a sultan died his oldest son took power; the new sultan would then have all of his brothers killed to secure his position.

 Housed in the Imperial Treasury at the palace you will find religious relics: Mohammed’s vest as well as a tooth and a hair from his beard, the staff of Moses, King David’s sword, and this 86-carat diamond — the 7th largest in the world.

No trip to Istanbul is complete without a visit to the colorful Spice Market!

  A great place to buy souvenirs, tea, spices, or the famous and delicious Turkish Delight candy.

 The colors and smells are a party for the senses!

Pack your bag — next stop Israel.

Sirince was settled by Greek immigrants who built white houses with red tile roofs which reminded them of home. In 1923 there was a compulsory population exchange between Greece and Turkey — ethnic Greek Christians had to return to Greece and ethnic Muslim Turks had to return to Turkey.  Attaturk, father of Turkish democracy (1923) is revered for “westernizing” Turkey, bringing it into modernity and making it the successful country it is today. The population exchange however, is generally regarded as a mistake. This picture is the little main street that we drove down to get to our hotel –can you even imagine how narrow the side streets were?!?

We stayed at Terrace Houses in the Fig House, a rustically charming and eclectically decorated cottage that was a nice break from hotel living. We had an incredible home cooked meal served up with a stunning view. Too bad this picture doesn’t have sound effects — we sipped our wine and ate our dinner to a duet of a donkey braying and the Muslim call to prayer. The next morning we were awakened by the call to prayer and a rooster crowing. Aysel, the cook, made us a delicious breakfast, cementing my opinion that this was the best food in all of Turkey — the cheese came from a cow down the road and the vegetables from the back yard. Fortified with a good night’s sleep and a very strong Turkish coffee (Aysel took me into her kitchen and showed me how to make it), we ventured on to Ephesus.

Ephesians is the tenth book of the New Testament and its formal name is “The Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians.” If you are wondering who the Ephesians were and where they lived, wonder no more. Ephesus, a Greek city until it was taken over by the Romans, was once one of the largest cities in the world. Positioned on several important trade routes and with a harbor (at the time) Ephesus, at its height in the 1st  and 2nd centuries AD, is thought to have had a population of almost 500,000.

Paul was eventually driven out of Ephesus by the silversmiths of the city. His pronouncements that worshiping idols, it seems, was bad for business.

John is also believed to have come to Ephesus with The Virgin Mary. John had promised Jesus that he would look after his mother and they are both thought to have died and been buried nearby.

Ephesus had it all: baths, temples, a large and important library, a brothel, theaters, and shops with goods from near and far. I, however, found the public latrine one of the most interesting buildings. It seems that the latrines, and not just the bath houses, were very social places. In this picture you can see that people were not shy. The waste dropped down a considerable ways into the sewage system of the city, and in front of the “toilets” you can see a trough on the floor right in front of where feet would be if one were sitting on one’s “throne”.  This trough had a continuous flow of fresh water for “cleaning up” after taking care of business — a sort of toilet paper of the day. The Romans were truly incredible!

There are great ruins in Rome, and Pomeii is very interesting, but for me, Ephesus was by far the best “view” of life in an ancient time.

Bodrum is a port city that is best know for its resorts, nightlife, and as being the point of embarkation for boat trips around the Aegean Sea. My seventeen year-old daughter, who was traveling with a friend’s family before she met us in Istanbul, delighted in the later two. She assures me that the clubs are fabulous, the shopping superb, and cruising the Aegean magical. I simply relaxed, took in the views and enjoyed a great dinner on the beach.

Tomorrow: back to Istanbul for a tour into its Ottoman past.

Driving through the valley is like being on another planet but the real surprise is when you explore the cave houses the region is famous for. The Hittites are thought to have lived here 4000 years ago where they worshiped pagan gods. Tiberius claimed this area for Rome in AD 17, and early Christians about the same time to escape persecution. Later, Monks lived here. There are incredible churches with arched ceilings, columns, and beautiful frescoes carved into the hillsides.

Arabs came in the 7^th century and forced the Christians deep underground where they lived in subterranean cities; some that go down 400 feet or more. I am more than a little claustrophobic, but I was so amazed by what I’d heard about these cities that I bit the bullet, ducked, and went for it. Sloping floors and steps connect the levels and there is an intricate system of air ducts that keeps the underground rooms well ventilated but at the same time, didn’t allow the enemy to “smoke out” the cave dwellers. There are rooms that were used for kitchens, stables, wine making and storing, churches, and even crypts. Big, flat round stones were used to seal off areas of the labyrinth when the enemy tried to invade. The underground city we explored was thought to be home to 20,000 people. AMAZING!

Our hotel, the very charming Esbelli Evi, is one of the famous cave hotels, carved into the side of a hill, not underground, that makes going to Cappadocia well worth the time it takes to get there. If you go, dinner at Ziggy Café was a delight.

The next morning I faced another fear (heights) and went for a hot air balloon ride. It was a great way to see the valleys and rock formations, and for the most part very peaceful. We shared our “basket” with a group of Turkish people. Of course they were Muslim; Turkey is 99% Muslim, but in contrast to Istanbul where most women dress in western clothes and are very cosmopolitan and friendly, these more provincial women were different. They weren’t the very religious women I occasionally saw, dressed in burqa and veils; instead they wore headscarves and longish coats over their clothes (ostensibly for modesty). The two grown women were loud and obnoxious. If you have ever seen the Seinfeld episode where Elaine goes for a manicure and feels like all of the Vietnamese manicurists are talking about her, knowing that she doesn’t understand their language, then you know how I felt. They were aloof and even sneered slightly when I smiled and said hello. After the flight, we had the traditional post-flight champagne toast and some cake. The Muslim men drank the champagne and the women smoked cigarettes, two things that very religious Muslims don’t do. A guide in Istanbul told me that some Muslim women donned headscarves for political reasons rather than religious – I think this group fit into that category. After the flight the most obnoxious woman handed me her iPhone indicating (not with a smile!) that I should take their picture. I obliged (with a smile); however, when she tried to show me how to use the camera on the phone by yanking it out of my hand and pointing like I was stupid, I told her that it too was AMERICAN and I knew exactly how to use it. I never felt afraid in Turkey and most people were very nice, but for some people, if you are American, then it doesn’t matter how much you smile, spend, or say please, they just don’t like you.

Some things you should know about dining in Turkey: if the weather is nice, no one eats inside. Sidewalks and roof terraces are crowded with diners, but I don’t think I saw a single soul eating inside a restaurant the whole time I was there! Salads have very little lettuce; instead they will be full of cucumbers, tomatoes and cheese with a little olive oil drizzled on top. Salad dressing is uniquely American so if you are traveling and you can’t do without your Ranch or Honey Mustard, you’d better pack it. Turkey is famous for fish restaurants because of their many miles of coastline, and kebabs – both are delicious. A typical Turkish breakfast is cheese, olives, cucumbers, yogurt (but not the sweet stuff we eat), some bread, and maybe a little jam. But don’t worry; hotels will have cereal, fruit, and pastries for you.

Pictures below: A long table carved into a room in one of the underground cities — probably used by the Monks; a crypt; and, above ground, houses carved into the hillside.

NOTE — Over the next two weeks Qmuze will be coming to you from Turkey and Israel. I will be tweaking the Qmuze model of politics, culture, and entertainment by commenting on what I saw, what I thought, and what I wore. Grab your passport and stay tuned! (I apologize in advance for any spelling or other errors — this will be fast and furious.)

Day 1 –ISTANBUL

I have such fascination with Turkey: physically, politically, and culturally, it’s where east meets west. The city of Istanbul is on two continents — Asia and Europe, and it seems to have captured the best of both worlds — exotic, yet hip. From the sultans of the Ottoman Empire to modern day politicians, Turkey continues to play an important role in world politics. A Muslim country with a western-style secular democracy, Turkey is the would be model for the “Arab Spring.”  In the market women in headscarves shop next to women in tight-fitting jeans and t-shirts, both equally comfortable with their lifestyle and seemingly tolerant of the other.

We left San Francisco at 2pm on Friday afternoon, flew to Frankfurt, Germany and then on to Istanbul, arriving at 4pm Saturday afternoon Istanbul time. It’s not the mind-numbing travel time to Southern Africa or the Far East —  just a mere ten hours to Frankfurt and another four to Istanbul. Still, to sit on my terrace overlooking the Bosphorus and think about how far I am from home makes me dizzy. That being said, at dinner tonight (the hotel’s Aqua because we are travel weary!) we looked up and  friends from San Francisco were sitting at the next table! Yes, it is a small world. We are at the Four Seasons Bosphorus — it’s beautiful and the service is excellent.

What I wore you ask? For the trip over a pair of black J. Crew stretch pants that zip up the back (comfortable but not sloppy), a long sleeve white t-shirt, a very cool army-style lightweight jacket with a bit of a metallic sheen to it (Gap), gold sandals with a tiny heel (I can walk for miles in these shoes!), a cotton scarf for some pizazz and because it’s cozy for over-nighting on a plane, and a very cool Balenciaga purse (my splurge!) that I featured a few posts back. For dinner which was al fresco by the Bosphorus, I wore a black lace over white cotton dress with flat silver sandals and took a lightweight cotton sweater. Packing is an art form; especially when you are limited to forty-four pounds — Turkish Airways intra-country weight limit that I’m hoping they aren’t too serious about:)