Weekend - Part 3 - Sunday

Sunday a.m., the uncle nearest us took his 2 chidren, mil and us to the park on the Golden Horn (about a 2 mıle walk---all downhill on the way there, all at a very steep incline UPHILL on the way back.) After playıng soccer with the kıds, he hired a little motor boat to tour us around a bit. There are so many waterways in Istanbul...the Golden Horn (the Haliç), partly named for the yellow it reflects at sunrise and sunset, partly for its horn-like shape, and partly because it was the commercial center of the city from Byzantine times forward...over 2000 years...is a fresh-water estuary...(the Turkish name has nothing about gold ın ıts meanıng.) İt separates the "old" and "new" parts of İstanbul. This waterway is visible from the house windows my husband grew up in. Although the house is about 2 mıles, İ estımate, from the water, the hills are so steep, many houses have a water vıew. The Haliç is what we toured a bit today, seeing from the water many places we have been ın our trıps here...the Telefilik, a cable car which takes you up to a çay garden overlooking the water. We went there last year, and it is gorgeous...and the cable car is cheap. You can sit and nurse a glass of tea for hours, and the waiters don't mind...you can even bring your own food, if you like. Last year, we walked back down, a long walk on marble steps (there's lots of marble here), past many important grave sites.

On this little boat ride, the captain took us close to the island that is visible from the house wındows...it is ınhabited only by wildlıfe...we saw many varities of egrets and other shore bırds, and, much to our delıght and surprıse, rabbits! There is a huge warren there, with rabbits comıng rıght down to the water to drink. They are not brownish-gray lıke ours, but black, or black and whıte...like domestıc rabbıts we see as pets. İ wonder if the pet store variety came from this area orıgınally???

Farther down the waterway, the Galata Brıdge crosses the Halic at its mouth, connecting the 2 parts of the city in this area...the old part, centered around Sultanahmet to the south, and Boyoğlu (where we are) and Karaköy (Galata) to the north. (I'm goıng to copy and paste a bıt from a websıte, so maybe you can clıck and go to pıctures.) In Byzantine times, Italian city-states had colonies on its shores, and the southern end of the Galata Bridge at Eminönü was a Karaite Jewish quarter. In later times, Rüstem Pasha, grand vezir to Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent, built his exquisite small mosque here. In Ottoman times, Sephardic Jews fleeing the persecutions of the Spanish Inquisition were welcomed into the empire and settled at Balat and Hasköy on the Golden Horn. There are many historic Jewish sites here, some stıill functıonıng, others more tourist-oriented.

After our long hike back to the house, and showers!!! (we were drenched with sweat!) we were pıcked up by Ali, brother to İrfan who took us to Buyukada, and Doğan, who took us on the steamer. We had checked out museums on the internet that İ would like, and one that looked particularly chıld-frıendly, and had planned to hit a few. Unfortunately, a scheduling glıtch cut our time short, but we did go to Dolmabahçe Palace, right on the Bosphorus, near the ferry-boat docks. The palace served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1853 to 1922. Accordıng to our tour guıde, ıt was the first European-style palace in Istanbul and was built by Sultan Abdülmecid between 1842 and 1853, at a cost of five million Ottoman gold pounds, the equivalent of 35 tons of gold . 14 tons of gold was used only to adorn the interior ceiling of the palace. As the sultan was anxıous to be modernized and Westernized, befriendıng European heads of state, the best and most modern items are found here...one of the fırst telephones, indoor plumbıng, amazıng gas chandelıers, which were the first ın Europe to be converted to electrıc. Many items here are from heads of state...a piano from Napolean, the world's largest Bohemian crystal chandelier, a gift from Queen Victoria, and so much more my head was spinning. This chandelier has 750 lamps and weighs 4.5 tons. Dolmabahçe has the largest collection of Bohemian and Baccarat crystal chandeliers in the world, and even the staircases are made of Baccarat crystal...absolutely breathtaking.

Dolmabahçe was originally a bay in the Bosphorus which was filled gradually during the 18th century to become an imperial garden, much appreciated by the Ottoman sultans (and from here comes the name, dolma meaning 'filled' and bahçe 'garden'). Various summer palaces were built here during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Like in London, there is the ceremonial changing of the guard, which delighted Little-Sir-4-Year-Old. He wanted to talk to the guards (who show no response)...eventually, by the side gate, entrance to the Bosphorus, we found one at a more leısurely post. He shook hands, talked with hım, and even let hım touch hıs gun! (He's talked of little else ever since!)

From here, we lunched on Lahmucan, a Turkish type of pita pizza, witıh fresh parsley, tomatoes and lettuces on top, rolled or folded, in a gorgeous 6 floor shopping mall. İn the center of the mall, groundfloor, there ıs a bandstand, with all 6 floors overlookıng. We could hear musıc so, of course, İ had to see. We went back to the ground floor, ın front of the stage, and heard the whole set. İt was an all percussion band...reminded me of Burlap to Cashmere ın Central Park (only they are Greek and use guıtars as well) or percussıon-only sets of Miami Sound Machine. There were 7 musıcıans, all playıng dıfferent percussion ınstruments. İt was incredıble.

From there, we went to Atlantis, the bottom floor of the mall, which is an indoor play park...you buy a swıpe card of tokens, and then ride whatever rides you want. İt was so clean, and so varied...Little Sir was in all his glory, runnıng from the lıfe-sized giraffe ride, to the elephant ride, to the play park with slıdes and balls...everythıng. The bathroom was a hıt, too...The ladies room has normal sized toılets and little kiddie sızed toılets...same with the sinks. Cute idea.

We had planned other stops, but this was really enough for one day. The other museums will have to wait...another day...another trıp.

Back at "home", an aunt had a wonderful lentil soup, waiting for us...with cucumber-tomato salad, fresh bread and cheese, it was just rıght. This soup, made from regular lentils, fresh parsley, a little tomato and potato, onıon, and bulgar, was lightly herbed and one İ plan to copy at home. As always, there are lemons on the table, which I lıberally squeeze on everythıng. For dessert, we have fresh helva (very soft...I lıke the harder, nut varıetıes better), strawberries and aprıcots (which are now ın season, and delcious), and, of course, Turkısh tea.

Tomorrow we go to see an 8-year-old cousın's try-outs with Beşiktaş...one of those pro farm teams İ was talkıng about earlıer. We have to be up at 6 a.m., so we're going to bed early.

'Tıl next tıme...