Istanbul: Haiga Sophia-The Search Continues

We start early this morning with a tour bus picking us up at the Senator Hotel before 8AM! The search for the "special" pashmena is on; Hector has a look of determination(actually I believe he is sore from his massage)on his face. The bus makes several stops at other hotels to pick up tourists from Pakistan, Jordan, Azerbaijan and Morocco. The gentleman from Jordan informs us later that he is on his way to New Jersey for work for his company; we give him our condolences on his visit.

We are immediately assailed by street vendors on our return to the site of the Hippodrome. Today the vendors are serious about selling us an item. I am pursued by one individual who believes I need a book on Istanbul. Initially he believes I am French and tries to sell me one written in French; when he realizes his error he offers me a deal, that won't break his heart! I say no, the pursuit continues and I eventually say yes and buy a book that originally was for 30 Turkish Lira for "only" 7 Turkish Lira(turns out, it is a really great book, who knew?). Still, though, I am not sure who got the best part of the deal!


The Greek Tripod Column was removed from Greece during the reign of Constantinius I as part of his effort to bring important monuments to his capital. The column celebrates the Greek victory over the Persians in 479-480 BCE. All the names of the 31 Greek kingdoms who participated in defeating the Persians were inscribed on the column. The column suffered damage in the transport from Greece and like the Theodosius Obelisk is significantly shorter in height and has lost ornamentation(three serpent heads) that once crowned the column.


The tour guides' name is Hayri Erdogdu and he is very engaging with us. Great, another guide who really enjoys talking about this wonderful city! We are in luck as we cross the street and approach the Blue Mosque. Hayri points out a chain hanging in the doorway; he explains that the Sultan would ride his horse to worship and this was where the Sultan had to dismount from his horse and walk with the rest of the people into "his" Mosque.

At the Blue Mosque, I choose to walk around the gardens in front of the Mosque and enjoy the sunshine and the colors of the flowers. The Blue Mosque is sited directly across from the Haiga Sophia Museum which is our next stop and where we will spend most of our morning walking through the fourth (4th) largest church in the world.

The Haiga Sophia(Holy Wisdom) stood as a church for 916 years and then as a mosque for an additional 481 years before becoming a museum in 1935. It is considered the most important architectural structure/monument of the Byzantine Era. The church was rebuilt twice after riots and fire destroyed the structure. Some of the remains of the second church were discovered during excavation work in 1936.


It was Emperor Justinianus I who commissioned the construction of a totally stone/marble cathedral in 532 with services commencing in 537. The Haiga Sophia has undergone extensive repairs from future Byzantine rulers and subsequent Moslem rulers; that has been due in part to earthquake damage; settling and structural weaknesses and the desires of the rulers of Constantinople/Istanbul.

Inside the Haiga Sophia you are met with Moslem and Orthodox Christian symbols; religious paintings; and unique decorative stained glass windows and wall murals.


After a brief welcome and here it is from Hayri, Hector and Meghann decide to head upstairs for the "balcony view" while I walk into the middle of this massive structure craning my neck as I go. It is apparent to me that this house of worship has had "landlords" that were of different faiths.

The lighting inside the basilica is very poor and presents a real challenge to get quality photographs(not to mention the other thousand or so flashes going off all around me!). The Haiga Sophia is empty of any type of floor level ornamentation except for a pair of giant urns(each carved from a solid block of marble) and a stairway for the Iman.

The walkway to the upper level/second floor/balcony of the Haiga Sophia is ramped that cuts back on itself at a very gentle incline. The stones are well worn and a bit slippery from the wear; in some places, the stone has been replaced.The ceiling is low and the hall relatively narrow.

The view from the balcony is impressive as you can see the basilica open into full shape and you can actually grasp the size of the structure. The ceiling paintings are light in color and bold in design. Quite a contrast to the more somber look and feel of the main floor area. In the following photograph, you can see in the bottom left, Byzantine murals partially obscured by later Moslem ceiling paintings.

I have forgotten about my timeline and need to hustle out of the Haiga Sophia and so I shoot on the run(do not want to miss lunch as the bus arrived so early, no breakfast!) Here's a couple of my favorites:
The window panes are so vivid and look at the intricate carving on the top of the column. The craftmanship displayed in the Haiga Sophia is a tribute to all of the empires that worshiped here.
Over the exit doorway from the Haiga Sophia is a mural of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus, Justinianus and Constantine. I definitely need to return and spend more time leisurely walking the stone/marble floors and walkways of the Haiga Sophia; too little time for such an incredible historical house of worship/museum.

Now to find the red kiosk that is to be our meeting place before heading out to lunch with the tour group. I see the couple from Pakistan and head in their direction and start to identify the others in the group. Back on the bus, we are waiting for the couple from Morocco(this would be a common theme today). Finally, off to lunch and the worst dining experience of our visit to Istanbul. The most redeeming moments of lunch were spent talking to the couple from Azerbaijan. The husband spoke excellent English and explained the language and cultural connections of Central Asia with Turkey; they are according to him from the same basic tribes many years ago. I told him about our Uzbek-Uighur dinner and explained how much I enjoyed the spices in the food; he politely said the Azerbaijanis are the best cooks of Central Asia!!

The afternoon is scheduled for a visit to a carpet manufacturing and trading company.
And, the best for last; the Topkapi Palace and Museum. So far no pashmena for Martha, Hector maintains his focus on finding the elusive black and grey silk pashmena.To be continued...

Istanbul 2010 European Capital of Culture

A few weeks ago,my friend Hector invited me to accompany him and his daughter on a trip to Istanbul.Now in my mind, Istanbul is one of the most exotic places on the planet. It is the home of two of the greatest empires in human history and occupies one of the most strategic geographical locations in the world. In short, a must see city; an opportunity to visit a city where a visionary leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded the modern Turkish Republic in the 1920's. A city where the Romans founded a "second" Rome and where the Byzantines' measured the distance to every known place in the empire from Istanbul.
The above stella was the point inside Istanbul which was the "center" of the Byzantine Empire.

Oh, I said yes; and off we flew via Turkish Airways to Istanbul. Upon arrival we learned we did indeed need a visa; after we were rebuffed by passport entry(after waiting in Disneyland sized lines) and sent packing to the visa line. As I sit here writing this, it is funny to think about the guard shaking his head(probably thinking "dumb" Americans) and pointing the way to the visa line. So we arrived a little late to our hotel, the Senator, no the Best Western Senator; great place to stay and not a bad location.

We are hungry(read grumpy hungry) and so we start walking looking for a restaurant that "looks" good to us. We find the "Mihman" Restaurant; a Central Asian Restaurant located about three blocks from our hotel. The aroma emanating from the restaurant was enough to turn our heads and bodies into the doorway; we had no idea what a treat we would enjoy that night. Our host was of Uygur ancestery and explained to us the cuisine was a mix of Uzbek-Uygur traditional recipes from the families of the owner. I had a "ripped" noodle dish called "menper somen", that was spicy hot and very tasty with spicies I could not identify. Hector had meat kebabs, including liver and Meghann had a meat and leek dish. We also received a history lesson from our waiter/host and were invited after dinner to have lemon tea with the chef. We spent about two hours with our hosts and were made to feel at home, an unknown omen of what our weekend would be like in Istanbul.

The Sea of Marma is today part of the "super-highway" that defines the position that Istanbul occupies. From this perspective a fishing area for the locals and further out ships from around the world traveling to port to unload, pick up cargo and return home. Directly across from this scene are the ruins of the walls constructed by the Romans/Byzantines that defined the limits of Constantinople.
The walls were restored after the Ottoman siege and subsequent conquest of Constantinople in 1453. In time, Constantinople which was founded by the Thracians would once again change names and become known as Istanbul.

Saturday morning we have a half-day tour with Urban Adventures and our guide Klimit(sic?) who is young and full of energy.She informs us we will walk a lot today and see many sights. We are pleased the group is only five; us and two young people from England.There is Emma(originally from New Zealand)and Stuart. We are off to the At Meydani (formerly the Hippodrome, which seated 80,000 people when completed) to see several monuments from Grecian, Egyptian and Byzantine eras.

There are three monuments in the former Hippodrome area; the most remarkable is the "Theodosius Obelisk" that was taken from Egypt by order of Emperor Constantinius(337-361). The obelisk did not reach Constantinople until around 390 AD under the reign of Emperor Theodosius(379-395). It is an amzing monument to the Egyptian Pharaoh Tutmosis III with the inscription; a poem dedicated to the pharoah.


The Romans began construction of the Hippodrome between 117-136 AD under the reign of Hadrianus. The Hippodrome would later find "new life" as it was stripped of marble and usable construction materials by the Ottomans to build the Blue Mosque(so called because of the many blue tiles which adorn the walls of the mosque).


Our guide informs us before entering the Sultanahmet/Blue Mosque we must remove our shoes and Meghann and Emma must wear a head scarf.

The architecture of the Mosque is simple in it's understated elegance. It is a remarkable house of worship. It is the most important of all Imperial Mosques in Istanbul.
It has a soaring dome in the center of the Mosque with beautiful tiles in abundance. There are beautiful stained glass windows and massive wrought iron chandliers hanging from the dome above.

Due to the instability(read earthquake prone) of the surrounding region, you can see substantial seismic upgrades inside the Mosque. The roof of the Mosque is supported by four massive pillars called"elephant columns", a direct reflection of the size of the pillars.

Klimit corrals all of us and leads out of the Mosque towards an important gift to the people of Turkey. It is a covered fountain presented in 1901 by Kaiser Wilhem II to the government and citizens of Turkey. Historically, at this point and time and up into WWI, the Germans and Turks were allies.



Back on the road we wind our way through neighborhoods heading for the Grand Bazaar,Spice Bazaar and thousands of shoppers!This is a great part of Istanbul to walk; you see, feel(lots of people), and smell so much; your senses are on overload and it is so intoxicating, what a moment!

We keep moving uphill(did I mention Istanbul is a little hilly?) passing by a Byzantine monument(Constantinus Column); a clerk stacking oranges, grapefruits and pomegranates like a real life Lego display. Perfect order and balance is his fruit composition. We passby admiring his work and come to one of many Mosques under restoration this year(Klimit says the EU designation of European Capital of Culture 2010 has helped focus much needed work on older buildings). Just past the Mosque is the entry gate to the Grand Bazaar, which was first opened/constructed between 1451-1481.

We do not spend much time at the Grand Bazaar as we have a date(yep, another Mosque) to visit a special Mosque and see Istanbul University. Klimt tells us that Turkey has a rich history of education that was strengthened under Ataturk and that entry into the University is very competetive and difficult. However, no football team! I found it interesting that the University was gated and had security staffing the gate. She explained that many people in the past who were not qualified to be students would attend classes and this security is an attempt to prevent such fraud from occurring.

We continue past the entrance to the University and walk a narrow street adjacent to the campus. Klimit keeps us at a quick pace having already realized we are in need of adult supervision and her job is akin to "herding cats". We pass an ancient Ottoman cemetery behind a fence and raised walls. It has been necessary to take measures to protect these historic sites from urban growth.

We head towards coffee/tea at a cafe below ground level, located next to an old madrassa, that is next to an extensive Turkish bath house. The tour come a complete circle as just over the buildings is the Egyptian Spice Market(named thusly as spices first came from Egypt to Istanbul from other parts of the world).


Klimit wants to first show us one of her favorite Mosques; she says it is the Mosque of the Grand Vizier and has more blue tiles than the Blue Mosque. So after Turkish Cola Zero(too many variations in this part of the world!), we head over to this Mosque. The Mosque is located on the second floor and access was through a somewhat narrow staircase. The Mosque is beautiful, relatively small compared to the others we have visited. It has incredible tiles that are vibrantly colored even today.

The balcony for the Grand Vizier commands the space inside the mosque. Klimit theorized that the Grand Vizier must have accepted "incentives" (read bribes) in his position to have built such a grand Mosque.


We now join the throng in the "running of the spice gauntlet", with merchants on both sides of the narrow street hawking their goods.We pass first through nuts and olives and oils; then soaps of all shapes and scents and where I meet the most amusing gentleman selling soap. When asking him questions about the soap he is answering in very poor English, however, when I ask him to take his picture, he does not hesitate to state,"wait a minute while I get my hat"!!Here he sits with his hat, pretty smug!


The spices were piled high in huge bins and the odors from the open air shops was unbelieveable. The merchants rapidly dealt with customers and looked for the next person who wished to make a purchase. The bins contained for example; curry,cumin, paprika, pepper, tumeric, and saffron upon request. The colors rich and pleasing to the eye.


After the spices we passed through the candy vendors and on into the pathway towards the Grand Bazaar and our meeting with the Pashmena sellers. Klimit had set us free as we had finished our tour with her near the market. It was a great time, with a very informative and patient guide.

Now we are on a mission to get Martha a black/grey pashmena that has to be about 5'x1'. This will turn out to be a herculean task that only Hector can accomplish(kinda Greek/Roman players). We search the first day with no luck for Martha's pashmena (the saga continues); that said the rest of the group scored for important people in their lives and we went away from the Grand Bazaar feeling somewhat victorious in our "haggle-battle'' with the pashmena vendors.

We decide to walk back to the hotel and with Meghann's assistance Hector is able to guide us back to cold beer and a great dinner at the hotel.We talk about our first day and all we have seen, we all agree it was a perfect day; knowing that tomorrow we have a full-day tour...to be continued.

Tirana-Spring Day Celebration

Today, March 14, is the celebration of "Spring Day" in Albania. It was ratified by the Albanian Parliament as an official holiday in 2004. This is not to be confused with Nevruz which is derived from the Iranian "Nowruz" that originated during the Zoroastrian times that preceded modern Iran. Nowruz is the Spring Equinox and is celebrated next week and is also a national holiday in Albania. That said, the weather this weekend has been spectacular; yep, warm and sunny and today not a cloud in the sky. Perfect weather for a "block party" on the main boulevard and Skenderbeg Square. This means food, dancing, a fashion show, loud bands and ice cream.

Our first stop today is "Coin"(Co-een) the new Italian department store, which is located in an ultra-modern skyscraper with large windows that are filled with displays. I have visited a Coin in Milan off the square where the Dumo is located and was expecting something special. Well, when you enter the store, you quickly realize you are not in "Albania" anymore; this is a little bit(I think my wife is really gonna like this place) of Italy right at our doorstep. Hector scores the first American purchase from Coin; a USB port device shaped like a penguin, which he explains to me will enhance his access to the computer. I am quite intrigued by the prospect of a penguin improving my performance on a computer!

The boulevard is packed with thousands of people strolling down the middle of the street; vendors selling food, drinks, flowers and toys on both sides; a fashion show with runway; and a large video screen playing rock n' roll! The mood is festive; laughter from the people passing us and children running, many with kites on a short string. The young ladies at this flower stand all spoke English and when I told them I would be putting their photo on the Internet, they wanted my Facebook address; busted their bubble by explaining it was only a blog(did give them the address).

We wander in the direction of food, seems quite natural to me as we pass small hibachi grills with sausages and buns and spy the "spring cookie" that is sold on this holiday. Hector gets us all one(just a plain cookie, not really a sugar cookie, but sweet) from a husband and wife team who agree to a picture with Hector and Meghann(Hector's daughter who is visiting and maybe staying for a while!)holding our cookies.

Back on the road we continue in the direction of the University and circle around the fountain dedicated to Mother Theresa. The odd thing about this very large fountain is there is never any water splashing over the tiles. We meet two Albanian State Police officers standing in front of their new patrol car. It is a Chevrolet Aveo,5 speed, 1.9 liter, 4-door sedan. I am having difficulty placing these two officers inside this "circus" sized police car which is painted the blue of the Democratic Party. The Socialist Party demanded an investigation into the paint and also demanded the police cars be repainted at considerable cost to the Albanian taxpayers; the Democratic Party(read party in power) said no!

We have made the circle and head for Skenderbeg Square where all of the action should be since this the "family" room of Tirana. I was at the square yesterday to pick up maps for Montenegro and Dubrovnik,Croatia for a trip when Madlyn visits. I took a picture yesterday of a relief on the wall of the Parliament Building and was promptly corralled by security who wanted to make sure I was not taking pictures of the security cameras.
I told security I was used to them taking pictures of me taking pictures of them; actually it was confusing for both of us. They let me go after looking at my camera images of the building; no security cameras in my pictures!! I sometimes forget where I am when taking photographs; a good reminder for me.

As we walk past the Ministry of Interior Building, we see a group of children in traditional Albanian dress practicing a dance in the shape of a circle. Passersby stop to watch the children dance with their instructor(?) in the background encouraging them on. The kids were laughing pretty hard and appeared to be having fun entertaining all of the adults who stopped to watch.

We are at Skenderbeg Square and something is wrong; I mean they are taking down a small stage and nothing is happening here in the Square, where did the party go? There is a big Pepsi display and that is all that is left over at this end of the boulevard; next year we get here earlier. We huddle and decide the only way to resolve this mystery is over gelatto at the park; you can solve many problems over the right gelatto. The park is packed and the fountains are shooting up in the sun as we enter the patio of the restaurant.


The mystery deepens when the waiter returns to sadly inform us, no chocolate gelatto; we settle into a funk and have strawberry. Someone is trying to rain on my parade today!

We cut through the blocks to get back to the Swedish Consulate apartments. On the way we catch a band playing "hard" rock n' roll from a stage in the middle of the street. The band is good in my opinion and finishes their song with a crash of the drums and in heavily accented English, "thank you, pleasure to be here". This scene could be from anywhere in the world where you celebrate your city/town during a special holiday.

We navigate through Tirana as much with "landmarks" as we do a map. There are relatively few street signs in Tirana, so one must learn to use all of offered ways to move about the city. We know we are close to home when we see the yellow walls of the US Embassy in the distance. One stop at the local market and we have made it safely home again!

Yes, Darrel I do work. However, next weekend I will be in Istanbul,Turkey and will take the liberty of writing about what I believe will be a most amazing adventure.

Dajti National Forest Park

The weather in Tirana today is perfect, with clear skies and sunshine. The temperature is a cool mid-50's; we have 4-wheel drive and the Dajti National Forest Park beckons. The Park is located about 27 kilometers East of Tirana with a center piece of Mt. Dajti at 1,613 meters(about 5243 ft). The road to the Park varies from a nearly impassable cartpath(with ruts and water) to an usable asphalt road(with ruts and rocks). This is our kind of challenge; nature versus a 4x4 SUV, it doesn't get any better than that considering we do not have "monster car crash shows" or NASCAR in Albania.This time we are prepared, we have two maps and a tour book showing us where to go and telling us what to see!

The drive through Tirana past the Lana River to Qemal Stafa Road is quick in the early traffic. We pass through vibrant neighborhoods with large open markets and many small shops. One thing we also notice; municipal projects do not halt on the weekends. We climb rapidly past large villas, new high rises and many restaurants with expansive views of the City of Tirana.

With the haze that floats above Tirana it is difficult to get a clear and clean photograph of the city. That said, as we climb, the views are impressive and afford us our best picture of Tirana; allowing us to see the size of this rapidly developing city.

We continue to wind our way up the slopes past a Turkish wedding group (complete with beating drums and flutes). Turning toward the park we see a common traditional rural fence made from saplings and branches.
Up ahead of us we can see snow on the ground and can feel a noticiable chill in the air. It is so quiet on the road, puncutated with a, "Oops, didn't see that" from Mike from time to time, as we bounce through craters in the road! We see springs cascading over the rocks on the hills as we drive through the Beech forest on the way to the Pine forest. It is definitely cooler as the frozen water dangles above the road.
We are in the snow zone, with patches of white atop green moss and fir branches laden with snow; just waiting to drop on the unsuspecting tourist!
Up ahead is a restaurant and a fresh lamb has just been put on the spit. I approach the "chef" and get his picture with the lamb. Mike declares this should be our lunch spot on the return trip as it smells wonderful! The location is set into the hill with terraces climbing the side with tables and chairs set in the little clearings. I bet in the spring and summer this is a beautiful location.
A surprise awaits us uphead as we continue to climb into Pine forests; we have found our bunkers again, this time they are softened by the backdrop of snow and a bench.


A great opportunity to "capture" nature's attempt to hide the folly of man. I convince Mike to get behind a bunker covered in snow; it looks absolutely frigid inside the bunker and so beautiful around the grey mushroom "sprouting" in the snow. We may have to document our travels through the alphabet of the bunkers!

We cannot go too much further up the road into Dajti National Forest Park due to the presence of communication and military installations. We are in four-wheel drive now as the snow is on the road and in places the road is frozen. Around a turn, after passing Albanian "Military Zone" signs we come to an abrupt halt; our road is barred by a rather large metal pole and we notice barbed wire on the fences next to the road...not very subtle of them! Mike backs us up and we realize there are multiple "Military Zone" signs and perhaps they really do not want tourists up here.

Back down the road to the Panorama Retaurant for refreshments. The property has a beautiful garden, water fountain, small cabins and cold beer! In my opinion, the lady in the fountain does not look too happy sitting in icy water.

Wow, what a view from up here, whom ever named this place was right on target. We can see from here to the Adriatic and the port city of Durres; all of the city of Tirana; and into the mountains toward Berat. My only wish, no haze; the view is severely obscured by the brown cloud hanging over Tirana. Tirana is impacted by the strong breezes from the sea, however the very mountains where we are sitting traps the air over the high valley. You can see from the photograph(I apologize for the poor quality) the size of the city and the cloud!



For lunch,we drive back down the forest road to the cafe where we earlier saw the roasting lamb on the spit. Inside we get seated quickly and realize there is no heat in the dining area. With teeth chattering Mike moves to a new table away from an open window. A small fireplace in the back of the dining room emits zero thermal units for our benefit. We are laughing until I realize the menu is only lamb (nothing in the tour book to help me out), salad and olives for me today and of course french fries!!! Outside the waterfall is coursing through a chute underneath a bridge that leads to the hillside seating(covered in snow).

We get the heat on in the SUV and make our way down the mountain back to the Park entrance. On the way down the we comment about the total lack of any natural wildlife in the Park. No birds, no ground creatures and no large animals; not a sign of life in the Park.

Instead of heading directly to Tirana we head East and follow the road towards a mountain pass. As we approach the pass we can see a massive rock crushing and excavation project in the works. At one point while we were standing near the top a loud explosion was heard and felt by both of us. The view was spectacular, looking East towards the mountains and a large valley below us.
Addtionally, we were able to identify several mining sites in the adjacent mountains and found a large rock crushing plant further up the unimproved road. All said, the scars on the hills were not unlike what I have seen in Nevada from some of the larger mines located there. The counter to this was a tranquil view of a terraced valley of tile roofs.
The trip home took about 35 minutes and was marked by greater activity of families and traffic on the streets of Tirana. What a great day to go exploring; the weather was perfect; we visted a National Park in Albania for the first time and we got to go four-wheeling!!!