Turkey

August 2019 Read more

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Trip start
August 17, 2019
Turkey skip's retirement travel
Firtana Valley, Turkey
August 17, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C
Beautiful valley running from the Black Sea into turkey. Zil castle sits on a crag near the top. First are two looks at the valley. Then a couple looks at the castle. This castle is about the most inaccessible site I've seen. Last is one of three 16th century stone arch bridges spanning the river. This is the oldest and is being restored. The others don't have the supporting scaffolding.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Göreme, Cappadocia
August 19, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C
Cappadocia is an extraordinary place. I'm told that this was a lake that volcanic eruptions filled with ash, drying the lake. Later eruptions were magma, compressing the ash. Differential erosion resulted in the "fairy land" of unusual formations. The material was easy to carve. So many houses were created. The area became a refuge for persecuted people.
The first pic is taken at what UNESCO considers one of the top views in the world. Second is Uçisar castle. The rest are pictures around the area.
Göreme is a tourist town. Lots to do here, but no need for pictures. The geology, geography and history are the important things.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Kaymakli Underground City
August 20, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C
Cappadocia is well known for its underground cities, used for protection. This is one of those. Only a few if the 8 levels are excavated. Some 8,000 people could live down here for up to 6 months. Th first pic is a model of the city. The rest are various pictures of the several levels that are open.
Described as hard living. Only one person per family could go out of the cramped living quarters as the corridors were so small. We had to bend over almost horizontal to pass through. They cooked once a week, had no chimneys but lots of food storage.
None the less, it's all pretty amazing.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Ilhara valley
August 20, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
Beautiful valley in Cappadocia. They call it their local grand canyon. The pics are various views of the valley.
Many churches were built along here. See another post for St. George church.
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
St George Church
August 20, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
Unfortunately, the nave and the apse are collapsed, but many original frescoes remain. That is most of the pictures. The last is part of the surviving necropolis. All bones have been moved to a museum.
Like most churches here, this one was carved into the cliff side, well up above the river. We climbed 175 steps, about a 17 story building, to get there. Amazing placeRead more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Selime monastery
August 20, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
Ancient monastery along the silk road, named for the sultan whose tomb is across the road. Innumerable conversions of traders, travelers, etc. to Christianity occurred here, with the converts taking the faith back with them, whichever direction they were going.
The first pic is a distance shot of the whole rock carved site, followed by a couple of closer looks from up on the central rock area. Then a few inside shots showing some of the remaining carving. The monastery, after it closed, was repurposed by locals to whatever they needed. Hence, most of the decoration is covered by smoke residue. The last picture is of what little of the painting that remains visible.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Cappadocia stone churches
August 21, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C
Göreme has an open air museum the encompasses an area of stone carved residences and churches. These are pictures in several of those churches. Many of them had no photo signs. All are small by our standards, maybe room for 20 or so. Interesting iconography. Some appears to be free hand sketches.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Semâzen at Saruhan caravansarai
August 21, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C
Semâzen or whirling dervishes enact the revolving of all levels of creation, from atomic structure to resurrection.
The first pic is some me of the dervishes. The rest of the pics are of the old caravansarai where the servicec as held. The lighter photos are of the courtyard. The darker ones are in the enclosed rear area where the service was held
No photos or videos were allowed during the service. However, they reenacted a portion afterward, and I have a video of part of that. If you are interested, let me know, I will send it to you.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Sultanahmet Square, Istanbul
August 23, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
A main square on the Sultanahmet section of Istanbul, surrounded by Hagia Sophia (picture 1), tomb of the sultan (2), the Blue Mosque (3), Hammam,Aka Turkish baths (4), and Topkapi palace. The fifth pic is the palace wall and the 6th is traditional wooden houses built against the palace wall use by pashas the sultan wanted close.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Blue Mosque
August 24, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
Large mosque at sultanahmet square. Legend has it the after the fall of Constantinople, the sultan decided that if th Christians could build something as magnificent as Hagia Sophia, the Muslims could too. Sorry he built this mosque across the square. Unfortunately, it is under renovation. So the full space is not visible. Even so, it is still impressive and beautiful.
The first 5 pics are inside. The last is of the building from the courtyard.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Hagia Sophia
August 24, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
Another one of those places where neither books nor documentaries do justice to what this place actually is. Even with restoration work ongoing, this is a spectacular building. It's especially hard to get my mind around the fact that this huge building and dome were built in the 6th century.
The first 2 pics look at the central nave and dome. The second tries to give a sense of scale. The 3rd looks up the into the dome. 4th is another look at part of the building. 5th is a hallway with the original flagstone floor and stone stairs. Last is the site of coronation of eastern Roman emperors.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Hagia Sophia mosaics
August 24, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
Originally, Hagia Sophia was completely covered inside with art. However, given the Islamic proscription of human faces in art, it was all covered over when this was converted to a mosque. Now that it is a museum and not an active be mosque, a few it the original mosaics have been uncovered.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Topkapi Palace
August 24, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
The residence of the sultan and headquarters for the Ottoman Empire from the 15th century through WW 1 when the Ottomans were on the losing side.
The first pic is the main gate. Next are 3 examples of rooms in the palace. There were so many rooms and so much extraordinary architecture and decoration, I no longer remember which room was which. 5th is the entry to the imperial council room. Last is the kitchen with displays of the formal china from around the world used in the palace as well as kitchen implements.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Topkapi harem
August 24, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
Most of us have envisioned what a harem is. Me too, until today. Now I have visited an historic one. It is most luxurious.
The first pic is in the sultan's chamber. Next is the central courtyard. Third is the "black eunuchs' court" ( really). Next is the concubine's corridor, followed by the golden corridor. Last is the harem mosque.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
On the Bosporus
August 24, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
A late afternoon boat trip on the Bosporus Strait. Remember that Istanbul is the only city on 2 continents. The Bosporus Strait is the line between Europe and Asia.
The first picture is Hagia Sophia from the water. Next is the new town section of Istanbul with Galata tower. The next looks up toward Taksim Square, a center for nightlife here. Next is the summer palace on the Bosporus shore. So far, all are on the European side. Last is a single picture of the Asian side.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Dolmabahçe Palace
August 25, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C
Summer palace on the shore of the Bosporus. It's hard to fathom that a place as large and ornate as this is not the main residence and administration center for the empire. Topkapi fills that role. In fact, it is the summer "hang out" for the sultan and the court. Ok, it's a bit more than that, but still, this equal some of the extravagance I saw in China.
First is the main gate followed by the entrance to the administrative portion of the palace. Next is a look at a portion of the river side of the complex, to give a hint at the size of the place. Technically, pictures weren't allowed inside. But the I took a couple anyway to give you a sense of the oppulence. The first is from the admin building. The other is from the harem.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Taksim Square and Galata Tower
August 25, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C
Main meeting point in Istanbul and center for night life. That's the first 2 pics. There is also a pedestrian shopping street that begins here. That is the third pic. The Galata tower, like Taksim is in the new town part of Istanbul, still on the European side of the Bosporus. The tower was originally built as an astronomical observatory. That is the 4th pic. The last picture is of an interesting guy busking with a violin at the tower while I had coffee next door.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Grand Bazaar
August 26, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
This is the big and famous bazaar of Istanbul. The first picture is one of the gates. Then several pictures are from inside to give a sense of the building and the place. This is my first bazaar/souk since Morocco. In Morocco, things were more chaotic and random, not in a building but covered alleyways. Here it is a building said to have 4,000 stalls, which is believable, especially as the market continues for blocks outside the main bazaar.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Old Istanbul
August 26, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
Several glimpses of the old town section of Istanbul away from the main sights. The first two are of the Spice Bazaar, aka Egyptian Bazaar. Similar, but smaller and newer, the spice bazaar was great for colors and aromas. Then a street scene. Then what was the Roman Hippodrome, now a park. 5th is an Egyptian obelisk brought the by one of the Roman generals to mark the turn in the race course.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Hagia Eirene
August 26, 2019 in Turkey ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C
For all you church history buffs, it is my understanding that this is where the council of Constantinople was held, but I haven't been able to verify that. This is one church that was not converted to mosque. It was converted to an arsenal and was incorporated within the grounds of Topkapi palace. Not much is left. Here are some pictures.
First is the outside. This was the 2nd largest church in the eastern empire. The next several are of the interior as it is today. The cross in the arch is original from the rehab during the 8th century. The last is through the window to a closed area that looks like it might have been a cloister.Read more
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Turkey skip's retirement travel
Nagarkot, Nepal
August 29, 2019 in Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
Nagarkot is a very small village up on a ridge outside of Kathmandu. The main draw is the scenery, but I was there on a day with low clouds. The pictures give a sense of the scenery as the air cleared some.Read more
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Trip end
August 28, 2019