Winter 2019
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| Blending in the background of Topkapi Palace (jan-2019) |
Journal Entry... If you think Turkey is some little country overseas, think again. Fact: Turkey is surrounded by three major seas: the Black Sea; the Mediterranean Sea; and the Aegean Sea. That's more than enough hint that Turkey is a massive piece of land, to explore. One part of Turkey sits in Europe, and the other part in Asia. How cool is it hop both continents of the world in under 'thirty minutes' while cruising the Bosphorus strait from Eminönü (Europe side) to Kadiköy (Asia side) ports. When ancient Greeks had only divided the world into only three continents - Europe, Asia and Africa.
30-dec: Return to Istanbul... (Previously: 12/18/2018, Istanbul - Tel Aviv; 12/30/2018, Tel Aviv - Istanbul.) I was somewhat glad to be out of the Middle East, technically. I felt my unexpected allergy to breathing desert sand particles was close to dissipating.
Security procedure for exiting visitors at Tel Aviv (Israel) airport was expectedly rigid, which made it nerve-racking. Thankfully, our exit was hassle-free; our luggage got xx02 tags from security check. (But the lady traveler whom we had a convo with at the check-in counter for the same outbound flight had a contrary experience. Holding back her tears an hour later when she showed up at the boarding gate, she recounted going through 'intensive body inspection.' She is Muslim (if this info matters), but no way looking Middle Eastern because of German-descent features and passport. All she did, she says, was travel solo to nearby Petra (Jordan), after touring the Holy Land.)
I look at my watch. I had ample minutes to dispose of leftover shekels in my pocket. Fyi, no other country, save Israel, puts value to said unique currency, so tourists must make better use of it before takeoff. Delectable halva (nut butter-sugar confection) at JR Duty Free called my name in exchange for shekels. I bought a box, for tasting and came back for three more halva boxes. Now feeling the heavy weight put together in a single shopping bag. There's a special discount if one purchases four halva boxes. Cashier would not excuse my 1 + 3 halva purchase for a special discount; it must be a single transaction receipt. (Little did I know, I still had 1,500 shekels stashed in a secret cranny of my luggage!!! Attempted to exchange it for Turkish lira at Istanbul airport, but rescinded the transaction due to the pitiful exchange rate. Turkish lady at the forex counter was kind enough to give me back my shekels for souvenir purposes.)
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| In Istanbul, cruise the Bosphorus Strait in a ferry, hopping two continents - Europe and Asia |
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| A view of Europe side from Uskudar breakwater on Asia side, in Istanbul |
Flight time, Tel Aviv-Istanbul, 1 hour. Check-in: Fer Hotel in the Fatih district (previously called Constantinople), which is the old, historical area of Istanbul (Turkiye). New Year 2019 was around the corner. How does Istanbul celebrate the new year? I anticipated celebratory fireworks, as per Google images. Hotel front desk staff said the fireworks had been discontinued. There's new year's revelry by Taksim Square but tourists are discouraged from going to the square given the unpredictable crowd. A Hotel-arranged dinner cruise on the Bosphorus was suggested, but I shun from cruise formalities.
Ortaklar, a 24/7 restaurant, was nearby. Ortaklar's grilled meats, delicious scent wafting in the air, had caught our foodie interest. Around midnight (New Year's Eve), hubby and I were comfortably seated in the restaurant, awaiting our food orders. Karisik Izgara - a feast platter of grilled meats (beef, lamb & chicken), and Pide - Turkish brick oven pizza, which were downright cheaper than Israel's food prices by 2/3. Eight days in Istanbul, we've been the restaurant's loyal customers, either for dine-in or takeaway food. Ortaklar was the go-to restaurant on day's end.
This is not to say we have lost interest in other restaurants. Also nearby was Istanbul Ottoman Kitchen, with the pile of broken clay pots on its doorstep inviting one's curiosity. Anatolian-style Testi Kebap - a combination of meat (lamb, beef or chicken) and vegetables (carrots, potatoes, celery, onion, garlic) in a 'sealed clay pot.'
In a 2-minute long food ceremony, the server brings out a sealed claypot order alongside a charcoal-filled clay platter. The server sets the charcoal on fire, and places the sealed clay pot over it to heat up, briefly. Then, the clay pot is taken out of the fire and held upside down, and the server proceeds to tap on it gently... Then poof! The 'sealed clay plot' pops open!!! complete with a "popping" sound effect, like champagne cork popping out from its bottle. It caught me off guard, and I let out an audible gasp of surprise! Open clay pot reveals the smokin' hot dish inside. (It had been prepped earlier to slow cook over wood or charcoal.) Server then proceeds to pour the dish onto a plate to the diner's delight, knowing the long wait is over to finally get a taste of the dish. Foodie Verdict: Tastes like stew made flavourful by secret Ottoman spices. To my mind, it tasted like the Menudo dish in the Philippines.
Dondurma trick. When in Istanbul, it was best to just play along the Dondurma trick if one is keen at knowing what 'mastic ice cream' tastes like. Credit to the Dondurma guy for not having that ice cream scoop end up a blob in the ground or on my head, when he timely hands over the ice cream cone, because the cashier is waiting for payment.
Next choosing the best assortment of Turkish Delight in a box was tricky. Not only is one confronted with a number of confectionery shops in Istanbul selling the gummy and sticky and festive delights, there were too many combo flavors, it was overwhelming to even choose. There was a point even I had to decline the free tasting at every shop, remembering my sugar quota for the day. So I said, "I'd want only the bestsellers, 500 grams each in each of the six boxes, total." How does one come up with the flavors, anyway? I asked the chef at Efezade. He says, there are tried and tested traditional flavors. Experimental flavors are produced from time to time, and if the same clicks, they are sold. Chef recalled one or two experimental flavors that got thrown in the can for tasting so bad.
1-jan: HNY 2019, Istanbul! First day of the year begins.. commencing with a self-guided tour of Istanbul's Top 3 attractions: Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern and Topkapi Palace.
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| Dramatic illumination hangs from the ceiling of the cathedral turned Ottoman mosque, now Hagia Sophia museum |
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| A 55-step stairway down to the Basilica Cistern, dubbed the "Sunken Palace" |
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| Courtyard exit from the sultan's heaven on earth - "The Harem" at Topkapi Palace |
Basilica cistern is 9,800 square meters in area and can store up to 100,000 tons of water. It had been put to the silver screen once again for the film adaptation of "Inferno", Dan Brown's novel. In the underground cistern, there's a "Medusa Head", two of them actually, used as plinths or column bases.
"According to one of the myths, Medusa is one of the three Gorgones who are female monsters of the underground worlds. Of these three sisters, Medusa has the power to turn people, who look at her, into stones. The Medusa head (sculpture) is placed upside down so that people who look at them wouldn't turn into stones. - The Basilica Cistern, IMM"
4-jan: Day trip to the ancient city of Ephesus... Air transit from Istanbul to Izmir via Turkish Airlines, and land transit via rental car, driving a reliable Toyota CH-R c/o Enterprise Rent-a-Car from Izmir to Ephesus... and timely returning to catch the last outbound flight back to Istanbul. All in a day's adventure!
A biblical site, here located at the Ephesus archeological site. Trivia: Paul (the Apostle) is said to have written a letter to the Ephesians, to the church at Ephesus to preach the gospel of Christ. In the Great Theater, when Paul came to Ephesus, he met the opposition from "magicians and soothsayers, shouting: Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" Paul wanted to face the crowd, but he was prevented from being stoned. Paul left Ephesus for Macedonia. (The church of Ephesus was established by St. Paul.)
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| The "Great Theater" in the ancient city of Ephesus; Ephesus gained religious significance by St. Paul's letter to the Ephesians |
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| The "Library of Celsus", the ancient Roman building, stands partly intact in the archaeological site at Ephesus |
Trivia: According to religious tradition, Mary arrived at Ephesus together with St. John and lived there until her Assumption (by the Catholic doctrine) or Dormition (by Orthodox beliefs). The House of the Virgin Mary (Meryem Ana Evi in Turkish) which can be still visited today, is a place where Mary, the mother of Jesus, spent the last years of her life... Why would Mary live in Ephesus? The first hint comes from the Bible, where John the Evangelist explained that Jesus, during the crucifixion, declared his adoption as the son of Mary: "Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, "Woman, here is your son," and to the disciple, "Here is your mother." From that time on, this disciple took her into his home."... John later came to Ephesus where he worked; it is assumed that he brought with him his adopted mother. - Turkish Archaeological News
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| "Meryem Ana Evi", the House of the Virgin Mary up Mount Koressos in Ephesus |
A day trip to the ancient city of Ephesus via air/land transit from Istanbul is, indeed, possible. Time check: 18:02H Here, timely making it back to Izmir airport to catch the last outbound flight to Istanbul. P.s. Turkish Airlines does serve in-flight hot meal-Turkish sandwich delight (regardless of a short 1-hour flight time... great!) Plane made a touchdown on Istanbul airport runway as I took a last bite on that sandwich.
7-jan: As I'd always say, the hardest part of traveling is knowing the end part of it, that is, hotel checkout. Thanks Fer Hotel staff, in particular, Aynur, Sefer, Kemal, Mohammad, Pelinesu, and one "Harry Potter" at the Roofer, for taking care of us during our stay.. tesekkür ederim (tea, sugar & dream)*wink;)
Link to YouTube>>> Ungkler Travels 2019 | Ep.1: Manila-Istanbul-Tel Aviv-Istanbul - TURKEY
Link to YouTube>>> Ungkler Travels 2019 | Ep.2: Day Trip to the Ancient City of Ephesus - TURKEY
Link to YouTube>>> Ungkler Travels 2019 | Ep.3: Cruisin' the Bosphorus Strait... (Eminonu-Europe to/from Kadikoy-Asia) - TURKEY
oOo
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