Exploring Ayvansaray and Balat, Istanbul

 

We set off, on a beautiful sunny day to explore the  Ayvansaray and Balat neighbourhoods of Istanbul, as part of our IWI Neighbourhood Coffee Morning activities. This area, by the Golden Horn, dates from the Byzantine era. It is a culturally diverse area, where churches, synagogues and mosques co-exist side by side, along with their congregations.

Church of Saint Mary of Blachernae

Pam, our guide, led us first to the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Mary of Blachernae.  This church, built in 1833, is on the site of a shrine to the Virgin Mary, dating from the 5th century AD, marking the site of a "life-giving spring", a source of miracle healing. Unfortunately, the caretaker wouldn't allow us to take any photos of the inside.

Our next stop was the Ferruh Kethüda Mosque. Built in 1562 by the great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan, it bears one of his signature sundials.

Mimar Sinan's Sundial

As you can see, the sundial is perpendicular to the ground and is read differently 

from the more usual ones seen today. Here, the sun casts a shadow at 11:00!

A house built into the ancient walls

Originally surrounded by the ancient walls of Constantinople, Balat is a testament to the ingenuity of man, as remnants of those fortifications form parts of houses still lived in today.

Yanbol Synagogue

We tried to visit one of the two remaining synagogues in Balat, the Yanbol Synagogue built in 1895, on the site of a much older one dating from Byzantine times. Unfortunately, there had been an attempt to bomb this building recently, so it remained locked and bolted!

Tahta Minare Camii

Mosques come on all sizes, and one of the smallest we found is the Tahta Minare, or Wooden Minaret Mosque. Originally built by Fatih Sultan Mehmed in 1458, the original wooden minaret has long gone, having been replaced in 1875. Although we were unable to go inside, the information printed on the wall told us that "the inner space of the mosque is square, with 8.06 metres each side", not very big at all!

Fener Rum Erkek Lisesi

 Like Rome, Istanbul is a city built on seven hills, so it was not surprise to find ourselves climbing ever higher, up to the Fener Rum Erkek Lisesi, the Greek Boys' School. Although this particular building was erected in 1881, this is the oldest surviving school in Istanbul. It's inception dates from the Byzantine era when it was the Patriarch School.

We couldn't leave the area without paying a visit to the home of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, a title that has been handed down since the 6th century.

As we entered the chapel, everyone gasped in amazement at the opulence of the decorations.

This gate is permanently welded shut, after  the Patriarch, Gregory V was hanged 

from the lintel by the Ottomans,  after the Greek Revolt in Peloponnesus.

Our heads now whirling with all our new-found knowledge, we ended our  day with a magnificent lunch beside the Golden Horn.

Our happy band of explorers!

Photography Trek to Santralistanbul, Turkey

This sculpture sits outside the entrance to the Santralistanbul museum

Santralistanbul Museum is in Eyup, is right at the top of the Golden Horn; but easy to get to, as there are free buses running from various stops in the city. We boarded our bus just by the ferry terminus in Kabatas, along with a host of students from Bilgi University.

Much of the old machinery is still there, on display in the museum

"Santral" is the Turkish word for "power plant", and the Santralistanbul Museum is on the site of the old coal-fired power-generating  Silahtaraga Power Station. This was the first power station to be built during the Ottoman Empire, and was in use between 1914 to 1983.

Fascinating glimpses into the past of this old power station

The old control room remains as it was when the plant was closed

The plant lay derelict for 20 years after it was closed down for economic reasons, but was saved from destruction when it was declared a 'cultural and natural object of Istanbul', giving it special protection.

There are interactive activities to show how electrical currents work

Lights receding into infinity

The museum, which houses much of the original machinery, was officially opened in September 2007. It was originally part of a complex that included  an amphitheater, concert halls, a public library, an art gallery, and residences for visiting artists. Unfortunately Santralistanbul has recently been mired in controversy. Bilgi University rented the grounds surrounding the museum as part of their campus. And, although their contract stipulates that the energy museum, and the contemporary art museum should be allowed to remain on the site, the university has sold the art collection (without reference to the original artists), and converted the art gallery into student classrooms. Read the article, Controversy at Santralistanbul for full details, also this article in  Today's Zaman.

Santralistanbul is on the Bilgi University campus, so we took the

opportunity to look at the architectural students' exhibition - fascinating!

Camel Wrestling. Photography Workshop Day 2.

 

Camel wrestling? Are you joking? When Arjen Zwart, an Istanbul photographer, advertised a two-day trek that included shooting camel wrestling, I just had to sign up. How often do you get to see camels wrestle? The day was made even more interesting as we got to follow one particular camel from his stables into the ring.

We were first introduce to our camel, Yildizhan, an enormous, fully grown bull, weighing 930 kilos, by his owner, Ahmed. He had paid 70,000 TL for this magnificent beast; camel wresting is obviously very serious, and very expensive! We watched as Yildizhan was loaded into a truck, with two other younger camels, ready for the short journey to Turgut Reis, where the camel wrestling was to take place. We followed on, with excitement, still unsure as to what the day would bring.

Yildizhan, being loaded into the truck

As our camels were being unloaded, we watched the others arriving, some by truck, and more just walking along the road. The camels wore such an aloof expression as they walked along, and made a magnificent spectacle decked out in their finery.

We followed Yildizhan into the arena, and saw the astonishing spectacle 

of camels as far as the eye could see; a riot of colour. 

Those are camel sausages, called sucuk. I couldn't resist trying a sucuk sandwich for lunch!

The occasion began with the sacrifice of a sheep in the middle of the arena, followed by prayers. Then the wrestling could begin. Camels wrestle in the wild when they are competing for a female, so, to encourage the first camels, two females were led into the arena. This made the camels froth at the mouth with anticipation, and the wrestling began. I expect that camels in the wild can get rather aggressive with each other, but here, the camels were dragged apart if it looked too violent, as these camels are far too valuable to allow them to be damaged in any way. As the first two camels were tussling with each other, the next pair were circled around to excite them, ready for their own bout. All the time, drums were being played, the intensity building as the day progressed. It was an amazing atmosphere.

When the camels wrestle each other, they try to get their head underneath the stomach to lift the other off the ground. Note our two intrepid photographers, Ozlem and Hilal. I was far too wary to venture that close to warring camels!

If the fight becomes too violent, the camels are pulled apart by two teams of men

.

They didn't manage to subdue Yildizhan and his opponent, and they carried on, crashing into the crowd. This (above) was taken by me, running backwards, as I had been sitting next to this post!

All around there were people partying!

After the excitement of the camel wrestling, we drove to Lake Bafa, for dinner in a fish restaurant. There we watched the sun go down on our memorable two days. Thank you Arjen, and thank you all my new friends. I had the best time!

Photography Workshop in Western Aegean. Day 1

 Some members of our photography workshop, led by Arjen Zwart,

an Istanbul-based professional photographer

We flew from Istanbul to Bodrum on the 06:35 flight. A very early start, but essential if we were to visit all the places on our itinerary. Our minibus met us at Bodrum airport, and drove us to our first destination, Milas, for breakfast. This was once the capital of the ancient kingdom of Caria, and is thought to date from the 7th century BC. Milas today doesn't reflect its glorious past, but the evidence is still there.

You can still see relics of the past, built into walls around the city.

This is the Baltalı Kapı, or Axe Gate, once the entrance to the city, and later used for an aqueduct. 

The name of the gate is derived from the carved axe, the symbol of Zeus,

 on the keystone of the arch. 

We then headed for Labranda, a holy sanctuary, dedicated to Zeus, "Father of Gods and men". On the way, we passed an ancient edifice which intrigued us, so we stopped to take a look. It was the Gümüşkesen Tomb, built between 160-180 AD.  

This is said to be modelled on the famous Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, in nearby Bodrum;  one of the original seven wonders of the world.

Who built the tomb and why, is not clear, but it has been suggested that it was constructed as a resting place for some town dignitary during Roman rule. 

The road to Labranda was steep and rocky, following the path of the ancient pilgrims, away from the hustle and bustle of busy Milas. The site is huge, and we were the only visitors, left to clamber about at will in the silence and solitude of this ancient, sacred site left abandoned more that 1,000 years ago. 

 By now, we were hungry for lunch, so decided to see what was available in the Çomakdağ Kızılağaҫ Village, another spot on our itinerary. Unfortunately, there were no restaurants, but we managed with supplies from a small store in the village. This village was founded some 500 years ago by the Oğuz Turks, who carry on their traditions to this day. We found the inhabitants to be friendly people, who are proud of their village, and only too keen to show us around, and didn't seem to mind our cameras at all! 

The women still wear their traditional dress. This lady invited us into her house to look at her handicrafts. To enter, we had to move the planks aside.

These men were playing a game called Okay...

...while this woman was selling her wares nearby.

Our final trip was to the local cemetery, where the  ancient stone headstones had the most magnificent view over the valley below.

We were also intrigued to see some decorated headstones.

We eventually reached our hotel, exhausted, but happy, looking forward to our next exciting adventure!