Istanbul By Boat
At the end of July, 2 of my lovely link and cluster mates and I went on a "cruise" to Istanbul from Sevastopol. We met up at my site first to buy the fabric for the bridesmaids dresses before heading off in the evening for Crimea.
Arriving in Sevastopol, it was obvious that the sea rules the town. Specifically, the Russian fleet, who is still stationed there and the Russian flag is flown from most administration buildings across the city.
We were able to do a little swimming in Balaclava before getting on our "cruise ship" that would take over a day to reach Turkey.
Half way down we dropped anchor in the Black Sea and we were allowed to swim for an hour or so with no land or other boats in sight. The water was a clear aquamarine blue and the temperature was just right. There was not a whole lot to do on the boat other than wait for meals, so we contented ourselves by reading or sleeping either on the deck of the ship or in our cabin.
We arrived early in the morning the next day, just in time to see the sunrise over the city with the horizon dotted with minarets and we were flanked by palaces. It certainly was unlike any other city I had ever seen before.
We ventured forth that morning going to the Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. I was very much impressed by the latter, with its interior--it had a calming atmosphere and beautiful blue tile work. We spent the afternoon hunting in the Grand Bazaar district being targeted by countless Turkish men eager to give us tea and sell us some wares.
The next day, the bride-to-be and I went to the Topaki Palace to view the harem. We were overcome by the beauty of the artwork on the tiles and took many pictures hoping that they might reflect the beauty of the rooms we were in. That visit was probably my highlight from the trip.
Shopping is a major attraction to Istanbul, and has been for thousands and thousands of years. I felt like we all did our share to the best of our abilities, my favorite places being inside the Spice Bazaar and back at the Grand Bazaar haggling prices over just about anything and everything. The shop stands were gorgeous too, so many vibrant colors and displays of ceramics, rugs, lamps, trinkets, and spices. I spent a lot of time there talking to various shop owners about life in Turkey and other countries. I found several Turkish shop owners who had been to Ukraine, one even had visited my city (he sold belly dancing costumes), which was a strange coincidence. Another shopkeeper had a store in IvanoFrancovisk and had been married to a Ukrainian woman. We talked about life in Ukraine and spoke a bit in Ukrainian as we sipped tea. He later took me on a tour of the old part of the Grand Bazaar trying to find me a cheap pair of earrings to bring home.
These people (and others we met) were all very frank about their feelings about Ukrainians and in particular Ukrainian women. There seemed to be a consensus that Ukraine was a less developed country than Turkey, that people in Ukraine are poor, and that women, tired and looking for more money and opportunities, will often times find themselves in the sex trade. Sadly, human trafficking is a big problem in this country and Turkey is certainly one of the places were Ukrainian women find themselves (knowingly or unknowingly) working as a part of this industry.
My experiences overall though were very pleasant--but the over-eagerness of Turkish men in general was not welcome outside of the tourist district when I was alone. I never did understand why so much attention was being paid to me unless it was assumed that certain ideas/attitudes about Western women prevailed, especially as I was unaccompanied. Out of all the places i have travelled to as a PCV, Istanbul was probably my least favorite, even though it was the one I had looked forward to the longest. Perhaps my expectations were too high and could never been lived up to. In any event, I am really grateful that I went and had such fabulous company for the trip too.
Arriving in Sevastopol, it was obvious that the sea rules the town. Specifically, the Russian fleet, who is still stationed there and the Russian flag is flown from most administration buildings across the city.
We were able to do a little swimming in Balaclava before getting on our "cruise ship" that would take over a day to reach Turkey.
Half way down we dropped anchor in the Black Sea and we were allowed to swim for an hour or so with no land or other boats in sight. The water was a clear aquamarine blue and the temperature was just right. There was not a whole lot to do on the boat other than wait for meals, so we contented ourselves by reading or sleeping either on the deck of the ship or in our cabin.
We arrived early in the morning the next day, just in time to see the sunrise over the city with the horizon dotted with minarets and we were flanked by palaces. It certainly was unlike any other city I had ever seen before.
We ventured forth that morning going to the Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. I was very much impressed by the latter, with its interior--it had a calming atmosphere and beautiful blue tile work. We spent the afternoon hunting in the Grand Bazaar district being targeted by countless Turkish men eager to give us tea and sell us some wares.
The next day, the bride-to-be and I went to the Topaki Palace to view the harem. We were overcome by the beauty of the artwork on the tiles and took many pictures hoping that they might reflect the beauty of the rooms we were in. That visit was probably my highlight from the trip.
Shopping is a major attraction to Istanbul, and has been for thousands and thousands of years. I felt like we all did our share to the best of our abilities, my favorite places being inside the Spice Bazaar and back at the Grand Bazaar haggling prices over just about anything and everything. The shop stands were gorgeous too, so many vibrant colors and displays of ceramics, rugs, lamps, trinkets, and spices. I spent a lot of time there talking to various shop owners about life in Turkey and other countries. I found several Turkish shop owners who had been to Ukraine, one even had visited my city (he sold belly dancing costumes), which was a strange coincidence. Another shopkeeper had a store in IvanoFrancovisk and had been married to a Ukrainian woman. We talked about life in Ukraine and spoke a bit in Ukrainian as we sipped tea. He later took me on a tour of the old part of the Grand Bazaar trying to find me a cheap pair of earrings to bring home.
These people (and others we met) were all very frank about their feelings about Ukrainians and in particular Ukrainian women. There seemed to be a consensus that Ukraine was a less developed country than Turkey, that people in Ukraine are poor, and that women, tired and looking for more money and opportunities, will often times find themselves in the sex trade. Sadly, human trafficking is a big problem in this country and Turkey is certainly one of the places were Ukrainian women find themselves (knowingly or unknowingly) working as a part of this industry.
My experiences overall though were very pleasant--but the over-eagerness of Turkish men in general was not welcome outside of the tourist district when I was alone. I never did understand why so much attention was being paid to me unless it was assumed that certain ideas/attitudes about Western women prevailed, especially as I was unaccompanied. Out of all the places i have travelled to as a PCV, Istanbul was probably my least favorite, even though it was the one I had looked forward to the longest. Perhaps my expectations were too high and could never been lived up to. In any event, I am really grateful that I went and had such fabulous company for the trip too.
posted by Molly | 3:04 AM
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