Where Our Road Takes YouA City ofIntrigueIstanbul“Beautiful lady. I like your hat. Can I buy your hat for my mother?” With armsextended, my charming Turkish protagonist made a vain attempt to beckon meinto his shop, which cascaded with curtains of soft leather purses and jackets.by Caroline M. Jackson<strong>OpenRoad</strong> driver |
Tipping the wide brim ofmy sunhat down a little furtheron my brow, I chuckled ashis words followed me up thestreet, “Why you walk so fastlady? Come back. Come back.”Earlier that morning I had stoodalone on the bow of our cruise ship andwatched the sun rise like a blood redorange from the Sea of Marmara. In myatlas, this inland sea looked insignificantyet it is the link between two mightyoceans, the Aegean Sea to the west andthe Black Sea to the east.As we approached the busy port ofIstanbul, our vessel was surrounded bya pandemonium of watercraft. Packedpassenger ferries zigzagged across theharbour, fishing boats seemed obliviousto danger while massive oil tankers andheavily laden freighters were bound forRomania, Russia and Bulgaria.Our ship’s horn blared sotto vocecompeting with other vociferous vessels.Fellow passengers lined the railings andtook in the scene through binoculars.Meanwhile our shipboard commentatorcalmly informed us that accidents werecommonplace because many ships donot take a pilot on board. The watersare international and therefore do notcome under the jurisdiction of Turkishauthorities.I fleetingly pondered the details ofour lifeboat drill that had taken placea week earlier in Civitavecchia, Italy.However, I took solace in the fact thatmost nearby water traffic was smallerthan our Galaxy cruise ship.I was so engrossed in the scenariounfolding before me that I had almostforgotten to look upon Istanbul, the onlycity in the world built on two continents.Despite being swathed in an etherealblue haze that covered its face like a veil,I could spot the Blue Mosque with its sixminarets and the dome of the famousAgia Sofia.Later that afternoon my husband andI enjoyed a fascinating visit to both thesearchitectural wonders, which are welldescribed in many travel books.In the early evening our tour buspulled into one of the entrances to thelabyrinthine Grand Bazaar. Before disembarking,our local guide, Tomay, gaveus a pep talk about pick pockets, bargainingand how to avoid getting lost in thisrabbit warren of alleys and thousands ofcovered shops.Despite imaginings that I might beheld up by a scimitar-wielding mugger,I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to thisAladdin’s Cave. No one tried to rob meand the merchants were polite and entertaining.Sometimes we were offered teapoured into tulip-shaped glasses suspendedon silver trays.This is a common gesture of hospitality.After sauntering past kiosks ofleather purses, gold jewelry, colourfultiles and exotic belly-dancing costumes,my constraint sagged and I chose twobeautiful Pashmir scarves.The real fun came when I tried toextricate my liras for the purchase. Thenotes were so tightly encased inside mymoney belt that my husband finishedup paying for the purchase rather thancause further embarrassment.Our arrival in Istanbul coincidedwith the first day of the holy month ofRamazan, a time when Muslims do notallow anything to pass their lips betweendawn and dusk. This includes food,drink, smoking and even chewing gum.No wonder many merchants wereyawning in the early evening and our tourguide admitted to being very thirsty. Bythe time we exited the Grand Bazaar, darknesshad enfolded the city and fairy lightsencircling the minarets were lit announcingthe end of the day’s fast. Hundreds ofpeople stood in line for a free meal fromthe Mosque. According to Tomay, it wouldbe close to a three-hour wait. Photo: Hamish Jackson<strong>OpenRoad</strong> driver |
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