ISTANBUL - the city of tulips and rhododendrons (Part I)
PRELUDE
During my school days those who opted for the science stream
had to part with History quite early in their education. Even though I belonged
to that group, I had a personal love for history, perhaps deeply influenced by
my school - La Martiniere, Lucknow.
Vast open spaces, old imposing buildings, the bizarre but
magnificent architecture of the main building ‘Constantia’ – an unusual mix of
Gothic, Georgian, Palladian and Nawabi styles, the three majestic cannons on
the terrace overlooking the ‘Lat’( a 40m
long solid fluted column) standing like a silent spectator right at the centre
of an artificial lake, the wooden ballroom dancing floor in Spence Hall – it
would be difficult not to love history in a place steeped in it.
The city of Lucknow,
where my school is located, is itself steeped in History.By a strange coincidence our house in Lucknow faced a historical mansion 'Havelock House'. It belonged to Gen. Havelock, who led the relief of Lucknow during the siege. The street was also named after him as Havelock Road. Lucknow during the eighteenth century was the power center of the erstwhile kingdom
of Oudh. A French soldier Maj Gen Claude Martin acquired a large fortune while serving Asaf-ud-
Daula, the then Nawab of Oudh. The ‘Constantia’ was designed and built by
Martin himself in the late 18th century. The school also got
associated with the great uprising (Sepoy Mutiny) of 1857. The staff and
students of La Martiniere played a major role in defending the Residency, where
British men, women and children had taken shelter, and which came under heavy
siege from the revolutionary sepoys. For this ‘Defence of Lucknow’ the school
was awarded the unconsecrated Battle Honor by Britain in 1933, the only school in
the world so distinguished.
‘Constantia’ – ‘Constantinopole’. It is difficult to forget
such similar sounding words. Ever since I learnt about Constantinopole in my
History class and that this was a renaming of the ancient city of Byzantium by Emperor Constantine I of Rome after his conquest in the 4th century
AD, I always dreamt of visiting this place someday. After many years this long
cherished dream turned into reality when I decided to go there with my wife.
ISTANBUL
On the morning of May 1, 2011, we landed at Ataturk International
Airport, Istanbul. Before boarding the flight at Delhi we met a Bengali gentleman who was also travelling
by the same flight along with his wife and child up to Budapest. We were taken back for a while when
he exclaimed - “does anyone visit Istanbul?
What is there to see in Istanbul”?
We learnt soon that he had never been to Istanbul,
nor does he take any interest in travelling to new places. A man with no
wanderlust – he was entirely unlike us!
The Turkish Airline flight was very comfortable, and the hospitality
was good. We were served small packets of hazelnuts with our wine, and they
were so tasty that we asked for extra packets to carry with us.
Finally we were at Constantinopole - Istanbul since 1930. I love the song ‘Istanbul was Constantinopole now its Istanbul not Constantinopole’. The
international airport is named after the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa
Kemal Ataturk. Mustafa Kemal Pasha, also referred as ‘Kemal Ataturk’ meaning
‘Father of Turks’ was an astute army officer, a revolutionary statesman and the
first president of the Republic of Turkey. He deposed Sultan Mehmet VI, thus
abolishing the sultanate, and became President in 1924. The great Bengali rebel
poet Kazi Nazrul Islam paid tribute to Kemal Pasha in his epic poem “Amar Kemal
Pasha” as the people of undivided Bengal had supported Turkey’s war of
liberation.
We were excited. We could hardly believe that we were
finally in Istanbul.
Since we were travelling light – one suitcase with attached trolley and a
backpack, we headed straight for the metro or ‘light rail’ as they call it
there. We bought jetons (tokens). Unlike India there are no ticket counters.
One has to get jetons from self operated machines. Since we had no coins we
took the help of the metro staff manning the gates at the station. They were
very friendly – they operated the machine, taught us how to use it, gave us our
change and the ‘jetons’ and explained in detail how we were to get to our
destination.
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| Metro (Light Rail) station at Ataturk International Airport Istanbul |
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| View from the metro enroute Sultanahmet square |
On the train, to get a good view of the city, each of us
selected a window seat. The train emerges and runs overground just a few
seconds after it departs from the airport station, and continues overground for
almost the entire stretch up to Zeytunburnu, where we got off. One visual
delight which continued attracting our attention during our stay in Istanbul was tulips of different
sizes and colors. I have never seen such a riot of colors in any city, even in Holland, in my life. In
all parts of the city, be it Sultahnahmet circle, Blue Mosque, Hippodrome,
Hagia Sophia, Top Kapi palace, Eminonu - we were enthralled by the luxuriant
display of tulips and rhododendrons. These flowers bloomed in almost all parts
of the city. Istanbul
- the city of tulips and rhododendrons!
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| Istanbul Tram |
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| Riot of colors--tulips |
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| waiting at the tram stop |
Up to Zeytunburnu the view outside was that of modern Istanbul with tall
buildings and commercial complexes. At Zeytunburnu we just had to exit through
a turnstile to get to the adjoining platform for boarding the tram. Unlike Calcutta, the only city in India
where trams still survive, Istanbul
trams are sleek, beautiful and fast-moving. It’s almost like a train with three
coaches in attractive blue and white. We enjoyed the tram ride as it literally
glided through the old quarters of the city soaked in history. On our way to
our destination, Sultahnahmet, we caught glimpses of the famous Grand Bazaar, (the
labyrinthine interior of which, I later discovered, almost resembles Calcutta’s
Hogg Market or New Market), and also the 3500 years old obelisk on the
Hippodrome where chariot races were held during the Byzantium and Roman rules.
The place is now paved and is known as Sultahnahmet Square. When we got down at
our destination we were greeted by the sight of one of the most stunningly
beautiful architectures we have ever come across – the Blue Mosque. The domes are like steps
ascending and converging to a central and highest dome. The other side of the
street is lined up with restaurants, pudding shops and hotels. It was around ten
in the morning and we could see the restaurant staff hawking their delicacies. Since
Istanbul is the only city in the world that straddles
two great continents, Europe and Asia, the very first impression was that it
has the discipline and cleanliness of any European city, but the bustling,
colorful, oriental flavor of Asia. I had read
Orhan Pamuk’s informative memoir ‘Istanbul –
memories and the city’ before coming to Istanbul.
Although he has painted his city in ‘black and white’, the way he experienced
in the seventies and eighties, he has made it very clear that Istanbul is a city with the West in its head
but the East in its soul. At one place he mentions: ‘Was this the secret of
Istanbul – that beneath its grand history, its living poverty, its outward
–looking monuments and its sublime landscapes its poor hid the city’s soul
inside a fragile web?”
All along our short stay in Istanbul we found that the Istanbullus are a
convivial lot. From the moment you step into Istanbul you will never feel like a stranger.
We were booked at Ida
Hotel on Cancarturan Street.
A few yards away from the tram stop was a tourist information centre. An
elderly and chubby looking Turkish lady was single handedly attending queries
from all tourists who came over there. When I asked her where this Cancarturan
street is, she immediately left her seat, came over to me, patted my back and
whispered to me that it is not pronounced the way it is written. Then she did a
brilliant job of giving us directions. We never had to ask anyone else where
the place is.
For going to Ida
Hotel one has to cross a
huge park in front of the Blue Mosque. This park is actually an extension of ‘At
Meydani’ meaning ‘horse grounds’ as this is where the Hippodrome was located
and where chariot racing used to take
place during the Byzantine rule. May 1 being a holiday, there was a teeming
crowd of young and old enjoying the pleasant sunshine. There were vendors
inside the park selling hazelnuts and candies. These candies are known as ‘akide
sekeri’ (rainbow of colors) and flavored with rose water, mint and fruit
juices. The whole process of preparing these candies in front of your eyes, by dipping
the sticks in a colorful mixture of thick, glutinous fluid instantly brought
out the gluttony in me. Although it was sticky and messy, it was really yummy.
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| the beautiful Ida hotel |
Hotel Ida made our stay very comfortable. It was a small
hotel with very nice and cozy rooms. The room we stayed is was located on the
first floor and the windows overlooked the busy and lively Cancarturan Street. The eateries along
the cobbled street of Cancarturan used to get decked up with lights and candle
lights in the night and provided an attractive view from our hotel window. The
hotel staff was very friendly and caring; particularly Sihan who acted as a
guide and even booked us on a Bosphorus Cruise. Breakfast was included in our
hotel stay and it was prepared and served by a middle aged Turkish lady. Bread,
cheese, egg, ham, sausage, orange juice, milk and tea were served on the hotel
terrace, from where we had a grand view of the sea of Marmara.The sea was so
close that sometimes the sea gulls would come and settle on the roofs around
us. The terrace, the breakfast, the sea and the seagulls made the mornings
refreshingly enjoyable. So much so that we unanimously decided to book our next
visit to Istanbul
here. Such was the hotel’s location that one could literally walk across to all
the prime attractions of European Istanbul. The Blue Mosque and Arasta Bazaar
were at a stone’s throw. There was this Café Mesale at the entrance of Arasta
Bazaar where one could have food and drinks at reasonable rates and also enjoy
the ancient Turkish dance of whirling dervishes accompanied by ‘Sufi’-like songs
and music.
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Breakfast at Ida
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| This Turkish lady prepares and serves breakfast at Ida |
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| Seagulls from Marmara sea (taken from the terrace of Ida Hotel) |
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| A Shoe shine man at the corner of Cancarturan Street Istanbul |
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| Tulips and Rhododendrons at Istanbul |
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| Tulips and Rhododendrons at Istanbul |
On the evening of our first day in Istanbul
we were picked up by the tour operator’s cab from our hotel and taken to a jetty
at Golden Horn. Tables were booked for us
inside a boat. Each table could hold eight people, and the others at our table were
from Lebanon and Hungary As
our boat pulled out from Golden Horn jetty we
were served drinks and starters. There was no hurry as we had till midnight to unwind.
As our boat sailed through the dark waters of the Bosphorus strait, the city glittered
in a romantic way. All the mosques, Ottoman palaces, and heritage buildings on
both the European and the Asian sides of the city were tastefully illuminated.
The Bosphorus Bridge
connecting Europe and Asia was adorned
attractively in electric-blue light, the reflection of which created an
other-worldly spectacle on the waters of the river.
As the boat crawled past the glittering Dolmabahce Palace,
Ciragan Palace,
Ortakoy mosque, and Beylerbeti
Palace, we were
enchanted. Inside we were entertained, not only with delicious food and drinks,
but by Turkish folk songs and music, Turkish folk dances and finally the famous
Turkish Belly dance. At the end of this grand show one thing which left us
thinking was the efficiency of the entire crew – there was not a single lapse
of hospitality on this packed boat with tourists from all over the world.
While in Istanbul
we tried different restaurants for lunch and dinner. When you stroll on the
pavement at Sultahnahmet Square
restaurant owners compete with each other and try to attract customers. One
such Turkish owner whose restaurant was at the corner and adjacent to the
Pudding Shop exclaimed ‘Indira Gandhi’! On seeing my wife in her sari. He
showed us his restaurant, his menu card and became friendly with us as because
he loved India.
Before coming to Istanbul
I had heard the name of ‘Sultahnahmet Koftecisi’ a very famous eatery since
1920. We had lunch there once. A very short menu, as meat ball is the the
generic food there. I had meat balls with bun shaped breads and then we had a
dessert called Irmik tatlisi. Unlike India the meat ball or ‘kofta’ is
flat and rectangular in shape, but it was really delicious.
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| A Turkish preparation |
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| Turkish Rice Pudding |
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| Vine Leaf Kebab |
Public transport is so convenient and comfortable in Istanbul that we decided
to go around to some places by tram. We went to Spice Bazaar (Misir Carsisi in
Turkish) and the New Mosque. New Mosque is not as new as the name suggests. It
came only a few years after the Blue Mosque. After getting down at Eminonu we
used the subway from the tram stop to cross over to the other side where the
New Mosque and the famous Spice Bazaar are situated. There was a crowded market
place in the subway. Once you come up you are at a plaza from where you can see
the Galata Tower
and Galata Bridge. There were some vendors selling
ice cream and
hazelnuts. I was tempted to try out a local ice cream. It was
really good. From Eminonu, a lot of government boats are available for half day
trips on the Bosphorus. We took one of those. Nice and comfortable, it also had
a small shop selling cakes, sandwiches, hazelnuts, tea and other beverages. We
enjoyed Bosphorus by day as much as we enjoyed it by night. The shores on both
Asian and European sides were lined up with houses, villas, palaces and other
historical monuments. When we neared the small hamlet of Anadolu Kavagi on the
Asian side, we could see the Black sea. From
the boat the tiny hamlet looked like it was standing on the tip of a peninsula.
I have no idea as to why the sea was named Black sea,
but it appeared distinctively darker than the blue water of Bosphorus. As we
stood watching the Black sea, the cool, gentle
breeze almost mesmerized us.
We stayed at Anadolu Kavagi for almost three hours. A small
fishing hamlet in Asia with quite a few eateries near the jetty dishing out
exotic preparation of different varieties of fish. I had a delicious meal of
baked mackerel at one of the shops. There were some shops selling Evil Eyes (Nazar
Bosicugu) in various sizes and other typically Turkish handicrafts. They were
far cheaper than similar amulets available in Istanbul. A road leads to the ruins of a
fortress from the Byzantium era strategically
built atop a hillock and overlooking the confluence of Bosphorus strait and Black sea on the Anatolian side. Enroute there was a base
for the Turkish Defence Force. We returned back to Eminonu totally refreshed.
The weather had suddenly changed. It was cloudy and drizzling, and there was a
chilly wind. When we came out of the ferry station it was beginning to get dark
and the city had already started to shimmer. We sat in the tram station,
munching on roasted hazelnuts and enjoyed watching the Galata bridge, New
Mosque and traffic movement on rain soaked streets. On our way back we got down
near Sirkesi train station. The station was built in the mid-nineteenth century
to connect Istanbul to the rest of Europe. The station edifice reflects a mixture of
European and Oriental architecture. Once upon a time, the famous Orient Express
used to cover a distance of around 3500 km to Paris in three days. My favourite Belgian
armchair detective Hercule Poirot had taken this ‘crowded’ train from
‘Stamboul’ (Istanbul) on his way back to Paris in the famous
Agatha Christie book ‘Murder on the Orient Express’. Agatha Christie had
written this book in 1930s sitting in the Totkalian Hotel, located on the busy Istiklal Street.
She wrote this book after having travelled from Calais to ‘Stamboul’.
When we finally returned to Sultahnahmet circle we were awed
by the artistic illumination of the facades of Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia.
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| A night view of BLUE MOSQUE |
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| HAGIA SOPHIA in the night. Stands seen in the foreground were arranged for a car rally held on the next day. |
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Another view of Hagia Sophia
........ to continue
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Istanbul 1
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