European Turkey: Edirne and Uzunköprü

Posted on January 29, 2024 by Bryan Keith

For years I’ve wanted to go to Edirne to see Mimar Sinan’s crowning achievement, the pinnacle of Ottoman architecture — Selimiye Camii. Ferda and I were already in İstanbul, and it looks so close on the map. However, with inconvenient bus stations in both in İstanbul and Edirne, it took us most of the day to travel between these two cities. (It didn’t help that we got a late start, hadn’t bought a ticket ahead of time, and the first two departures were full.)

IMG_20231009_175814 by bryandkeith on flickr

Additionally, oops! Yes, that’s Selimiye Mosque, one of Turkey’s few UNESCO sites, closed for a four-year restoration project. I’m sure I could have figured that out ahead of time with a little research.

There’s a small section inside that is still open to visitors, but you can’t see the courtyard or the huge domed prayer hall, both supposedly impressive. Approximately 1000 years after Hagia Sophia, the Ottomans finally made a higher dome!

Here’s what visitors can see during the restoration:

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İstanbul again: a new library, some old mosques, finally a Bosporus tour

Posted on January 19, 2024 by Bryan Keith

My cousin and his wife scheduled a layover of a few days in İstanbul on their way to visit family in Tbilisi. Ferda and I planned an itinerary for the four of us — some classic tourist sites and also stuff we had never seen before.

Ferda and I flew into Sabiha Gökçen and did a little sightseeing between the airport and our hotel in Haseki (aka Yusufpaşa?, not far from Aksaray). The highlight was this stained glass window at the Armenian Surp Takavor Church in Kadıköy.

IMG_20231005_122809 by bryandkeith on flickr

If I understood correctly, all the churches in that window are still standing in Turkey. Anyone know which ones they are?

The main chapel of the church was closed. We have to go back on a Sunday for a service.

Of course we got one of the classic İstanbul views from the ferry between Kadıköy and Eminönü:

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Bicycle touring Çorum İli: in the footsteps of the Hittites

Posted on January 9, 2024 by Bryan Keith

When I wrote about Tokat, I mentioned how different Tokat was from the mountainous Black Sea start of this tour. Well, the last week of this trip, in Çorum, was also very different — no steep, green Black Sea mountains like in Samsun and Ordu and no more Ottoman monuments like in Tokat and Amasya. Here it was (almost) all about the Hittites.

Crossing into Çorum province (il), I was actually on a big enough road that there was a sign marking the border. I had seen one back in Ordu as well.

IMG_20230908_101321 by bryandkeith on flickr

The first Hittite site was Şapinuva. The weather was perfect — almost too hot in the sun and almost too cold in the shade. Sitting on the bench under the big tree in the left center of this photo (below) was magical — the clouds, the views, the eagles, the breeze, the (imagined) Hittites.

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Bicycle touring Amasya İli

Posted on December 30, 2023 by Bryan Keith

From Turhal to Amasya one could take a fairly flat road following the Yeşilırmak. I opted for a couple climbs, totally about 1100m, via Ardıçlar, Sarıyar, and Yassıçal. The forecast that day was for 35°C down low (at 400m), but it was pleasant at 1000m where I spent the night near Sarıyar.

IMG_20230905_104109 by bryandkeith on flickr
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Bicycle touring Tokat İli: Niksar to Turhal via Artova

Posted on December 20, 2023 by Bryan Keith

Wow, what a difference from the start of this tour. Compared to the ride from Çarşamba to Niksar, my days spent in Tokat Province (il) were practically flat. Not completely flat, of course — there was a 1000m climb leaving Pazar, e.g. — but it sure felt flat after the Black Sea mountains. Another difference was that I saw quite a few cem evi, Alevi worship places (as opposed to mosques). That means, of course, that I went through quite a few Alevi villages. I also visited two historic complexes that were called zaviye, a word that seemed unfamiliar to me. What’s a zaviye, you’re wondering? It’s a Sufi (dervish/Bektaşi/Alevi) religious/cultural complex. Sunnis would use the word külliye.

It’s interesting that here we are in Turkey’s heartland, in the relatively small part of Turkey devoid of foreign influence under the Treaty of Sèvres. And yet, it’s full of Alevis, another of Turkey’s (at times persecuted: remember Sivas) minority groups.

There’s a fast narrow highway connecting Niksar to Tokat. Luckily I was mostly able to avoid it, usually without much more climbing than the highway.

IMG_20230901_081340 by bryandkeith on flickr
Kelkit Çayı
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