From 56d58b54589cd9b2d7015208478d09339e4136dc Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Blaise Thompson Date: Sun, 25 Jul 2021 16:49:14 -0500 Subject: porcupine tills --- source/armenian-heritage-trip/istanbul/index.html | 533 ---------------------- 1 file changed, 533 deletions(-) delete mode 100644 source/armenian-heritage-trip/istanbul/index.html (limited to 'source/armenian-heritage-trip/istanbul/index.html') diff --git a/source/armenian-heritage-trip/istanbul/index.html b/source/armenian-heritage-trip/istanbul/index.html deleted file mode 100644 index 914ab56..0000000 --- a/source/armenian-heritage-trip/istanbul/index.html +++ /dev/null @@ -1,533 +0,0 @@ - - - - - - Istanbul - - - - -

Istanbul

- -Part of the Armenian heritage trip memory. - -

2019-09-18 Wednesday

- -

Nancy, James Jerusalem to Istanbul

- -

-The travelers flew from Telaviv to Istanbul and caught a cab. -The cab ride covered a distance of about 60 miles. -

- -

-It is good that the airport has many moving sidewalks because the place is HUGE. -It took the travelers a long time to get from the places where they debarked the plane to the place where they collected their luggage, went through security and found a cab. -

- -

- -

Istanbul Overview

- -

-Istanbul is a popular place to visit with a long and important history. -The travelers wanted to experience this place and gain some understanding of what life may have been like for Yesia when he lived there. -Yesia began working in Istanbul when he was 13 and lived there until he was 17 when he immigrated to the US (1900) due to Turkish fear of Armenian revolutionaries. -

- -

Basileus Hotel

- -

-The travelers arrived at Basileus Hotel, their home away from home in Istanbul. -

- -

- -

- -

Istanbul first reactions

- -

-There seem to be lots of dogs and cats roaming the streets. -It appeared that they were all fed and perhaps even vaccinated. -

- -

- -

-The travelers enjoyed turkish delight candy. -

- -

Turkish delight being sold at a local shop.

- -

-Hagia Sophia at sunset was a special sight. -

- -

-The travelers had dinner at 3 Partners Restaurant. -Both Jim and Nancy had an entire bowl (meant to be for dipping) of jajikh. -

- -

2019-09-19 Thursday

- -

breakfast

- -

-The travelers learned that Turkish breakfast is quite different from "continental style". -

- -

- -

Sultan's Palace

- -

-The travelers visited the Sultan's Palace. -

- -

- -

- -

- -

- -

Interesting wall detail at Sultan's Palace.

- -

Tile ceiling in one of the kiosks on the property.

- -

The Harem building on the sultan’s property.

- -

- -

- -

- -

- -

- -

Hrant Dink Foundation

- -

-After lunch the travelers undertook to find the offices of the Hrant Dink Organization located on the Asian side of Istanbul. -They had the address but had trouble finding it. -Finally they did find it with the help of Jim’s phone GPS and a hand drawn map by a tattoo artist who worked in a shop nearby. -Once there, they were given helpful information about visiting Istanbul, Kayseri and Erzindjan. -The staff were interested in the fact that the travelers were visiting Develi in an attempt to see where the property Yesia inherited may have been. -Evidently this organization is in the process of suing the Turkish government which claims that Armenians who left Turkey before the genocide as Turkish citizens should be entitled to reparations. -They do not intend to be part of this lawsuit, but wonder if Turkish documents about Yesia might have indicated if he was a Turkish citizen when he left in 1900. -

- -

-After spending the afternoon in this way, the travelers enjoyed a nice dinner before bed. -

- -

- -

2019-09-20 Friday

- -

Basilica Cistern

- -

-Jim and Nancy tour The Basilica Cistern- used by Romans to bring water via aquaducts to the city. -7000 slaves dug the hole (9 feet deep, 140 feet long and 70 feet wide) in 9 months. -

- -

Many columns, some reused from other places.

- -

The weeping column- dedicated to the many workers died in the process of constructing the place.

- -

Armenian district

- -

- -

- -

- -

Sweat shops are in the basements of various businesses.

- -

- -

Armenian Protestant Church interior. - Lit two candles for Azniv here.

- -

- -

Many, many shoe businesses, as there where when Yesia worked for his shoemaker uncle.

- -

Blaise travels Madison to Istanbul

- -

-Blaise left Madison mid-afternoon Wisconsin time, traveling to Istanbul to meet Nancy and Jim. -This involved a short flight Madison → Chicago, an ~11 hour flight Chicago → Istanbul, and a hour long bus ride to get downtown. -The most remarkable experience was the Turkish Airlines flight, which involved an unprecedented level of hospitality. -Every passenger was given two excellent meals, blanket, pillow, eye masks, slippers, headphones, and seemingly countless other little amenities. -It's easy to see how Turkish Airlines got its reputation. -

- -

-Turkish Airlines airplane that took Blaise from Chicago to Istanbul.
-
- -

-Dinner served to Blaise by Turkish Airlines: -

chicken breast, penne, zucchini, eggplant
fried eggplant and green pepper, tomato, white cheese
salad with prawn
lemonade with fresh mint

-
- -

-Breakfast served to Blaise by Turkish Airlines: -

fresh fruit salad
assorted cheese
salad with prawn
scrambled egg with cheese, mushrooms, potatoes, grilled tomato
fresh bread, butter, jam
coffee

- -

-Arriving in Istanbul (early evening Istanbul time), Blaise was greeted by Nancy and Jim at the bus stop. -Blaise was able to unpack before the three of them had a very nice meal at the restaurant across the street. -

- -

- -

Travelers enjoy dinner at a local restaraunt.

- -

2019-09-21 Saturday

- -

Morning Walk

- -

-Nancy and Blaise started the morning with a walk along the Sea of Marmara, near the hotel. -They saw divers with harpoons, fishermen, cats and dogs near the sea. -After walking along the water for roughly 30 minutes, they turned around and returned to the hotel through the city. -This included passing through the seafood restaurant area, several blocks worth of just seafood restaurants. -

- -

-View of the Marmara sea.
-
- -

-Seafood restaurant district. Early in the morning, so most restaurants are closed.
- -

Hagia Sophia

- -

-At 10:30 Nancy, Jim, and Blaise went on a guided tour of Hagia Sophia. -On the way, they explored the Hippodrome and saw the Alman Çeşmesi. -

- -

-Alman Çeşmesi, exterior.
-
- -

-Alman Çeşmesi, interior.
-
- -

-Hagia Sophia as seen from the Hippodrome.
-
- -

-Their guide was from Bulgaria, with a mother born in Erzincan. -There was a long line to enter into Hagia Sophia, but once inside it wasn't too crowded. -The entire building is under constant restoration, exterior and interior. -

- -

-Hagia Sophpia exterior, detail.
-
- -

-Outer corridor.
-
- -

-View of inner corridor, detail of main door only to be used by emperors.
-
- -

-Internal sanctuary of Hagia Sophia. -The top dome has 40 windows. -One of the triangular pendentives can be seen, a large architectural innovation to support heavy domes. -Much is under restoration.
-
- -

-Interior shot of Hagia Sophia, featuring stained glass windows. -The door-like structure is oriented towards Mecca for Muslim prayer. -The lamps were placed low to the ground so that they could be lit as candles.
-
- -

-Special stairway used by Muslim imans for delivering messages to congregation.
-
- -

-Interior of Hagia Sophia, featuring column detail and special lamp.
-
- -

-Interior of Hagia Sophia, focusing on angel artwork. -Muslims believe that all faces must be covered in worship areas. -The face of this angel was covered when Hagia Sophia became a mosque.
-
- -