We made a trip to the grocery store to get picnic foods for our trip to the Belgrade Forest. The store was connected to a small mall. It reminded me of Walmart only not as large and with better food choices. Don’t get me wrong, it had its share of junk food but it also had an entire refrigerated section with just yogurts, large bins with various olives, an enormous cheese section, a huge selection of sausages, a section with local honey, a lot of dried fruits and nuts, and a nice pre-made and hot food section. I chose a delicious chicken salad and I’ve included the recipe though I’m not certain what the spice was.

Chicken Salad:
Shredded chicken
Shredded carrots
Sliced banana pepper
Sliced pickles
Diced tomatoes
Olive oil
Vinegar
Salt and pepper
Celery seeds or oregano?

Beer sold in its own cooler. What a great idea!

Note: we didn’t make it to the Belgrade Forest because of the horrible Istanbul traffic! 😦 Instead we lunched on the bus and shared our goodies.

This morning we visited a museum that was a complex of various buildings built in 1484 and founded by Sultan Bayezid II.

It was the Sultans job to provide justice, through security, and to provide for the less fortunate. When you build a mosque you build a complex for the poor, soup kitchen, mental hospital, regular hospital, medresseh (school), library, pharmacy, guesthouse, … This makes the public love you and it also creates cohesion among different people’s. It was a very multi-cultural empire and they worked hard to keep everyone happy.

The hospital was fascinating. They used music and water ( from the sound of fountains) therapy to help relax people, especially those with mental problems.They also had knowledge of medicines and performed surgery. This was a teaching hospital as well.

We started out with the oldest and moved to the newest one which is a mere 500 years old. Just like the cathedrals in Europe, they are meant to inspire awe and majesty! I took a zillion pictures and since I don’t want to overwhelm you I will post five to six of each, starting with the outside shot. I may get carried away with the last one though because it was tall, beautiful, graceful and looks like it belongs in a fairy tale. The mosques were: the Old Mosque ( yes, that really is the name), the Three Balconies Mosque, and finally, the Selimiye Mosque (built by the famous architect, Sinan).

Random pictures will be posted in between to divide them up.

Edirne was the second capital of the Ottoman Empire. it is also known as the “City of Liver.” When I heard this I thought Big Yuk! So I decided to “do as the Romans do” and give it a try. Lets just say, I will never make that mistake again! Don’t worry, I didn’t go hungry. The lentil soup, bread, and salads are always very good.

It is also the home of oil wrestling and camel wrestling. Decorated camels have their mouths tied shut, and they keep pushing each other. They are out if pushed out of the circle. Oil wrestling is suppose to be a big sport here. They wear leather pants and no shirt. Then their body is washed in olive oil to get them good and greasy. Strength and power are needed. They start out hitting and pushing the other person to make them tired. Then they grab their pants, pulling until they take them down, the person, not the pants, though it might be more interesting that way! This is all performed under the hot, scorching sun. Sounds like fun doesn’t it? (Sarcasm!)

Camel Wrestling on YouTube: http://m.youtube.com/watch?
v=Vvq5gDuclS8&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DVvq5gDuclS8

On the move again! As we crossed the Dardanelles Strait via ferry a mild breeze was blowing, the air was warm, the sun was shining, the water was sparkling, there was the smell of saltwater in the air. In other words, it was heaven!

On the ferry, a nice little lady was persistently selling her scarves and hand-knit slippers.

As we moved up the peninsula there were some great views of the Aegean sea. The Troia Agora gas station/shopping area along the road gets the tacky award. The prices were in American dollars, no barter here, and no bargain either.

So many missed opportunities. A million sunflower pictures but I keep missing the picture of the shepard along the highway with his sheep and goats. Finally took one but it isn’t very close. This will have to do Katie.

Sage, Rosemary and Lavender look like they’re on steroids here!

“It’s time to suspend Ataturk Bingo,” says Barbara, one of our Directors. Maybe you need to be here to understand this but as we enter the Gallipoli Park, our directors, who have been playing Ataturk bingo, had to stop because he is all over the place! He is pretty much all over the place everywhere in Turkey. The venerated Ataturk, is the founder of modern Turkey and the hero of the defeat of the British (Allies) by the so called, “Sick Man of Europe, ” Ottomans. There are 35 cemeteries on the Gallipoli peninsula. It is a sad place, so many wasted lives! We also saw some rebuilt trenches. I hope they were deeper than this.

A physical rendition of the battle shows how close the two sides were to each other once the British/Australians reached the top of the hill.

The park in Eceabat also had a nice statue of Ataturk and a war memorial. He was quoted as saying, “Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives…
You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours…You, the mothers, who sent their sons from faraway countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace, after having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well.” Ataturk, 1934

This quote is on the war memorial in the Gallipoli park, at Anzac Cove.

On the way to Gallipoli (Canakkale) we crossed from Asia to Europe and then back again. We are staying in a small seaside town called Canakkale. It is also famous for the ancient Greek city just down the road, Troy. The statue of the wooden horse is from the movie, Troy.
The ferry ride back and forth across the Dardanelles Strait was very smooth and fast. They were selling some very strange looking children’s toys on the ferry! Tonight we ate at a seafood restaurant on the waterfront, which is where our motel is. Man, this place is hopping after sunset! The name of the bar downstairs is the Hangover, pronounced, Han Goover! Right now the call to prayer is competing with the disco music from the Han Gooover! Very surreal!

Heading out to Canakkale . I’m going to miss the hotel Tiara Termal. It had an awesome thermal spring pool that was huge, completely tiled, and had a grotto atmosphere and lighting. I managed to swim both nights, getting needed exercise (sooooo needed after all the food) and relaxation. All of the accommodations have been fabulous!