Europe 2015

Istanbul..Bite 1 I don't count my first day's outing, which was just to Taksim square on the Metro, and a walk down Istiklal Street ( one of the main shopping streets off Taksim) Taksim was just a big empty square with a park/gardens in the middle, and nothing really special, and shops are just shops. No, my first bite of the elephant that is Istanbul was a 3 section trip to the Sultanahmet area, where the palaces and great ancient churches and mosques that Istanbul is famous for are located. When I say 3 section trip I mean that I had to buy a ticket for the metro to Taksim, then a ticket for the funicular railway to Karabas, then a ticket for a longish ride on a modern tram to Sultanahmet. There and back cost me the princely sum of NZ$5. I had spent the morning doing laundry so I didn't leave till midday, and as I was passing one of a dozen eateries on the road to the metro I spotted a small crowd lining up outside one place. That looks promising I thought, so I joined the line, grabbed a tray, and pointed at what I thought looked good. At the till it came to $9. The warm broccoli soup was yummy, and the chicken and chips was tasty too. What I thought was a curry (because it was lumpy and green) turned out to be a vegetable dish. I don't know what it was, the green things were soft and melted in the mouth ( possibly cooked green tomatoes). Greens are good for you so I polished them off and the waitress brought me a complementary glass of tea ( I hope that it wasn't a reward for her winning a bet with the manager that I would eat the strange food). At Sultanahmet there in front of you are two of the wonders of Istanbul: The Blue Mosque, and the Hagia Sophia Museum/Mosque/ Cathedral..I decided to try the Blue Mosque first, We visitors had a twenty minute wait, until the 1pm prayer meeting had finished and so a couple of hundred of us looked around the courtyard and then joined a queue to be processed for entry to the mosque. Every female was supplied with two colourful pieces of cloth. One to wear over the head and shoulders, and a longer one to wear around the shoulders or waist to cover the body and legs. The men could not wear shorts and had to use a cloth around the waist. Then everyone's bag was scanned and finally you had to grab a plastic bag from a roll ( to put your shoes in and carry). Finally we walked through the door into a cool and peaceful space with luxurious thick carpeting lining the whole area. The visitor area was cordoned off from where the muslims gathered to prostrate themselves before Allah and say prayers, and even though the prayer time had finished one or two were still to be seen over on the far side. Then you remembered to look up, and omg it was a stunningly beautiful sight. Every where you looked were tiled patterns of all colours ( though mainly blue) It was a wonderful experience that went on and on, but after a while you had to stop looking up because your neck ached. Then after another while it all became too much (pattern overload) and it was either sink down to the carpet and close your eyes, or walk out into the real world of trees and grass and sky to get grounded and centred again. I am unfamiliar with the beliefs and practices of worshipping Allah, so the building didn't resonate with me other than with it's 500 year old beauty. But just that alone was enough to make it one of the most incredible buildings I have seen in my travels...

I choose 3 plates of food- cost $9.00

Free glass of Turkish tea

First sighting of Blue Mosque

Beautiful old tree at the gateway

Entering the grounds of the Blue Mosque

well tended gardens everywhere around mosque

Inside courtyard waiting for prayers to end

taking in the amazing sights

walking around portico to see every angle

It is a 30 degree day

after processing waiting to enter visitor area

carpet everywhere grabs your eye first

and then you look up

and up

and up

and spin around

and around

and around

until your neck aches

but you can't stop looking

and gawping

at the glory of it all

then you need to leave and return to real world

where they do siesta

Or bathe in a 500 year old Hamam (bathhouse)

or munch on $1 roasted corn or chestnuts

goodbye blue mosque

Yesterday was Friday and I went to a couple of places. The first was the Library of Hadrian, which is a ruin and not really anything to write home about. The next place I visited was the rebuilt Stoa of Attalos which is a very long and columned , two story porticoed building in the ancient Agora ( the old forum and marketplace of Athens). It holds a museum with a good number of statues and treasures found on the site dated from 600BC onwards. I had a bit of a shock while looking around the museum when I saw a 2500 year old pottery item that was used to potty train young children ( there was even a photo/drawing of a child sitting on the potty). Further into the museum I saw casserole dishes on braziers and cooking implements like a barbecue and a pizza oven. This amazed me and began a train of thought that has continued until today Saturday when I visited the very large National Archaeological Museum and found other items from 1000s of years ago that were so like modern goods. To finish my day on the Agora I walked up a slight hill to the Temple of Hephaestus and on my way back down struggling with aching legs and a bit of heatstroke I sat under a tree for a few minutes and took stock of where I was and what was laid out infront of me. I had to remind myself that I was in Athens Greece and was sitting in the shade on a beautiful summers day with a view that included the Acropolis and the Parthenon in the distance. I was in a place that many only dream of, and a few aches and pains and a thirst that could be dealt with were a small price to pay for being in such a privileged position. That was just what I needed to hear to make me open my eyes again and appreciate what was going on around me. I will remember those thoughts if I find myself wallowing again. Back to the amazing Archaeological Museum, and today. It didn't take me long to start seeing things in the display cabinets that could be in anyone's homes in the present. There were things like colanders, safety pins, frying pans, and coffee cups that were being made 5000 years ago in the bronze and iron age civilisations. This whole idea was really difficult to get my head around. The shapes and forms that people found pleasing 5000 years ago in many cases, have stood the test of time and are still aesthetically pleasing and useful today. I remember John Lennon saying that there is nothing you can do that hasn't been already done, and today has just confirmed those words for me. 5000 years may seem a very long time, but in the affairs of the human spirit it is but a heartbeat ago...

Reproduced Stoa of Attalos (covered walkway)

Shops along the back wall of the Stoa

Shady on a hot day

They had a thing for curly hair

400BC Potty Trainer for children !!!

Casserole & Brazier 600BC

Barbeque and Pizza Oven 500BC

Statuette of a Satyr holding a goat

Theatre Masks 400BC and figurines

400BC Child's head jugs...cute sells

Intricately carved capitol (top) of a column

Temple of Hephaestus from Stoa

Temple of Hephaestus (god of fire)

I sat under a tree & looked at the view

The National Archaeological Museum

another YMCA pot

Horny satyr and shy nymph

2500 BC Child & dog - cute sells

2500 BC and so does cheeky (but why squash a duck)

a selection of 5000 year old frying pans

a 3000year old well used comb & bald guy

some things will never catch on, like this

and this

and this

maybe useful, but for what?

I used to have a whistling kettle that shape

5000 year old colander

some of these have stood the test of time

can't beat a bit of jewelry

especially if it's gold

and more jewelry

I thought the safety pin was 20th century

Someone could have patented this 5000 years ago

more frying pans

now either a stupid cup or a funnel

that's just beautiful

and so is that

and that

that one is a 6000 year old keeper

I'm sure I used one of these in hospital

goats head cup-drink and be horny

drink and become an ass?

The one on the right is rocking that flute

2000 BC Aphrodite

I told the hedgehog not to move

Might be in this position for a number of reasons

I once looked like that

4000BC old macdonald had a farm

E-I-E-I-O

and on his farm he had some goats..

This is Sparta ( or Zeus )

warrior gravestone

another warrior headstone

Shaking hands means saying goodbye

goodbye

where does it hurt

you don't look too good...say ahh

he wouldn't bite anyone

1600 BC painted wall of boys boxing

1600 BC painted wall of young fawn

just beautiful

200BC Bronze sculpture

Was found in pieces and reasembled

I set off early (about 8am) to make the short climb to the summit of the Acropolis before it got too hot, and before the bus loads of people off cruise ships arrived to fill up the site. I got to the entry at 8.45 and was pleased to see it was already open. With a hat on my head and a bottle of water in hand I began the uphill trudge to get to the first pausing point. This was a partially reconstructed Theatre of Dionysus (Greek god of both wine and the stage) which was first built on the site in the 4th century BC. The old stone seating is impressive, and I have included a photo of the theatre site as seen from the top of the Acropolis. There were probably another four or five steepish slopes or sets of steps to climb before reaching the impressive gateway to the Acropolis, which is in the middle of extensive strengthening and restoration. Having passed through the gateway the extent of the site lies before you and it is clear that there are going to be many years yet of reconstruction before the site can be cleared of cranes and scaffolding. The largest and most amazing building has got to be the Parthenon. The scale of the buildings is gigantic, with pillars so high and massive, that it overwhelms you when you get close to them. It is easy to see why it has been called one of the treasures of the ancient world. The rest of the site has several projects taking place and a smaller but more complete Erechtheum Temple which has its porch balcony held up by replacement caryatids ( the originals have been transferred to the Museum). The views of the city from one of the highest places in Athens are truly beautiful and spectacular and worth the climb to get there. It was good as I was leaving to see the queues of hundreds of people starting to form and I was glad I got there early enough. Once I had got back to the metro station I decided to check out a site called the Temple of Zeus, and so I made a short trip to the area it was in and got lost. Luck has it that I got lost in front of the tomb of the unknown soldier and found myself there in time to see the changing of the guard ceremony. A couple of hundred people were pushing and shoving to get a good view of this so my photos barely capture what went on, but it gives a taste of what was involved. After that little bit of excitement I did manage to find the Temple of Zeus, but after seeing the Parthenon it was so underwhelming that I didn't bother to include photos. All that was there was a total ruin with a few pillars sticking up in the air. I'm going to check out the ancient Agora site tomorrow then I think I will be totally over classical Greek architecture......

Theatre of Dyonysus seating plan

Looking down to Museum and Theatre of Dionysus

A fairly steep ascent, but doable slowly

Stopped for a breather

approaching the entrance

The gateway being reconstructed

On top of Acropolis

Erechtheum Temple

Other side of Erechtheum Temple

copied caryatids holding up roof

view of Athens

view across Athens from Acropolis

The Parthenon north side

Parthenon south side

west side

another view of Athens

leaving through gateway

on the way out

as I was leaving, cruise ship 1000's arrived

high above the city

In front of Parliament and tomb of unknown soldier

relieving guards arrive for inspection

same

relieving guards

relieving guards

relieving guards approach tomb

two sets of guards meet at the tomb

departing guards

same

Yesterday I visited two Museums in Athens. I was really excited about visiting the Acropolis Museum because it rates as the #1 attraction on Tripadvisor. It is a new modern building and all of the statues and treasures that were left in the ruined buildings on the rock called the Acropolis were moved here. The first two floors are full of damaged but beautiful remnants from the Parthenon and other Temples from the site. There are a dozen guards on these two floors that will not tolerate any photo taking, so the only views I could take of these floors were from balconies above. They have however done a wonderful job of recreating how the Parthenon would have looked when it was first built in 440BC as a Temple to the Goddess Athena. The floor is built to the same dimensions as the temple and friezes that ran round the upper part of the temple have been reconstructed at a level that is easy to see and appreciate. This was done in part to try to convince the British Museum to return the portions of the frieze called "The Elgin Marbles" which were taken from the site by Lord Elgin and sold to the British Museum in the 19th century. There are spaces in the frieze where these should be, and gaps where pieces have been destroyed over the centuries. The Museum showed a couple of films which made one aware of how glorious the Parthanon was for several centuries, and how even today in it's ruined state it typifies an era when Greek culture was at it's height. Today I visited the site itself and am glad that I saw the Museum first. Anyway it was too hot when I left the museum at 2pm to make the climb up to the top of the Acropolis, so I thought I would try to find the ancient cemetery area, which was supposed to have a nice little airconditioned museum to look around. I almost gave up trying to find it, but got there in the end. I'm glad that I persevered because it was an amazing place, full of lovely things they had excavated from graves in the area. Mainly graves or burial plots that were used over the 1000 years before the birth of Christ. This area was used as a burial ground up to 3000 years BC by people of the iron age, and the numbers are staggering. The first item I saw was a little child's toy horse on wheels, and I thought I was seeing things when the label on it said 900 years BC. The small items in the cabinets were fascinating but the really beautiful items were in the courtyard and passages off it. Starting with a bull, which was so real you could hear it breath, then the life size statues of what were once living people were so beautiful and real it felt humbling to be in their presence. The little Museum really outshone the big un. Back in the real world of sun and sky outside the Museum, it didn't take long for the heat to get to me, so I tried to find my way back to the metro station, home and a well earned cup of tea and a lie down in my room. It was possibly 30 degrees but felt a lot warmer out of the shade...

big new Acropolis Museum

entry to Acropolis Museum

Only photo I got on first 2 floors before told NO

totally lifelike and 2200 years old

frieze from around top of Parthanon

section of frieze

another frieze from fight between men and centaurs

model of gable end statue grouping

actual piece from that grouping

and others

second floor where best statues are

model showing caryatids supporting roof

only view I could photo of actual caryatids

one for the nature lovers

cheeky little Greek church

Can't find the entrance to the ancient Cemetery

got into it eventually

burials along 20km of sacred road for 3000 years

Church attached to cemetery

one of many burial markers in cemetery

The 600 BC centrepiece of a burial plot

lifesize burial statue 400 BC

800 BC lifesize burial statue

500 BC Mother and child tombstone

400 BC servant and Mistress burial statues

Lifesize and so lifelike

500BC Pottery

same

Mourners, I don't think it was YMCA song

3000 year old face

This may have been part of the YMCA set.

3000 year old spoon

600 BC child's toy for the afterlife

The weird and the wonderful

I still haven't seen a unicorn version

Sorry the head broke off

800 BC chooks

Maybe horses looked like that in 800BC

this one looks more horsey

900 BC child's toy horse

900 BC gold jewellery and pretty box

After a really good sleep I did what I normally do and wasted the morning waking up slowly. When I was fed and showered I headed out on a beautiful morning to tentatively find my bearings in Athens. I managed to work the ticket machine, even though it was in Greek, at the nearest metro station and took a 10 minute two stop trip to Monasteraki, which is one of the central places in Athens. It is from here that most people begin their climb up the hill to reach the major attractions of the Acropolis and the Parthanon. Today I just wanted to familiarise myself with the area and see what it felt like to just wander around aimlessly. The first thing I noticed was the church of the Pantanassa which is across from the Metro station, and is a lovely bit of 10th century architecture. It is all that is left of a large monastery on the site, and I thought I was good to pop inside and take a few photos. As soon as I got to the door though I had a hand shoved in front of my camera and a little guy yelling NO PHOTOS at me. "No worries mate" was my reply as I backed out of the door before he called the cops with guns. Walking down the so called fleamarket lanes past ancient ruins on one side and a busy main street on the other was a buzz. So many things to see and wonder about. The street could be anywhere in the world, but every so often you would get a reminder that you were walking in the shadows of the capital city of ancient Greece, the cradle of European civilisation, and that's where the main buzz came from. It was the 'I can't believe I am really seeing these things" feeling. It was a hot day and after a couple of hours of wandering around my legs were feeling the strain, so I headed back to my lodgings to have some late lunch and plan what I was going to do in the next couple of days. The first couple of photos show what I consider to be street art I passed on the way to the local metro station. It is lovely compared the massive explosion of just downright ugly graffiti that deface half of the buildings in this and many other European cities I have passed through....

Nice bit of street art just around the corner

and next to it is this

which leads to this

The 10th cent. monastery church in Monasteraki

A quick photo from the door before I was told NO..

The Stoa of Attalos, a reconstructed ruin..

Start of bazaar

a hundred or more shops

shop on side street that only sold birds and cages

ruins of Hadrian's library looking up to Acropolis

zoom view of Acropolis from Monasteraki

by the cafe an ancient site being uncovered

lots of careful digging in the 28 degree sun