Day 15: It’s Istanbul … not Constantinople…. How bazaar!

Sleep was deep and restful after such a big couple of days and today’s program was not any less packed. Our first stop to share Eucharist which eminence celebrated at the Church of St Peter and St Paul, a short but very steep walk from our hotel. This tiny catholic community numbers only about 30 parishioners and is run by a Franciscan. He spoke to us with the Cardinal translating from the Italian to lament the disintegration of the Catholic presence in Turkey with a massive decline in numbers overall from somewhere in the vicinity of 40000 to 4000 in the last 50 years. Mass was beautiful as was the church with its gilt icons and the enthusiasm of the parish priest in the face of such incredible adversity was quite inspirational. Mass over we headed off towards the  ferry wharf for a cruise on the Bosphorous. Some of us, self included, were feeling a little reluctant after our previous “cruise” experience, but this one was just fine. We cruised downstream to the meeting of the seas and then turned back around and sailed back towards Istanbul.

 I was struck by the diversity of architecture in the city, of the dominance of the landscape in the inner city by the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, not to mention Topkapi Palace, and the ostentatious private river transport that was docked along the waterfront. There are two large suspension bridges spanning the watercourse, and these bridges literally link 2 continents, as this is the join between Europe and Asia and I think that symbolically that says a good deal about the place that modern Turkey finds herself in... suspended in some ways between east and west.


I spent the outward trip on the upper deck but as the wind became unbearable it was easier to enjoy the return journey from the covered downstairs deck. While on the top level I took the liberty of trying Turkish Apple tea. Yum!

After the cruise we went to inspect the Basilica Cistern. On the way it was funny hearing some in the group asking about cisterns as if this were a toilet. The Basilica cistern is one of many underground water storage facilities that provided water for the city of Constantinople from roman times. Built sometime in the 500s CE it had evidence of recycled stone materials, as there was an interesting column from a pagan temple and two large pillar bases featuring the head of Medusa, one turned on its side and one upside down. It was a cool wet place, but an amazing indication of the architecture of the time and it rightly lives up to its name as Basilica cistern because with all the arches and columns it does look like a Roman basilica.

Topkapi Palace was our next stop after a quick Turkish kebab for lunch, followed up by some Turkish delight. Yum!! This was the home of the Ottoman sultans from the fall of Constantinople. It was a massive property with magnificent buildings and beautiful gardens. On display was a collection of jewelry including a huge diamond of about 80karat. The most intriguing place for me was the relics room. It was decked out in original Iznik blue tiles and contained bizarre dead bits of saints such as the arm of John the disciple. There was also some of the works of the prophet Mohammed and some old garments dating to the 15^th century. In the final room an Imam was chanting passages from the Qur’an. It was a very interesting experience.

And then the stop that many on the pilgrimage had been waiting for… the Grand Bazaar!!! Shopping!! Some in the group were very adventurous and bought leather jackets and beautiful jewelry, whereas I stayed safe with scarves and a coupe of trinkets. It was a lot of fun but quite overwhelming as the sellers tried all sorts of flattery to get you to buy their goods.





Dinner was at the hotel on the 10^th floor and this time we watched a beautiful Istanbul sunset and the twilight lights of the city reflected off the harbour. This was indeed a million dollar view. Unfortunately the special dinner that was prepared for us tonight featured 3 different kinds of fish, two with heads intact and the smell and the taste were overwhelmingly stomach turning. I am led to believe that it was a very special Turkish delicacy... struggling a bit, but the first course of broccoli soup and the company and hilarity on the table more than made up for the fish. And so another day on pilgrimage ends.