A day on the Bosphorous

Saturday, May 23.

Today is our Bosphorus ‘cruise’. We make an early start as we are told that it can again get crowded at the boarding gates. Lonely Planet recommends to be close to the gate to get the best places on the ferry. Thus, we are VERY early at 9am for a 10.30am departure. It is not too much of an effort as L finds a seat near the wharf in a sunny position while I do short exploratory sorties. We have our tickets and can relax now. We did not realize that we could use our Istanbul museum cards for a discount. I forgot mine back home. For the saving on Lois’s fare, I hire an audio guide. They ask me either for a 100tl deposit of something like a passport as security. I do not have enough cash on me so I leave them my Latvian passport. No trouble.

The crowd is gathering.

We are impressed by the setup and management of the trams.

Boats can only go under one section of Galata Bridge in the centre. Traffic is regulated by lights.

She is selling the staple breakfast for numerous locals.

Both ends of the bridge are always a bustle of activity.

The Bosphorous must surely be one of the busiest waterways in the world.  Some of the giant cruise boats are ugly.

The ferry takes about 3 hours with numerous local stops. We go what is considered to be all the way from where we can see the Black Sea. There is another suspension bridge being built.

 The day is fine – not blue skies but bright enough for a very picturesque sail. There is no one place in the world that is like another. However, we cannot help feeling that most of the scenery along the way is like one almost endless Sydney Harbour. Of course relatively few of Istanbul’s 14+ million folk can afford to be nearby here. From the ferry we can see clusters of high rise contemporary buildings on the horizon, no doubt a newer era CBD or multiple centres for a city this widely dispersed. We also have the impression that most of the more common locals live in medium density buildings which we can see from the water.

An eclectic array of villas. The water is indeed as colourful as this.

There is always a fortification or two along this stretch.

It is a beautiful and leisurely trip on a very sizeable boat which is only lightly loaded. We need not have hurried because there is a good choice of seats almost in any section. However, the audio guide is not worth the money. It could be that we don’t know quite how to use it correctly but it is certainly not user friendly. We try to share it with one earpiece each but soon we give it away. Never mind. You have to give it a try.

Our lunch destination.

At the end of the run there is about a two hour stop. It is a pretty small fishing village, quite well removed from the rest of the urbanization, tucked in around the corner from just where the Black Sea starts. Not that we mind or have a choice but it is a bonanza for the local restaurants. You cannot get very far if you want food. And of course, they are all promoting fish. We find a place a bit on the edge of the bustle where we can have a waterside table. Very nice!

We choose some unknown species of grilled fish, very well cooked, with a colourful fresh salad. It is indeed most enjoyable. It is then a short exploratory stroll through this otherwise lazy village, except for when the visitors arrive.

There are already three extremely long span suspension bridges. They are impressive to go under.

The trip back is a little shorter with fewer stops but no less enjoyable. We are back in plenty of daylight and well rested to give the Spice Bazaar a go, especially that it is not far away from where we need to catch the tram. Let’s go.

As we wind our way in what we think is the right direction and past a busy mosque (the New Mosque, I think but built some 500 years ago!), out of the blue it hits me that the audio guide is in Lois’s handbag and my Latvian passport is with someone on the ferry wharf! Suddenly I feel quite sick. No need to panic as the ferry office would still be open but even so, I don’t want to waste a second getting my prized EU ID back. Lois takes a seat by the front of the mosque, overlooking its square while I dash back, dodging and weaving through the late afternoon amblers, mosque crowds and ferry passengers. Phew! The man behind the counter recognizes me. Perhaps he reads my concerned face. He certainly realizes I have been running. I would not be the first one not to return the device. Before I am even at the counter, he confidently reaches for my passport in its little pigeonhole. There cannot be too many Latvian passports there today. To say I am relieved having it back is the understatement of the day. I must not do that kind of trick again – must think clearly.

I find L back at the mosque, enjoying the buzz of the busy thoroughfare. It is quite a lively space. After drawing some steady and deep breaths, we are ready to ‘do’ the Spice Bazaar. It is as colourful as one might expect but also as crowded and crushing as we did not want to find it. We cannot give it away entirely in a few minutes but it is certainly not conducive to browsing and even less shopping. Especially as we would not be allowed anything back into Australia is a good enough excuse not to linger longer here. As there is still plenty of daylight to burn, we might as well amble back across the bridge.

Back at our Galata lodgings, we are greeted by Yalcin who introduces us to his girlfriend. She speaks good US English and for a moment we think she is a foreigner here. However, she assures she is Turkish but had spent a good while living in the States. She is nice.

On we go to the long pedestrian street for another shared giant stuffed potato dinner. As good the second time as the first.

And there is still a lot of life around Galata Tower.

Another memorable day in Istanbul.