Since we've returned to Istanbul, the time has really flown. Barb calculated that we walked about 8 miles today, and I believe it. Sometimes the hills seem to go on forever, but we all manage to keep up!
Today our focus was on minority communities in Istanbul and in the Ottoman Empire. Class time was followed by a walking/bus tour of Eyup (a conservative Muslim neighborhood), Chora Church (Byzantine Christian), and the neighborhoods of Fener (Greek) and Balat (Jewish). (To be perfectly honest, I don't know if we got to Fener. It was a long walk, and I lost track when the batteries in my headset died.)
We met up with our bus around lunchtime, took a long drive to the Taksim Square area, and walked some distance to Jash, an Armenian restaurant in Cihangir. I was familiar with some, but not all of the food. (More on that later.)
We got back to the hotel with just 15 minutes to spare before a presentation by an urban sociologist (Didem ?) about the Taksim Square protests. Very interesting, to say the least. Here's the link to a song about the protests: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xc8kwZMvciM. It's called the Sound of Pots and Pans because this is one way protesters called attention to their concerns. I'll say more about this later as well.
Today was the first day I heard anyone say "Insha'Allah," which means "god willing" or "hopefully." I expected to hear the phrase often, and today I heard it at least 4 times. It's a phrase I've heard at home, as one of my doctors is Muslim, and it's a phrase I find somehow reassuring. It takes into account (in my mind at least) the events in our lives that we cannot control.
Eyup - a conservative Muslim neighborhood tourists don't typically see. We were all dressed as conservatively as possible, especially the women.
More mosque vacuuming.
The women's entrance to the mosque.
Sacrificial sheep.
Chora Church -- Byzantine Christian. The batteries in my camera were running out, but I bought postcards...actually, I bought a book and the postcards were a "gift" from the proprietor.
Vertigo alert! We had the opportunity to climb a steep staircase with no railing of any kind to the top of a Byzantine era wall. No thanks!
Look at how the people coming down are using the wall for support.
The more cautious among us hung out under a mulberry tree near a pickup truck full of corn.
They made it to the top!
Leah being Leah x3.
The descent begins.
Scott makes his way down.
Katie, Peggy, Lawren, and Constance.
More intrepid NEH Scholars.
This photograph gives you an ideas of how high the wall is. Constance is not short.
On foot to Fener and Balat.
What is that?
Making friends with our best "Mehaba" or Hello!
Camouflage car cover. Impressive.
Iznik-style propane tanks.
Tiny graveyard...right off the sidewalk.
Taksim Square. We'll be back on Wednesday.
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan - the leader that many Turks would like to see gone. There will be elections next spring.
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