Big news here earlier today - I will leave it to you to read about it on BBC. We knew there was to be a pro government rally in Kadikoy at 7:30 pm, near where we catch the Metro after getting off the ferry on the Asia side. Due to that, we thought we would take a boat to another port on the Asian side called Uskadar and taksi (cab) from there. As we approached that ferry, at about 8:45 pm, we saw red flags waving and saw masses on the ferry and in the station - chanting, wild masses - a wave of red. It was the first time we have really thought, "uh oh."
We considered hopping in a cab, but to cross to Asia on a good day takes a very long time by cab, and this was definitely not a good day. The traffic was basically at a stand still. So we made our way to the Kadikoy ferry, just as one was pulling away. The young wild chanting crowd was pushing in there as well. The poor ferry transit official was screaming at people as they pushed through without paying. It was tense, and I thought the ferry might shut down. We pushed through, and prayed for a ferry. My plan B was to proceed to the nearest hotel and lock down.
We got on the ferry, not knowing what we would find on the other side in Kadikoy. We sat on the outside of the main cabin, and were surrounded by young people waving flags, chanting on and off.
When we got off in Kadikoy it was crowded but we felt safe. The crowds were a few streets inland, and we stayed by the shore and made our way to the Metro. As we sped away, a 20 minute ride to our hotel further inland in Asia, we felt more relief with each stop.
And that is about as much excitement as I hope to experience in Istanbul.
Today we celebrated Father's Day by going to Topkapi Palace, Topkapi Harem, the Archeological Museum of Istanbul and into the Blue Mosque. We could have spent a day each in the palace and the museum, but we did a good job of seeing the main sights. It was all magnificent. And hot. I had forgotten my hat and so I spent a good amount of the time outside "covered" by the scarf I had brought to wear in the mosque. Not for religious reasons but to keep the burning sun off. Sweltering hot in a sea of people.
The internet here at the hotel is so sketchy, so I will just post one photo of the interior of the Blue Mosque. I took over 400 photos today... no idea when I will get caught up with this blog... little by little. Tomorrow I will likely head out to sea and to the Prince's Islands again, or else the all day Bosporus Cruise. I need cool sea air and down time. Putting a little distance between me and the protests sounds like a good idea. Gule gule for now. -g
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