HILLTOP TEA PARTY

"Our moments of inspiration are not lost though we have no particular poem to show for them; for those experiences have left an indelible impression, and we are ever and anon reminded of them."

Henry David Thoreau

Sunday, November 24th
Iznik, Turkey

Such great friends!
This is one of the rare photographs from our trip that Kaan did not take!  He made us realize that we are going to have to invest in a real camera if we plan on taking these incredible trips!!!  

This was a gorgeous day in a beautiful historic town.   Iznik has been famous for creating gorgeous ceramic tiles for over 1000 years.  In fact,  we found Iznik tiles gracing the walls of 14^th century mosques and Turkish bath houses in Istanbul a little later in the week.  The leisurely trip to Iznik was a welcome change from our previous nights trip from Istanbul.  The country was charming and almost entirely lined with wispy olive trees.  All along the road we watched mostly women harvest the olives; heads covered, fingers gleaning, scaling ladders, shaking trees to catch the olives on strategically situated nets on the ground.  Later in the day we would watch them all head home, tucked in tight in the backs of trucks, holding their head coverings tight against the wind.

 Iznik still has its original stone and brick city walls around sections of its boundaries.  I was struck by the unfettered access to ramble around the ancient remains of the city.  In the states, we give every rock over 100 years old its own plaque and security guard.  We have immense pride and respect for our relatively little history.  In Turkey, however, the vast majority of its historical structures from the Byzantine and Ottoman empires are left to fend for themselves.  There is more history than they could ever begin to protect.   I love the history of things, so it was a conflicting experience to have that much access.  Even so,  I walked into its tiny rooms and quiet crevices and laid my hands and mind on every stone.   If you want to read more about this fine town, click HERE.  

Classic Iznik Pottery and Tile

The Tomb of Abdülvahap Sancaktari 

Perched high on a hillside,  the mosque and tomb of Abdülvahap Sancaktari overlooks the beauty of Iznik’s ancient walls and olive farms.   Yeliz’s mother had packed us a gorgeous lunch of stuffed grape leaves and Baklava and, as customary in this great place, it wasn’t long before someone emerged from the woodwork and offered us tea.

The tomb of Abdülvahap is a popular place to come for prayer.  It felt like such a gift to share that day with our friends.   Praying to God as we all understand Him.  Sharing a meal made by the most loving of hands.  The crack of the Turkish flag over our heads.  Overlooking centuries of landscape and stories.  I won’t forget that moment.  It is one of those moments you wish you could tuck into your pocket, so that you can pull it out when things don’t make sense.


 Do you have a moment like that?

This little guy crashed our tea party and we couldn't help but let him join us!

STOOPS VERSUS PORCHES

"Nowadays the host does not admit you to his hearth, but has got the mason to build one for yourself somewhere in his alley, and hospitality is the art of keeping you at the greatest distance."

-Henry David Thoreau

Saturday, November 23rd

  

Our great adventure started out the way that all great adventures begin….with a really long ride.

10 hour drive to Washington DC.  

10 hour flight to Istanbul.  

1 hour drive through Istanbul traffic.  

1 hour Ferry Ride.  

And finally…a 1 hour drive to our sweet destination,  Orhangazi, a beautiful rural district of  Bursa.   

Did I mention that I could not sleep on the plane?  There was just something about having restroom aisle seats that kept pulling me back to consciousness.  

It could have been a grueling trip. I have to tell you, though, that good friends can make even the longest trip a sweet thing.  Besides the fact that we had the company of wonderful friends on a direct flight to Istanbul, I can tell you two very specific things from our travel that I will always be grateful for.

• First, I did not retch on the ferry boat.

• Secondly, our car did NOT fall into the cavernous pit that a construction company had recently and ever so precisely placed along the path to Yeliz's home.  It had been a long day.  That would NOT have been the ideal way to wrap it up!

The beautiful home of our hosts,  Mustafa and Fatma Bagdat

We had finally arrived.  And what a relief it was to be welcomed into that home!  Kaan's very good friend, Can (pronounced John for my American friends!),  had graciously picked us up from the airport, and had safely deposited us into the welcoming arms of Yeliz's parents, Mustafa and Fatma Bagdat.  I was blown away by the lavish feast waiting for us!  Stuffed grape leaves, olives gathered from the trees in the yard, fresh salad and homemade yogurt.  And so much more!  It was at dinner that first night that I was introduced to my favorite Turkish staple...Tea.  Hot tea in charming tiny glasses served on ornate silver platters.  All day long.  Every day.  Everywhere.  I quickly learned that if you are breathing, someone is serving tea to someone within arms length of you.  And I am pretty certain that even if you are NOT breathing, they are still serving tea to someone within arms length of you.  

The unbelievable breakfast prepared for us by Mustafa and Fatma Bagdat each morning.

Mustafa peeling freshly collected chestnuts for us.

Sweet, beautiful Fatma

Our long travel had finally come to a sweet conclusion.    Our kind hosts could not speak English, and sadly, we could not speak Turkish, so after many smiley head nods and hand gestures, we were thoughtfully ushered into the living room to sleep.  It was at this point that I became aware of the second common thread in Turkey...

Living Rooms by day transform into bedrooms at night.  Interestingly, in every Turkish home we visited (and I count six homes that kindly welcomed us in for tea), we realized that the rooms were all set up in a similar way.  In one house in particular, I counted nine couches that could be transformed into nine beds in three separate living areas. Homes are structured for the sole purpose of inviting people in.  They are the meeting places that our spacious front porches used to be. In Turkey, personal space holds a back burner to making your home a welcome place for friends and family to hold court.  I like that.  That is one of my favorite lessons from our time there.  

We live in a country where our personal space is held in such high regard.  Our porches are now merely stoops.  Barely big enough to open the door and welcome someone inside.  Our doors and windows are closed, curtains drawn tight.  When we play…it is always in the backyard.  

Really, it is no surprise that we are all tucked neatly inside, texting our friends and liking their comments on Facebook.  What would it look like if we all opened our doors and sat on the front porch in case a friend or neighbor walked by?  Maybe we would actually get out and walk around our neighborhood if we thought we would pass more than just closed doors.  

What if we gave up some of our hard earned personal space to make room for the rest of the world?