Canukkale- Gallipole - Dardanelles - Istanbul

Wow.  Today is our last day.   I have to admit, I am looking forward to ridding myself of the clothing in my suitcase… the novelty has worn off most of what’s in there and I can’t wait to find some fresh ‘looks’. 

This morning we depart by ferryboat across the Dardanelles for the penninusla of Gallipoli and visit Anzac Cove, named after the acronym from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) in World War I.  I had no idea how pivotal this was to the Turks and to WWI.  The Dardanelles offers access to the Black Sea and to Russia as well as offering potential for new fronts to be established.  We stop for a while to walk Anzac Cove and the air is thick with sadness and  remembrance of the lives of the young men lost... the truth is that many of them were boys, the youngest of which was 17.  Sobering to say the least.

Some local ladies in transit by ferry

Off the bow of the ferry

The European continent (still Turkey though)

Commemorative Plaque

A good view of the site

So young

Taking in nets close to shore

A message from MK Ataturk

  We continue to the Lone Pine Cemetery, which is another location of one of the five memorials on the Gallipoli Peninsula commemorating servicemen killed in the campaign from the former British Empire with no known grave.  The Turkish Government takes great care with this site and pays homage to all the soldiers, regardless of country of affiliation. 

Lone Pine

A Turkish Memorial

The bus now angles east along the north coast of the Marmaris Sea and we are on the final leg of our trip.  E-mails are being exchanged with there is a quietness on the bus as people reflect on the rich experience we have all shared over the last 11 days.  

• We have learned much about the history of this place and how it served as a crossroads for so many points in history, from Troy around 1200BC to Mustafa Kamel Ataturk in the 1920’s and even now with the current events of Syria.
• We learned in a personal way, so much more about the religion of Islam, standing independently of it’s political affiliations and the role it plays for everyday Muslims in their devotion to a faith that espouses peace and generosity to those with whom they share the planet. 
• We learned about the delicious food that serves not only as good nutrition but as a vehicle for socializing and a demonstration of the wealth of the earth through time. 
• We learned about the people of Turkey who demonstrated generosity with a consistent and fervent passion for their country and heritage. 

 Thank you to our tour guide Recep who exhibited patience and grace with the many questions and circumstances that he faced continually.  He shared his knowledge, his humor and his sincere passion for his country. 

Thank you to Haydar, our bus driver who manipulated a 40 passenger Mercedes Benz tour bus like it was a 2-seater jeep.  He negotiated hairpin corners on mountain roads, gridlocked parking lots, ensnared city traffic, hotel entrances, highway construction and broken air conditioning.  Not once did I glance at this man and without receiving a gentle smile in return.

Thank you to Zefir, the assistant bus driver, who was silently yet consistently ensuring that we kept hydrated with cool bottled water at the ready, keeping the bus utterly spotless inside and out.  He was always there to offering a helping hand on and off the bus and made sure that everyone was on board before signaling to Haydar that we were ready to pull out.   At times he had to backtrack into crowded spaces to gently prompt straglers to re-board the bus so we wouldn’t miss a thing.   Despite the language barrier, he was playful and endearing. 

Thank you to our travel mates from so many countries ... proof that learning and sharing creates understanding, understanding creates compassion and compassion creates peace.  

We enter the west side of the huge city of Istanbul and it isn’t until we spot the walls of the old city that we get our bearings and then notice the Blue Mosque and the Bosporus.  In the last few miles Recep shared some of the Turkish literature that he likes, one of which is a poem that he was set to music.  It is a romantic capstone of our trip.  Here is a link that is a lovely rendition of what he shared and it shows many scenes of the city we experienced.  I suggest you play in full screen (if you get a pop-up advertisement, you should be able to close without interfering in the video).

http://youtu.be/q9IYIvH4qTw

I hope you have enjoyed sharing our time in Greece and Turkey.  Please feel free to share with others if you wish.