Wars and Antiquity

The Beautiful Aegean Sea!

     There was slight anxiety as we left our Istanbul hotel to pick up the rental car. In the end, it did go smoothly. We are driving a Peugeot with about 150,000 km on it, so we are not talking spanking new. The price seemed right, but that will be determined when we complete the rental. As we made our way the 300 plus km to Canakkale, we marveled at the excellent condition of the roads. Light traffic, state of the art highways, and not a pothole in sight. 

     Tourists go to Canakkale (pronounced Chanakkale with the accent on the le) to see the the 1/2 mystical, half reality, ancient city of Troy; and the First World War battlefields of Gallipoli. We were surprised, however, to find the city of Canakkale itself totally charming. Its location is critical to this part of the world, sitting at the mouth of the Dardanelles Strait. But more on that when telling a brief tale of the Gallipoli Battle of the First World War. Canakkale has quite the happening scene. Along the waterfront is a walkway that is both charming and vibrant. People are definitely out and about. There is even the giant wooden Trojan Horse, made famous in Homer’s Odyssey. No it is not the original, but it is the original horse used in the 2004 Brad Pitt movie, Troy. That’s something anyway. We found a restaurant we really loved, right on the water, that had a variety of fish dishes, and, of course, Efes beer. 

"Trojan Horse", Canakkale

     As has happened on many of our ventures, we stumbled onto a cultural festival that was in full swing. We caught three bands and an amazing display of living statues. The band that seemed to be the most popular was, what we think, a cover band doing Turkish rock n roll songs from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s. The large crowd loved it and seemed to know every word. I’ll let Cynthia’s photo’s show the originality and creative nature of the living statues. 

Living Statues, Canakkale Cultural Festival

Living Statue, Canakkale Cultural Festival

     For sure the highlight of the Troy experience was the museum. Or rather the almost 4,000 years that it explores. I will confess my ignorance in not knowing that active civilizations were thriving between 3,000 and 2,000 BC. This precedes the height of the Egyptian civilization which had its height about 1,500 BC. A lot of what is displayed are ceramics, but there is a captivating display of gold jewelry from 2,400 BC and a ton of information given in both Turkish and English. 

Troy Museum 

Troy Museum

     One human story stands out. A man named Heinrich Schliemann got permission to dig at the site in the mid 19th century. It turned out he wasn’t an archeologist, but somewhat of a gold digger. He was German, but went to the States when he heard of the California 49ers. He established a bank where he exchanged gold and cash. He was accused of giving short weights. He subsequently left the States in haste, the first sign he was not on the up and up. Schliemann was obsessed with Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, and wanted to find the true city of Troy. Upon discovering the site, with the help of an acquaintance, he went a long way towards ruining many irreplaceable artifacts by using dynamite to unearth the treasures more quickly. He tried to buy the land that Troy was on as there was a law in place that said anything found on one’s land belonged to the land owner. He got outmaneuvered on that one by the Ottoman government, who found out about his intention and bought the land before Schliemann could. Still, he smuggled a lot of antiquities out of the country, sold them, and they still reside in many European countries, as well as Russia. To this day he is somewhat of a vile figure here in Turkey. 

Gold Necklace and Earrings, 2,400 BC - Troy

     Archeologists have found that Troy is not just one city, but layer after layer has been uncovered. Over the course of some 2,500 years there were nine separate civilizations established. As mentioned, the museum is fascinating, the actual site not so much. There is little left of it and it resembles an abandoned rock pile. This seemed odd to both Cynthia and I given the treasures that were unearthed there. 

Crates of Pot Shards, Troy Archeological Site

     I had never heard of the Battlefields of Gallipoli. In Turkey it is famous, as it was a moment (actually almost a year) of glory for the Ottoman Empire in a war they eventually lost. As mentioned, Canakkale sits at the beginning of the Dardanelles Strait. The Allied powers desperately wanted to capture Istanbul as it was the key to having a supply route between Russia and England and France, who made up the Allied Forces. Winston Churchill was the First Lord of the British Admiralty, and there are records that show as he approached the Dardanelles Strait he sent a message to London saying they would be in Istanbul in two weeks. Amazing that he survived that stupidity. They launched a large naval attack in March,1915 only to be surprised and rebuffed. Then in April they did a major landing, seemingly having total dominance in terms of numbers and fire power. Incredibly the Ottomans, mostly Muslim, held out and it turned into bloody trench warfare. In December, 1915 the allies retreated to their ships. This was after some 130,000 soldiers died. As with so much in war, what a fucking waste. 

Gallipoli Cemetery

     We started the day at the Canakkale Epic Promotion Center which was quite the trip. One takes a tour where hi-tech 3D simulation equipment takes you on a tour of the battles. The floor moves, the sound is staggering, and you come out with definite knowledge of how the battle unfolded. The presentation definitely comes from the perspective of the Ottomans, which is no surprise. 

     The cemeteries on Gallipoli are numerous and sobering. Still, as we drove around the beautiful peninsula with astounding views of the Aegean Sea, we were glad we came. 

Gallipoli Cemetery on the Shores of the Aegean Sea

     Side note time. We are using Google Translate a lot. The people involved in tourism often speak English, but outside of that, not so much. We use our phone, speak into it in English, and out it comes in Turkish. It has saved our ass a few times. —— Cats. They are everywhere, and I mean everywhere. Few of them have owners. It reminds us of Santa Cruz, except instead of dogs, it is cats. For the most part they leave people alone and they don’t bark. Cynthia is definitely getting her cat fix!!!! 

Cat and Statue, Ephesus

     We were driving out of Istanbul and I saw a police car with a policeman standing there staring at us, complete with flashing light. Kind of scared me, and definitely got my attention. Wrong. It was a plywood replica of a police car complete with flashing light. What a hoot! We have seen many of them and it brings a smile every time. Not, however, the first time. —— The breakfasts at the three hotels we have stayed in so far are amazing. Great variety leads the way. Fruit, olives, bread, cheese, and omelettes if one wants them. The coffee scene can be lacking, but we brought Starbucks instant which actually is pretty damn good. Perhaps not up to the standards of our own Paxanax Primo, but good nonetheless. 

     Cynthia made the comment, “Being a tourist is hard work, but somebody has to do it.” That is not entirely a smart ass comment. We have been walking at least 10,000 steps a day, peaking out at some 18,000 one day in Istanbul. It can truly be exhausting. Tons of stairs, uneven surfaces, and path surprises galore can make it challenging. Add to that trying to figure out where you are, and where you are going. I am glad to report that Cynthia and I are still up to the task and having a blast doing it. As always, thanks for reading and another blog will come along soon.

Inscription on Grave Stone, Gallipoli