Balloons over Cappadocia. Photo: Tom Andronas

August 2011

TRAVELS TO BYZANTIUM AND BEYOND, WITH TOM ANDRONAS.

Nowhere else in the world does ‘Greek’ meet ‘Australian’, as it does in Turkey.

Centuries of Greek Orthodox tradition collide here with the nation-defining moment of an altogether different country, creating a strange sense of belonging for those that now travel here under the obscure brand ‘Greek Australian’.

This sense of belonging renders Turkey an altogether inviting, welcoming place for Greek Australians to travel and explore.

Undoubtedly the jewel in the Turkish crown, and the first stop for most travelers, is Istanbul. The seat of Greek Orthodoxy from the split of the Roman Empire in the 4th century A.D. until today, the burgeoning city has an unmistakable Greek essence. The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul’s Fanari (Fener) district, and the areas surrounding it, are worth a visit. Many ethnic Greeks still live in this pocket, though here they’re referred to as Romans or Rum, a relic of the ancient Roman Empire.

For centuries the Eastern Roman Empire’s holiest place, Hagia Sophia stands atop a hill in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district. The building is a marvel of engineering and art, its towering dome supported by 40 enormous ribs and its surviving mosaics glittering from the thousands of golden tiles used to construct them. The vast expanse of the place is testament to the past opulence and magnificence of Christianity in Istanbul.

After the fall of the Roman Empire to the Ottomans in 1453, minarets and Islamic art were added to the building to transform it into a mosque. After centuries of use, and following the fall of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk declared that the building would no longer be a religious one, but would be converted into a museum to be appreciated by all.

Standing opposite Hagia Sophia, and about a thousand years its junior, is the Blue Mosque. Seemingly a tribute to its elder neighbour the Blue Mosque’s dome stands proudly on four monstrous columns known as ‘elephant’s feet’. Accessible only outside of Muslim prayer times, the interior of the mosque is impressively clad in thousands of hand-decorated blue and white tiles. Entry to the Mosque is free, but respectful dress is expected and shoes must be removed at the door.

No trip to Istanbul is complete without a couple of hours spent in the Grand Bazaar. The place is like a Sunday market on steroids, with thousands of merchants touting to “sell you something you don’t need”. If you decide to buy, you must haggle. Start by cutting the original price in half, and work up from there, but be aware that if you make an offer and the seller agrees, you are obliged to buy.

A short way down the west coast from Istanbul – accessible as a day-trip or an overnight stay – is the Gallipoli (Gelibolu) peninsula. Perhaps the most venerated place on earth by Australians, it is on this battlefield that our young nation was born in 1915. It’s a glorious place and the opportunity to walk on the sands of Anzac Cove is truly a privilege, a pilgrimage that every Australian should make in their lifetime.

The best way to see Gallipoli is with an organized tour. There are hundreds to choose from, but the best by reputation is a company called TJ’s, who have as their senior guide Kenan Celik, the first Turk to be awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his contribution to the research and documentation of the Gallipoli campaign.

A guided tour will take you to most of the Allied war cemeteries, including Lone Pine and Anzac Cove. Here you can see the last resting place of Private John Simpson Kirkpatrick, famous for evacuating wounded men from the battlefront on his donkey. Simpson lasted just 24 days of the bloody campaign, but in that time earned himself an eternal place in Australian folklore.

The Gallipoli campaign became a defining moment in the formation of the Australian national psyche, but it’s important to remember that modern Turkey was born on those beaches and hills as well. In defending against the Allied invasion, Turkey lost hundreds of thousands of its finest young men.

Also on that battlefield, the father of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk came to the fore. Post-war, Ataturk single-handedly constructed the Turkish society that we recognize today, and he is revered by his countrymen for his efforts. But it is also because of Ataturk that we, as Australians, can now comfortably and proudly walk in the country that we, as a Western ally in the Great War, invaded.

In 1934, with WWI still a recent memory, Ataturk said of the Anzac Diggers:

“Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives…you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace.”

These words are emblazoned across a giant stone monument near Anzac Cove, and as an Australian it’s near impossible to remain unmoved by their magnanimity, especially as they were uttered by a man who fought in the same campaign.

Heading further down the Aegean coast leads to the ancient wonders of Troy (Truva), Pergamon (Bergama) and Ephesus (Efes), which testify to Greece’s antiquarian influence on the region. All three sites are easily accessible both as part of a tour group and independently. They can also be accessed as overnight trips from the Greek islands of Lesvos, Chios and Samos respectively.

Further south, on the Turkish Mediterranean coast, abandoned villages like Levissi (Kayakoy) recall the brutal reality of Turkey’s recent past. In 1922 the post-WWI Treaty of Lausanne forced the expulsion from Turkey of millions of ethnic Greek Christians. Some estimates put the number of ethnic Greeks massacred during the population exchange at 1.5 million. Conversely, a huge number of Ottoman Muslims were expelled from Greece.

Today the houses of Levissi stand abandoned, uninhabited since their Greek Christian owners became forced refugees in 1922. The town’s major buildings lie dilapidated and its churches have been ruined by generations of destruction, looting and scavenging for materials. The place is truly ghostly, the trauma of forced relocation difficult to comprehend.

Further north, in central Turkey lies the region of Cappadocia (Kapadokya), a dusty expanse of canyons, valleys and mountains, formed when Mt Erciyes erupted several thousand years ago. The ensuing erosion and artificial intervention has resulted in a dramatic landscape dotted with ‘fairy chimneys’, cave churches and underground cities. Hewn by clergymen during the Byzantine period, many cave buildings were defaced during the iconoclastic and Ottoman periods, but can still be visited in somewhat restored form.

The highlight of any trip to Cappadocia is certainly a dawn hot-air balloon ride. The weightless sensation as you glide through the morning mist, gazing down at a scene like nothing else on earth, is magical, and well worth the money. However, tourists beware: there are hundreds of balloon companies offering flights at various prices. It’s quite common for passengers to be quoted different prices for the same flight, with prices ranging from 100 euro to several hundred. The easiest way to avoid getting ripped-off is to do your research, or try to get some local knowledge from your hotel.

Despite the perceived language and religion barriers, Turkey is an amazingly easy place for Australians to travel. Most Turks that are likely to come into contact with tourists will speak fluent English, and will willingly help. Generally, Turks practice a moderate form of Islam, and will not try to push their religion on any tourist. In western Turkey many men drink alcohol and many women will go without a headscarf, though it’s still unlikely that you will find pork anywhere on the menu. The further east you head, the more conservative people become. Non-Turkish women traveling alone can occasionally find themselves hassled by Turkish men, but a stern ‘no’ will most often deter any unwanted attention.

Getting around in Turkey is easy. Very easy.

The easiest way is as part of an organized tour but for the more independently minded, public trains, flights and ferries are all easily accessible. By far the most efficient way to get around is by bus, with countless local bus companies running services to every corner of Turkey and internationally, at very fair prices. Especially convenient is the overnight bus from Istanbul to Thessaloniki at 95YTL, about $55AUD, as the train connecting the two cities was recently cancelled.

A highlight of any long-distance bus journey in Turkey is the on-board service, which is similar to that of an airline. On every bus an attendant called a yardimci will provide complimentary refreshments and snacks on a regular basis, and every bus will make toilet and food stops.

Turkey is an incredibly easy country to navigate, and if given a chance can be incredibly rewarding. It offers a warm, open welcome and a sense of genuine respect for the outside world, whether an Anzac, a Roman or a strange ‘Greek Australian’.