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 Istanbul-Erdine 29 October


“We have nothing to lose and a world to see.”


The pace is fast on this pre-cruise tour, or maybe it’s just that we’re old!!!  Up early for breakfast at 6.30 then on the bus at 7.15 for the three hour drive to Erdine.  Erdine was the former capital of the Ottoman Empire and although busy, far less busy than Istanbul.  The border with Bulgaria is only 15 mins further on than Erdine as is the border with Greece.  

Was lovely in the morning, we arrived as people were preparing for the National Day parade and families were gathered waving flags and eating fairy floss and toffee!  First visit was to the Selimiye Mosque which is undergoing massive repairs.  We saw a small section and although designed by the same architect as the Suleymaniye Mosque it is very different and less ornate.  On then to the Ali Pasa Bazaar and the Old Mosque.  To be honest I’m nearly all Mosqued out!!! 

We walked through the open markets, the fish looked fabulous as did the fruit and vegetables.  We tasted halva at a small shop and almond candy at another.  All delicious. Lunch was at a restaurant called Antik Musfak Lokanta - up three very narrow flights of stairs in a private room.  The food was a replication of the food served in the Ottoman era and I have to say thank God for modern Turkish cuisine!!! 

Firstly there was so much food we could have fed the whole city - small dishes of okra, individual servings of spinach with grated cheese, a couple of dishes I couldn’t even begin to describe, a huge bowl of soup with chicken, almonds and spices, a hot pattie which consisted of rice, lamb and liver with a tahini sauce, a lamb shank with spicy sauce and accompanied by a bowl of cherries, almonds and pear in juice, and finally a dessert which was like a cake drenched in cherry syrup, with a dollop of cream and cherries on the top! OMG!  It all sounds great but truly, it was disappointing.  

From lunch we went to a beautiful Synagogue - such a relief not to remove our shoes and cover the head!  This is the Grand Synagogue which opened in 1907 and has recently been restored.  Such beautiful colours and designs in the paint work, very subtle.  Last stop was at Sultan Beyazid 11 Health Museum.  This complex is a hospital museum from the Ottoman era. 

Back on the bus for the three hour trip home and we’re all exhausted!  The traffic is something else!  Tomorrow we start at 9 am and hopefully will be back in time to get tidied up for a special dinner for some of us at the Ritz-Carlton. But with the way things operate time wise we may be going in our jeans and runners!!! 



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