Modern Arts and Turkish Bath

Since I don't have a picture of the baths, here is one in
front of the Modern Arts Museum

Before leaving Istanbul, it seems like it is absolutely forbidden to miss the Modern Arts Museum.

Located on the shore of the Golden Horn, the museum offers a huge and interesting collection. Even though I'm not too attracted to modern arts, I got swayed. The masterpieces are really fascinating and impressive.

So as a traveler who doesn't really enjoy museums, I can say I recommend it.

The most interesting experience, though, was the Turkish bath, also called hamam. We chose the Çemberlitas Hamami, located in a building dating from 1584, from all of those suggested in the guidebooks.

At the desk, we needed to choose the type of treatment we wanted. Since our flights were leaving in the afternoon, we went for the fifteen minutes session. It would have been possible to add a massage for additional fees.

We were given a little box and a token, which we used to get in the baths. But first, we needed to go on the second floor to change. Changing being a big word. The task here was about taking all our clothes off and to cover ourselves with a towel. We then put sandals on and locked the door behind us.

In the hamam itself, we were shown we needed to lay down on a big circle rock. A very hot rock used to make us sweat. The heat was perfectly intense. But be careful : they don't like that you keep your sandals on when you lay down. Good to know.

A masseur, looking like the stereotype of the Turkish masseur, eventually appears. Mine literally grabbed me by the feet to get me where I needed to be. I must admit it's pretty funny when you see that happening to others.

He then put the massage glove on, the one that was in the box we got when we paid, and he starts scrubbing us. He throws hot water at us, still does a small massage and brings us in another room for a shampoo session.

The masseurs, all wearing a number, then wait next to the exit, hoping for some tip. "Remember my number", they tell us when we leave. The man handling the towels also hopes for some tip...

The experience is totally worth it, whatever preconceived ideas we might have about hamams. I can tell I was weak in the knees when I got on the metro to go to the airport. And I was sad to leave Turkey after that short week in that country.

Pictures of Istanbul

To take a break, here are a couple of pictures of Istanbul.

Detour by Taksim Square

Istanbul University

It smells like the end of a journey in Turkey. But still have another warm day to visit the Beyazit mosque before getting on Istanbul University's campus.

There, we couldn't get too close because of security controls. We gave up and went around the building. What was surprising was the outside stand to sell school supplies...

We visited another mosque before going back down to our hostel, where we would meet our new friend. Together, we walked towards Taksim Square, where most protest against prime minister Erdogan took place. We were told it would be safer to go during the day.

We crossed Galata bridge and walked up slowly along a walking street. We then stopped at a restaurant. The closer Taksim Square was, the bigger the crowd was, even if there was no violent activity.

Everywhere around Taksim Square were police officers. Water canons were aligned so they wouldn't block the traffic. Already, it felt like walking on eggs. Not the time to be extravagant. We needed to blend in the crowd.

We got closer to Gezi park, where there was already some construction work being done. Police officers were watching the entrance, so it was intimidating to take pictures.

We walked on the square itself and took the time to chat with the protesters, most of them being silent, standing without moving.

There were abandoned shoes to symbolize the people who got hurt or killed in the protests. Others were blindfolded, holding a balance to illustrate justice.

We were told about the death of a protester, how friends and family we staying on Taksim Square to pay tribute to him. We pretended to agree with our translator, who said protesters were just people searching for a fight. Was better not to contradict anybody, to listen and avoid stating an opinion.

We suspected some policemen were going around dressed as tourists or civilians. They were always close to us and made two young girls leave the square.

After a long conversation, we determined it was time to leave. Around Taksim Square, my North American head wasn't pleasing the water vendors, who were trying to get more money out of me. It took me four or five attempts to get a reasonable price.

We went back down through new streets to end up in front of protesters going up to the square. They were done working. They were walking together, shouting some slogans. Intimidating.

After hesitating about following them or not, we decided to go back to our hostel... where other travelers were already talking about going out at night.

There again, we hesitated. Pressure was strong. In a group, we negotiated for two cabs so we could go in Beyoglu. In the dark, the landscape had changed. People were running, their mouth and eyes were covered. Others were selling diving masks...

We got to the bar, where we needed to climb six, seven or eight levels to reach the last floor. The view was very nice. Big windows were covering three of the walls. Strangely, there were not a lot of people partying.

We had just started drinking our bear when we passed our heads through the window to look outside. The crowd was running in the streets. Slowly, my eyes started to burn. The tear gaz was going up and up and up. Even if we closed the windows, it was too late. The few people inside rushed to the stairs.

Eyes, throat, lungs were burning. With a little water in the face, between two floors, we were getting better and decided to leave immediately.

We jumped in a taxi, between a line of police officers on one sidewalk, and a line of protesters on the other sidewalk. On the way back, we crossed a taxi with its doors wide open. Men were hitting on the passengers. No time to understand what was happening. We kept on going.

The night before we left Turkey, we had quite a dose of emotions.

In French, here is the article I wrote  for La Tribune and La Nouvelle newspapers as I was still in Turkey. I'm telling about the events I lived there.

Where to go next?

I'm still far from done on telling my stories about Turkey. Still have all the Netherlands to tell about. Procrastination, when you lead us... But fear nothing, it's not stopping me from dreaming and from planning the next trip.

There will be a first adventure this fall. Still have to choose where. Peru and Bolivia have a head start. I'll have to make a decision between the two, or change my mind just before booking, like I often do. Since it'll be winter in the northern hemisphere, I'm pretty sure I'll get close to the equator anyway.

The biggest step ahead, nonetheless, will come in January. I've been talking about that for more than a year. I started working on it... Everything points out at a landing in New Delhi around January 6. India! Yes, it brings a little vertigo. But I need to push myself. That's where I need to go.

To get there, one needs a visa before taking off. Usually valid for six months, it's validity starts right at the moment you get it. So you need to calculate your time wisely.

My picture has already been taken and I filled the form on the website at this address
: https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/

There you'll find an answer to all your questions.

What will my itinerary be? Don't know. Will certainly have the time to tell you more about that. Adventure is just starting.

Shopping break

Short digression from the adventures to talk shopping.

We almost missed the little Aponia shop and Supermind Coffee as we were walking back from a stroll in Taksim square in Istanbul.

It's because a group of screaming protesters had just passed us. But my traveling buddies are coffee lovers and they also wanted to look at some t-shirts. So we took a little break


What is amazing about this place is you find a counter right next to the door. There, according to the owner, they serve "decent coffee". If you go further in the shop, you'll find some t-shirts and posters designed but Istanbul artists. Everything is made in Turkey.

We stopped to smile while appreciating the catchy designs. They are unpretentious. And because it was cheaper for each t-shirt if we bought two or three, we were very tempted.

We smiled reading "They call it chaos, we call it home", a joke about Istanbul. What about that animal claiming "Love is my leash" or those soldiers shadows, some with guns, some with umbrellas. I was particularly touched by that one with the word "Life". I didn't get it at first, until I could see those two little batteries with the words "Fear" and "Hope"... meaning fear and hope are the power of life. I bought it!

When I went to pay, I could talk with the owner himself. The paper bag in which they put the t-shirts are made to become posters too.

That lovely shop deserved a post to itself.

For those visiting Istanbul, you'll find Aponia shop at
101 A Galipdede
or
116 Istiklal Avenue

You can also visit facebook.com/aponiastore