Good afternoon from Çesme, Turkey.  

Last night upon leaving Myrina we had a little problem.  The anchor was stuck!  There was a Captain’s welcome aboard cocktail party, but unfortunately he didn’t make it.  He was busy on the bridge moving the ship to and fro to get it unstuck.  Hence, we left a little late but we had a short distance to sail so it was no problem.

This morning we arrived in Çesme (pronounced Cheshme) which  is in the province of Izmir.  It’s at the westernmost point of Asian Turkey. In the 5th century BC there was a Greek city called Boutheia, which paid tribute to Athens. During the middle ages an accord was reached between the Republic of Genoa, which was one of the great Italian trading states along with Venice, and the Ottomans. Çesme became an important trading port with caravans coming from the east to unload onto ships heading toward the rest of the Mediterranean world and in return receiving goods from Genoa and the rest of the European countries.  To that end there is a caravanserai here built in 1528.  It was there that the caravans would stop over while their goods were unloaded and then new things were loaded to be taken east.  The caravanserai was built around a large inner courtyard with stables for the animals, shops, and restaurants and rooms above for the travelers to stay, usually for three days. The building has been restored and now has a small boutique hotel.

                                                          The caravanserai courtyard

The town around the harbor is dominated by Çesme Castle. There were quite a few steps to go up to the ramparts so I decided to take a pass.  In front of the castle there were a number of old cannon and a large statue of Sultan Bayezit II who commissioned the castle’s construction.  It protected the harbor and town from pirates. 

                                                     Çesme Castle

I should tell something about my excellent guide Zeynep.  She is a 38-year-old Turkish woman who was a delight to spend the day with and she will be meeting me tomorrow in Bodrum for another day. We had a driver, Hassan, who was an older Turkish gentleman who teaches German when he’s not working.  Since it was just me, I had lots of opportunity to talk about life in Turkey with Zeynep.

                                                              Zeynep and me

When we left the castle we walked up one of the winding streets.  Cesme was occupied by Greeks principally until the beginning of the Turkish Republic in the 1920’s.  At that time there was a massive diaspora of Greeks from Turkey and Turks from Greece.  I believe that contributed to some of the hard feelings which still exist between the two countries.  We stopped at a little coffee shop and had a Turkish coffee (very strong!).  It came in an ornate little cup on a tray with a small glass of water with a spoonful of sweet mastic gum in the bottom of the glass.  I tasted the gum before it dissolved and it was sweet chewing gum.  Apparently there are lots of mastic gum trees in the area and this is a tradition here.

                                                              A Turkish coffee

On our way back to the waterfront we stopped at the 19th century Greek Orthodox church Ayios Haralambos.  The church is used for exhibitions now but you can still see some of the frescoes from the Orthodox era.  On the ceiling are portrayals of the four gospel writers and behind the area that was the altar is a depiction of Mary.  Oh, I should mention that this part of Turkey was called Smyrna in the Bible.

                                                          The interior of the church

We walked along the small boat harbor which had lots of private powerboats and sailboats.  The area is a very popular resort place in the summer. Then Hassan picked us up and we drove to a nearby town, Alaçati. The houses in this seaside town are very unique.  Many are made of volcanic stone.  Once again many were built by Greeks who lived here and when the great relocation occurred the Turks displaced from some of the Greek islands moved in.  Before we did a walkabout we went to a Turkish restaurant and had a delicious meal.  I’m not sure what all of it was but there was chicken with roasted peppers, potatoes and tomatoes; artichoke hearts marinated in lemon juice, a dish with eggplant, yogurt and tomato sauce, and a Turkish version of tzatziki which was less thick than the Greek version.  Everything was very tasty; I think I could learn to like Turkish food.

After lunch we walked down the winding street past a couple of old windmills which in the past were used to mill the grain of local farmers.  We walked into an old church which has been converted to a mosque.  As in all mosques I’ve ever been in the floors are covered with carpets.  There was something kind of funny that I realized when I got back to the ship.  I had to take my shoes off to go in and I had white socks on. This is Ramadan when devout Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset.  When I got back to my cabin and took off my shoes, I had a big brown stain on one sock. I sniffed it and it was definitely chocolate.  Perhaps one of the congregants had sneaked a piece of chocolate to get them through the day.  The church had some Christian pictures, but as in Hagia Sophia, they were behind drapes.

                                                  Two of the windmills

                                                            Inside the mosque in Alaçati

We took another leisurely stroll back up the hill with a stop for a cold lemonade and then Hassan appeared to drive us back to Çesme and the ship. It was an interesting day with a lot of walking again (about four miles) and an opportunity to see a glimpse of Turkish life.

Back at the ship it was time for Trivia so I met my team.  Unbelievably we won again!  I’m meeting friends in a little while for drinks and dinner so I’d better end this.

Oh, one last thing.  My friend Hilary sent me this photo someone took of the two of us yesterday in Myrina.  I don't often post photos of me and today I've done two.