Bursa to Iznik to Istanbul - 10 November

We had another leisurely beginning to our day and didn't have to be on the bus until 8:30. None of this 2:30 stuff for us, thank you very much! We checked out of the hotel and made a quick stop in the city at the Green Mosque which is considered one of the great works of Ottoman architecture. It was built between 1419 and 1423. The walls are covered with bluish-green tiles - ipso facto, the name. While we were in the mosques, sirens sounded throughout the city to alert people that it was 9:05 am. The was the exact time on November 10th that Ataturk died in 1938 (he died of cirrhosis of the liver due to heavy drinking). Every year, on the 10th at 9:05 the city comes to a halt and observes two minutes of silence in his honor. Bora told us what was going on but continued to tell us about the mosque rather than observe the two minutes of silence.

We left Bursa after the mosque and drove for two hours to Iznik. The countryside was gorgeous and we enjoyed the scenery - especially the many groves of olive trees. Iznik is a farming community that was once the seat of empires founded in 316 BC. It was once a celebrated place for tiles (as seen in the Blue Mosque in Istanbul) during the 16th century. It is trying to make a comeback as a tile center for Turkey. We stopped at the Turkish Tile Museum and saw some beautiful examples of the tile that used to be made. Then we went to a small workshop where tiles are being made using the 16th century methods. The owner gave us a fascinating overview of the process and then made his showroom available to us even though they were supposed to be closed today (Saturday). It was stunningly beautiful but expensive. It takes 45 days to make a tile so the prices are reflected in that fact.

After the tile workshop, we made a quick stop in the city center of Iznik to see the ruins of St. Sophia church which was built in the 4th century. We were only able to walk around the perimeter of the structure since it was closed due to the weekend. After St. Sophia we headed the bus towards Istanbul for a three hour drive back. We stopped at lunch at a place that was still equipped to handle tourists and enjoyed a tasty meal of chicken and tomatoes. A quick ferry ride across the Marmara Sea and we settled in for a long ride back to the city.

The rain started to pour as we approached Istanbul. This was unfortunate because many students on the bus were being dropped off at the Grand Bazaar so that they could experience it. They hadn't realized that the bazaar was going to be closed on Sunday and this was their only opportunity to visit it. The rest of us went back to the ship and stood in line in the pouring rain to get through the security check on the ship. Once on the ship, I changed into warm, dry clothes as soon as possible. It felt wonderful to be warm again. The rest of the evening was very low key getting caught up on e-mail and having dinner. I plan to do the tourist thing again tomorrow in Istanbul and see a few more sites before we leave tomorrow night.