Bursa

Today I slept most of the day away, not waking up for real until 4:30 pm. Nothing quite like jet lag to bring out the CFS! But now I feel back to normal––including the desire to go to sleep soon!

Bursa from atop the citadel, post-sundown

Marcos and I woke up around 9:00 to check out the breakfast, served on the top floor. I didn't take my camera (sorry!), but there was a large selection of foods: several kinds of breads, a few cheeses (two of which were initially off-puttingly salty, but I grew to like them), some toast, 15 or 20 jams and spreads, 4 kinds of olives, some cucumbers and tomatoes, mini sausages, fried potatoes (jojos, really), and 5 kinds of juice, including fresh-squeezed orange! We tried a bit of everything, and I was happy with the selection––Marcos, being the sweet tooth he is, wished there had been more sweet options, but he still managed to find some chocolate cereal, so all was not lost. The vişne juice, made from sour cherries, was really delicious! Though I'd poured only a bit to try, I think I'll have a full glass tomorrow.

While I slept the day away, Marcos went adventuring and got some stock footage of some mosques, though he thinks they weren't all that successful.

This evening, we ventured to Ulu Cami, the Great Mosque, whose construction was ordered by Sultan Bayezid I, finishing in 1399. It has 20 domes (supposedly, he initially promised to build 20 mosques after winning some big battle, but ultimately decided that would be rather absurd and settling for 1 mosque with 20 domes), and it is huge and beautiful.

The Sultan's signature

Tons of calligraphy, a fountain in the middle, and wide open space. Very serene.

I wrapped one shawl around my waist, as my skirt didn't cover my knees, and the other around my head and shoulders, and let me tell you, it was hot. I have no idea how Muslim women wear it all the time! (Not that all Muslims here do so, but still.) The carpet was very soft, and methinks Christian churches should take a page out of their book and switch to shoeless carpeted buildings––so much more comfortable!

There were some little kids running around inside the mosque, which I thought was very cute, as well as a number of people praying (though we made sure not to go at a prayer time!). We were definitely not the only people taking pictures, though Marcos was disappointed that they didn't let him use his tripod :-(

The guides I'd read said that as long as you don't wear short shorts and tank tops, you don't really need to worry about dress code in Turkey, but I've noticed that very few women wear anything above the knee. This is a problem, as I have one (yes, one) dress that falls below my knees, and everything else is above-the-knee. Because it's hot, obviously. Since I forgot one dress at Lizzy's (such a dummy), I need more clothes anyways, so I think I need to make a quick shopping stop to pick up some longer skirts and/or pants. I'll need a nicer dress for the conference, too, since the one I forgot was one of my more professional ones! Oh well. Hopefully we'll have time to stop at Collezione tomorrow––it looks like the Turkish version of H&M, but cheaper? I'll keep you posted!

Ulu Cami from the Bursa citadel

I find myself very anxious about speaking Turkish, and I wish I had studied more before coming. I need to just get better about using what little I do know, and stop being embarrassed by making mistakes, but it's hard! I can understand more written than spoken, but I hope that continued time here will help me feel more comfortable. Unfortunately, I find myself thinking first of the word in German, then Spanish, then Turkish, so it tends to take me awhile to find the write term, if I even happen to know it! Practice makes perfect, I suppose.

İskender kebap

After mosqueing, we wandered down the street a bit and got some İskender kebap from one restaurant that was open. They initially seated us outside, then were like, "you can't sit here! it's Ramazan!" and we were like, we know, we just sat where you put us! So we were shepherded inside, and I asked for orange juice and they brought me sparkling orange juice-soda. Maybe portakal suyu doesn't mean what I think it does? Or maybe no one drinks orange juice with dinner, ha! Regardless, it was thirst-quenching. The kebap was on a bed of bread (we think) that had been doused in some sort of broth. A big pile of yogurt accompanied it. I didn't actually love it; there was some flavor that just didn't go with my tastebuds. We're going to one of the original İskender kebapçı tomorrow before we leave town, though, so we'll see how that compares!

We also got some kestane şekeri before we went to the mosque (chronologically organized posts are for squares); I asked for iki tane ('two pieces'), only to find out that they aren't sold individually but rather in a plastic container, facepalm. It was 7 TL (roughly $3.50) for 250 g, and we excitedly opened them in the street only to remember that it was still daylight and regretfully stuck them back in their bag for later. They're very sweet and nutty, unsurprisingly, given that they're chestnuts that have been soaked in some sort of sugary concoction. They have a strange texture, kind of mushy and grainy. I don't mind them, but they're not my favorite. Very glad to have tried them, though! But still, I hope to get some legit baklava tomorrow.

After eating, we drove up to the Bursa citadel, though we didn't realize what it was until after we'd gotten there. We managed to find parking and wandered into some park area where there were families having picnics and much food and merriment being enjoyed in the twilight. As it was up on a hill, I wandered over to a patio and took some photos of the city at dusk. It was very pleasant and pretty, but my shortish skirt made me feel off-balance (was everyone looking at me?!), so I should definitely find something more "modest" (aka, heat-entrapping, ugh). I also switched my ring from my left middle finger to my left ring finger so as to try and avoid unwanted attention, though who knows how effective that really is. The citadel is also where Osman and Orhan are buried, one of whom (can't remember which is the father and which the son!) founded the Ottoman empire. Their tombs were closed, but we peeked through the windows and saw the tops of the coffins, adorned with their turbans.

Tomorrow, we'll probably visit a few more sights in Bursa, including the bazaar, and then we drive to Çanakkale, which is near Troy. Depending on what time we get there, we'll either visit some that afternoon or save it for the following morning; it's one of the less-preserved ruins, so they say it won't take too long to see it (though "they" are not taking stock footage, so we shall see!). I'm excited to see the setting of the Iliad!

Now I must pack and go to bed; we have to leave by 10:00 tomorrow, and you know how much I hate waking up early...