Our full day in Athens was devoted to the Acropolis and the adjacent Acropolis Museum. From our hotel, located nearby, one walks up through a series of streets to the entrance (free on Sundays), and then walks carefully up stone stairs and slopes, to the top. Just being there was moving; not because one worships the goddess Athena, but because this site represents (to me) in some way the development of rational thought. There are many olive trees surrounding the hill. The crowds at the top were not excessive. All the buildings are being renovated and one cannot get too close, but the pictures may give an idea of the scene. 

The museum is next to the hill and contains artifacts taken from the site. Most impressive is the reconstruction of the frieze of the Parthenon, with plaster casts of the famous Elgin marbles that are now in the British museum. One sees these, and looks out the window at the Parthenon, and realizes that the Greeks would dearly love to have them back. The museum is a statement of this desire. No photographs allowed in the museum. The combined experiences of the day made us think of our friend Marion in Tryon, who would have greatly enjoyed this.

Approach to the Acropolis

Parthenon, showing restoration activity

Erechtheion temple

Erechtheion temple

In front of the Erechtheion temple

View of some construction

View from Acropolis

View from Acropolis

In front of the Parthenon

Athena Nike temple

Olive grove below the Acropolis

After pondering all this, in the evening we went to a rather good restaurant where I had "little marinated fish, good with ouzo", and a glass of ouzo. This ouzo is mixed with water, has an anisette taste, and I think is the same thing as "raki", which we tried in Istanbul. The combination was indeed good. Mary Jo had marinated octopus with a glass of white wine.

Pictures from Istanbul

Wall in Haghia Sophia

Interior of Haghia Sophia, showing panels added when it was a mosque. (Fine calligraphy)

In Haghia Sophia, grave of Venetian Doge who conquered Constantinople when in his 80s, and died there.

Mosaic in Haghia Sophia

Mary Jo pondering a Turkish coffee

Old wooden house on the Bosphorus. Most of them have burned down (see Pamuk's Istanbul).

The Golden Horn meets the Bosphorus, seen from the Eyup Cemetery.

Interior of the Suleymaniye Mosque, with service in the background.

Harem area in Topkapi Palace

Golden Horn, seen from Eyup Cemetery

Here are some impressions of Istanbul, at the end of our stay. They are, naturally, based only on the areas we have visited.

Transportation: We have been on the subway, a tram, underground one-stop subway called the Tunel, an underground one-stop funicular, an old tram going along a major shopping and promenade street, a cable car, and an ordinary bus. These are all charming; where one ride ends another begins, but one must buy another ticket; the terminals are very clean and there is very charming artwork and beautiful tiles on the walls.

The city: It is hard to find a specific address, such as a restaurant or the jazz club, but perseverance plus a close study of google maps helps. It has been rather cold here, especially in the evenings. However, the last day was lovely and we sat outside for lunch.

The bazaars: The Grand Bazaar is indeed very grand. I bought a LARGE scarf made of goat wool that effectively deals with the cold.

The food: lots of lamb, yogurt, pomegranate syrup flavoring, other spices, very interesting mezzes. After the first night we have not had a bad meal. The bread is excellent. Street vendors sell doughnut shaped buns with sesame seeds that are fine. Turkish coffee not so good; tea is fine.

The jazz club: A small venue, a quartet (piano, bass fiddle, sax, drums) the night we were there. Low key, rhythmic, closely coordinated sound.

The hamam: Mary Jo and I both went (separate rooms for women and men). A very large heated stone in the center of the room. Sitting a while, with a towel as loincloth, one sweats more than in, say Singapore, or Landrum in the heat of the summer. Then one lies on the heated stone. A man (in my case), rubs one with a rough cloth, then piles on sudsy soap, rubs again etc., rinses one off with pails of warm or hot water. Then one can sit around and watch others being similarly tortured. One can douse one's self with cooler, or cold, water. Eventually, one leaves and dresses in the private, locked dressing room. Our haman was built in the late 1500s by Sinan, the master Ottoman architect of Istanbul. In contrast with a Swedish sauna there is no "dry heat" room and "moist heat" room, and there is no obligatory cold plunge afterward. Mary Jo's experience was like mine except that she finished with a swim in a very hot pool.

The water: An earlier posting dealt with our Bosphoros cruise. Here I note that in the 1930s, the founder of modern Turkey, Ataturk, swam the Bosphorus, from Europe to Asia, with a group of colleagues. Just like Mao swimming the Yellow River? Maybe our presidents should swim the Potomac, or the Mississippi.

The sights: We visited the Suleymaniye Mosque, built by the afore-mentioned Sinan, and were allowed in during a service. We stayed in the back. Men in front were kneeling, and there was an evocative singing chant; I do not know if it was recorded or live. After a bit, the chanting stopped and the men left, but some people remained praying here or there. Pictures without flash were allowed. Also, went up the Galata tower, built by Genoese in the 1400s. Toured the Topkapi Palace; a large complex of buildings. Jewels and artifacts from the Ottoman era, a large set of rooms for the harem. Went to the Pierre Lotti cafe and cemetery in Eyup, by cable car. There is a fine view of the Golden Horn and many minarets on the horizon. Unfortunately the sky was hazy so the pictures are not good. Then walked down, visited and, somewhat to our annoyance, were shown around the Eyup Mosque complex by an old man who then requested, and received, some money from us. He also did a little Muslim proselytizing.

Our trip from Singapore to Istanbul included a brief stop in Dubai and a clear flight over Bagdad, and near Mosul and Kirkuk, then over snowy mountains of eastern Turkey to Istanbul. We arrived at 6PM (11PM Singapore time) and after a not great meal, went to bed. The next morning, Feb. 11, on the other hand, we had a great breakfast at the hotel, then found our way via subway and tram to the Haghia Sophia church/museum where we spent a fascinating several hours. A massive domed structure, the interior space is massive, old frescos, partly damaged, after the Ottoman capture of Constantinople it became a mosque, then with the birth of the Turkish republic it became a museum. Some indication of the size and mixture of Christian-Muslim history may be suggested by the photos.
Today (Feb. 12), we spent in our neighborhood of Beyoglu, finding our way around and doing a little shopping. We find it rather hard to locate a specific store or restaurant, but perseverance pays off and the search itself is of interest. This neighborhood is a good location for us. We cannot use wifi in our room, but there are 2 computers available in the hotel. Yesterday was the fall of Mubarak, and for a short time western newspapers were not available on line, but this morning they were. Today we came upon a demonstration on the main shopping street, people with signs and speeches, and a group of police watching with guns and shields. I have no specific information about it.
We enjoy Istanbul very much so far. Fascinating city, very interesting food. Tomorrow we plan a boat trip on the Bosphorus, probably taking all day.
　
　
　
 

Preparing to leave Singapore, I muse on our trip so far. One may think of the trip as starting in the "New World", represented by Taipei and Singapore, moving to the Middle East, Istanbul and Cyprus, and ending in "Old Europe", represented by Italy and Ireland. (The NYTimes columnist, Thomas Friedman has in the last weeks made part of our traverse, going from Singapore to Egypt and Jordan.) The sights and conversations with Greg and Lisa in Singapore and Jerry Shih in Taipei, and reading about Tunisia and Egypt, cause one's head to swim with new ideas and dimly aware of the inchoate forces shaping the future. 

It is interesting to see what the kids are learning in their International Chinese American school. Louise, in second grade, is learning her multiplication tables up to nine and working with fractions and decimals. In English, she writes paragraphs and takes dictation. She also takes dictation in Chinese. Nora, in kindergarten, is learning to print her letters (she is working on printing as I write). She can sound out words with regular spelling.

Yesterday, Mary Jo and I took the kids to High Tea at the Raffles Hotel. We printed invitations several days earlier, which they then responded to (orally). They were primed with excitement and we had a great time. They were very well behaved; various High Tea attendees commented on them. The picture does not do justice to the occasion. 

This was the first week of the girls' vacation. They played a lot at home, several times with friends who came for play dates. It is very nice in the morning to listen to Louise and Nora talk and play by themselves. They seem good company to each other. One day Mary Jo and I took them to the Science Museum, which is a very hands on place that amused them much. One of the photos show Nora's disembodied head sticking out of a magician's hat. Another excursion took Mary Jo and I on a walk near the waterfront, where there are remarkable new buildings amidst some of the old. And a third walk took us to the Arab district and a good mezze platter for lunch at the Cafe Le Caire.

This afternoon everyone went to a gathering at the apartment of the Chinese teacher of Louise and Nora. The teacher has worked with Louise more or less every Saturday since she was 2 years old and has become fond of the family. The girls were flower girls at her wedding, not long ago. Now she must move, with her husband, to inner Mongolia where his company will work for several years erecting windmills for electric power generation. Their apartment is a little smaller than Greg and Lisa's but very nice and with nice facilities and shrubbery in the grounds.  

Nora's head, seemingly detached from her body.

Gambling casino, as a large ship atop 3 buildings

Old Fullerton Hotel (former post office) in front of buildings in the financial center

Interior of the Blue Mosque

Exterior of the Blue Mosque, built in the 1960s by the small Muslim community from the Malabar coast, near Goa, India.

Sign in front of an Arab school for girls. Note that iPads are supplied to the students.

We have fallen into a routine this week. The 2 children go to school in the morning and Mary Jo and I go off on an excursion during the day. We come back after lunch for our nap and usually eat at the apartment in the evening, perhaps going out for a coffee afterwards.  

One day our excursion took us to the Botanical Garden and back, a 40 minute walk each way plus a walk through the BG. (This is the second time we have been there. Several days ago we went with Lisa and the kids.)  We walked 4-5 miles and, with the heat and humidity, were rather tired afterwards. On Tuesday we took a guided walking tour through Chinatown, about 3 hours. One of the women on the tour is from Kansas, retired from Boeing in Wichita. She comes to Singapore every two years or so for a holiday. She finds it a safe, convenient and interesting environment which is all true. We had lunch together after the tour. She is also a hiker, has done more than half of the AT in increments, with a friend. They hike separately but end up together at the end of the day. Thursday we took a Singapore Walking Tours walk that featured the days of the spice traders in the early 1800s. We finished with a lunch at a Malaysian Restaurant, eating some rather obscure foods. While in Singapore we have had some great food: soba noodles, noodles made fresh at a restaurant with an theatrical show of pulling the dough to create the noodle strands, some fantastic sushi, green tea ice cream, etc.

We have gone to a Lunar New Year program at Louise and Nora's school. Various dances and songs given by the various classes, including Nora's kindergarten and Louise's second grade class. Not dis-similar to events we have been to in the US. Next week the kids start a several week New Year vacation.

There are lots of preparation for the new year under way. Lots of fantastic and (to a Western sensibility) ridiculous decorations involving rabbits. It is suggested that, to deal with Singapore's low birth rate, the coming Year of the Rabbit will be useful. Then, many babies conceived in the Year of the Rabbit will be born in the following Year of the Dragon, providing a strong vigorous, dragon-like baby.

One of the pictures shows Nora at the school Lunar New Year program.

At the Botanical Garden

Neighborhood restaurant

Interior of a mosque

Lunar New Year program, Nora is second from the right