Ferry Cross the Bosphorus

There were still clashes in the early morning of Wednesday June 5, but things were quieter on the streets when we went out just before noon.  A group of protesters now referred to as the Taksim Solidarity Platform met with the Deputy Prime Minister today.  The Deputy Prime Minister has been seen as more conciliatory than the Prime Minister.  The demands of the TSP include dismissing Police Chiefs in a number of Turkish cities; banning tear gas; the release of detained protesters; and stopping the plans for the development in Gezi Park.   The PM returns to Turkey tomorrow.  Everyone is waiting to see what he says.

We decided to spend the afternoon in Kadikoy, on the Asian Shore of Istanbul.  To get there, we took a ferry across the Bosphorus.  The cost is only 1.95TL (about $1.00 CAN) and we were able to use our Istanbulkart.

View of "New Mosque" from ferry

Alain on Ferry

View from ferry of Istanbul Modern museum in old warehouse that we will visit tomorrow 

People on ferry with smart phones

View of Topkapi Palace from the water

The ferry only takes about 20 minutes to reach Kadikoy on the Asian side.  On the way over, it stopped for a few minutes at Haydarpasa.  The imposing building in the picture below is Haydarpasa Station which was a gift from Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany and was designed by German architects.  It  is the terminus of the Anatolian railway system, the end of the line for trains from as far east as Tehran.

Haydarpasa Station

We also passed the Selimiye Barracks, originally constructed in 1799, which later burnt down and subsequently rebuilt 30 years later.  During the Crimean War (1853-6), the barracks served as a hospital run by Florence Nightingale and one corner is preserved as a Florence Nightingale Museum.

Selimiye Barracks

We landed at Kadikoy Pier and went ashore.

Most of our afternoon was spent exploring the alleys around the harbour, the site of an old bazaar.  According to our guidebook, some of the best food shopping in Istanbul is found in these narrow streets.  We totally agree as we saw the best fish, meat and vegetables of our trip.  Also more bakeries than we have seen on the European side.  Kadikoy is a very European town even though it is on the Asian side and there are many bars and restaurants mixed in with the food stores.

Fish plaque

Crowded streets with everyone eating or food shopping

Our mezze plate- hummus, dolmates, eggplant and mushrooms

We had lunch at Ciya, which came highly recommended.  There is a self-serve buffet which is often found in workers' restaurants around town.  The meze at Ciya were delicious and fresh.

Delicious buffet at Ciya

After lunch, we wandered around checking our all the gorgeous provisions.

Even the supermarket had nice looking cherries and beans

Dressed up fish

These were moving when I took the pic

Olives and nuts

Lots of different kinds of cay (tea)

Tea, nuts and dried red peppers

Rose tea pods

We then stopped at Kurukahveci Zeynel Bey for some turkish coffee.

The scene at the coffee shop

Alain with his Turkish coffee and sweets/nuts that accompanied it

Alain and Toby

We took a bigger ferry back to a pier near the New Mosque and Spice Bazaar.  We took a few pics of the courtyard of the New Mosque including some beautiful tiles.

Signage for New Mosque (really not so new- 1597-1663)

In the courtyard

Corner of courtyard

Tile detail

Our final stop before heading back to the apartment was the Spice Bazaar, where we picked up some sheep's cheese, turkish tea, and some turkish delight.

Outside of the Spice Bazaar

Definitely a slower pace today on the Asian side.  But wonderful sights and the food scene was great.