Tag: Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi

On my journey, I was able to watch people going about their day, some were in a hurry to get to meetings, some had nothing to do, some were tourists being overwhelmed by new sights and sounds.

They looked at the old tram which rumbles up and down Taxim Hill between Taxim Square and Tunel. A real old machines, lovingly maintained, which makes them a joy to ride.

Beside the tram stop a vendor sells the traditional Simit, a round ring of bread with I presume sesame seeds, the Turkish people love them, as there are vendors on every street corner, or you hear them shouting out for people to buy them as they balance a tray of the on their head, or you see them walking between the cars of the ever increasing traffic jams with simit’s strung on broom handles.

On my journey on the ferry to the Eastern side, I sat in the open stern, cold but enjoying the views of Istanbul. I look back to where we had just departed, as a young woman  threw pieces of Simit into the air for the hungry seagulls to pluck midair, to the masses of apartments perched on the step hills of Istanbul.

There, I say the Galata Tower. From 1348 this tower has dominated the skyline of Istanbul, originally known as the Tower of Christ, it was a lookout tower of the Genoese colony called Galata. this 12-storey construction once functioned as a jail for prisoners of war, a shipyard, a warehouse and a fire station. Today the Galata Tower is one of Istanbul’s major attractions, offering fantastic views of the city and its landmarks. It is said that, an Ottoman citizen, Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi was the first person to fly, launched himself from the tower and crossed the Bosphorus.

     

Again as we crossed to the other side, I saw the trade of the world happening as ships moored at the quayside to unload their cargo, and take new containers of goods to the rest of the world.