Bosphorus Cruise and Calligraphy Museum

Friday was Bosphorus cruise day. The Bosphorus is a rather unique waterway. There doesn't seem to be much of a current. Supposedly, there are two currents - an upper, surface current that flows from the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea and a lower current that flows in the reverse direction. Central Istanbul is situated at the southern end of the Bosphorus, where it meets the Marmara Sea. We started there and cruised north nearly to the Black Sea. During the cruise, we passed under the two existing bridges that span the Bosphorus and saw the third one, which is under construction. The bridges have spurred the growth of Istanbul by encouraging more urban sprawl. The third one has been controversial because the decisions are made in Ankara with limited consideration, supposedly, of local concerns. Our ferry boat dropped us off at a small town on the Asian side of the Bosphorus, where we climbed up to the site of an old fort. The area is still militarized because Turkey, by international treaty, has complete control over the waterway and needs to protect that right. Recently, they allowed a US warship through the straits but denied passage to the Russian military. From the ruins of the fort, we got a great view of the Black Sea. 

We strolled back down the hill and waited in the village for our ferry boat to depart again. For the return trip, we had decided to visit a calligraphy museum on the European side of the strait. The museum was housed in a mansion that was donated to a university for management. Part of the museum included the furnishings of the mansion, but the most interesting part was their collection of Korans. The display included videos about the entire process of producing a Koran -- from paper-making, ink-making, writing, illuminating/illustrating, to binding. They also identified the different styles of Arabic script. The museum was well worth the visit. They also had a special exhibit detailing Polish-Turkish relations through the centuries. Due to our time constraints and limited interest, we only briefly scanned these displays. No picture-taking was allowed. 

Our way home included some more wandering along the Bosphorus shoreline, a little backgammon, and some tea before finding a bus that dropped us near our room.