Ankara, Turkey

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk Mausoleum at the centre of this picture

Ankara, the second largest city in Turkey is formerly known as Ancyra or Angora during the ancient time of the Anatolian kingdom. It had been as the one stop station, or caravanserayi for international traders since thousands of years ago. Later, few kingdoms had been established and ruined on its ground as time passed by. This city had become the capital for modern Turkey since the caliphate system had been substituted with the secular government by Mustafa Kemal.

Lying on the hilly area, this city has a 'dry' and a little bit 'dusty' atmosphere, but still ok to live. So far, I didn't have any health difficulty regarding to the atmosphere and the Mediterranean climate. The Turks should thank to the mountains and hills around this city that provides the 'dust'. This dust have created a business opportunity to them; the ceramic and its colourful paints. Besides, the hilly terrains provide outstanding landscape as well as good natural defensive structure. This place really reminiscent my visit in Rome few years ago.

Ankara Citadel, Ulus, Ankara

Walking on the cobblestone pavement through the staggering and slanting domino-like shops while climbing uphill made me feel as if I were in the 18th century Turkey. Thanks to Allah for giving me tough legs but to reach the citadel (hisar) at the peak of the hill (tepe) wasn't as easy as you think. It was quite challenging and in fact I had burned a lot of my calories. I was in Ulus, Ankara to visit the remains of the citadel belongs to the ancient Anatolian Hitties. Local people here said that this is the old city of Ankara. Old city? How old is it? Some people outside Turkey including myself (when I was 10) might say that the capital and the oldest city of Turkey is Istanbul. This citadel had proven me wrong. According to some sources, the history of this citadel back to 3000 years ago. At this age, this citadel had witnessed the rise and fall of many kingdoms in Ankara. Basically it wasn't a big fortress. Standing at the highest tier of the citadel, you could see Ankara city in a stunning 360° view. What more? Vertigo of course!. No handrails or safety caution, it was a risky and perilous visit. To the north, there is a big castle which is not far from this citadel. I believe this citadel was built to support in defending the castle from any attack from the south. It reminds me the St. John Fort in Malacca which was built to support the defense of Kota Melaka. Back-to-Back strategy as always. Adjacent to the main gate you could find the Rahmi M. Koç museum. Anybody who want to hear Kemal Ataturk recorded voice or see some of his belongings, just visit this museum. There are more than that in this museum. Build atop of the hill, this citadel was surrounded by houses, mini hotels and shops with network of streets. You could buy some souvenirs here. Colourful ceramic lamps, bead bracelets and necklace, carpet, sajdah, Turkish tarbus, Turkish metal crafts, nuts and spices were the options. You could bargain at some shops while some of them had fixed their price. If you an opportunity to be in Ankara, I would like to suggest to visit this place. The entrance is free.What you need is stamina and energy. Güle-güle!

Turkish cuisine and Turkish delight

Turkish cuisine, how does it looks like? The first thing that came into my mind was kebab. Well, it was one of the main menu. However, the Turks could offer more than that. Generally, just like the other Mediterranean food, turkish cuisine are 'dry food', I mean with less gravy and sauce in the cooking - most of south east asian foods are 'wet' such as tom yum, asam pedas, stew, pindang, curry etc. In few cases, they have soups, thick soup, especially made from tomato or yogurt or eggplant. Bread and pilav rice are the basic element for the carbohydrate. Fibre source? Tomato, olive, eggplant and cucumber are indispensable. Cheese, yogurt and olive oil are main ingredients in most cuisine. The main course have been prepared and presented in several different ways. Perhaps you could recognize the cuisine by knowing their name first.

Istanbul, Part III

The Bazaars and Caravansarayi

Baklava kiosk in the middle

When I was in Istanbul, I had visited three bazaars that lies within Fatih district. The biggest and most famous was The Grand Bazaar. The second bazaar was the Spice Bazaar and the third one was the Arasta Bazaar. The Grand bazaar (GB) is located adjacent the Beyazid tram station (blue line T1). This bazaar really reminiscent me the James Bond film, Skyfall in 2012. Remember the chasing scene using motorcycle on the roof top of the bazaar? If you want to know this is the 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th century Oxford street, Wang Fu Jing and 5th Avenue! Wow! The aisle is fully covered with roof so it shouldn't be a problem if winter comes. One more thing, you could get free fresh water to drink at few locations. Interesting isn't it? GB project was launched by Sultan Muhammad II just after the fall of Constatinople. The construction completed in 1461 and it is believed that most of the project cost was sponsored by donation gained from the Aya Sofya Mosque. What do they have there inside the GB? Factory outlets, boutiques, restaurants, jewelers, spice shops, leather shops and antique shops, all are here. You'll find quality linens, blankets, fine jeweleries, outstanding metalwork of tea set, leather hand bags, porcelains nd ceramic products, clothes and many more. Fine quality and a lot of choices. And when I pass through the walkways, I heard the sellers called; "Mari beli", "Murah...Murah...", "Apa khabar? Malaysia baguuusss". What? How many Malaysians had taught them malay I guess. Ok, fine, so I answered, "Lain kalilah ye!". Hahhahah.

Istanbul, Part II

Fatih District: the heart of Istanbul

I came here to experience myself the legacy of the great and the famous Ottoman Caliphate. However it was difficult to discover the hundred years of history in a single day. So dear friends, my advice is, if you have limited time to spend in Istanbul, just book your hotel in this district. History lovers, art lovers, interior design fans, shoppers, Turkish delight hunters and hardcore travellers would not miss this place in their planner. You’ll find great places to visit such as Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque@ Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Istanbul Archaeology Museum, Grand Bazaar and many more. You can google and there are many websites have listed down their top 10 places to visit in Istanbul. I have my own too, but I separate the mosques as another list.

My TOP 10 List: 1.       Topkapi + Harem 2.       Hagia Sophia 3.       Grand Bazaar 4.       Hurrem Sultan Hammam 5.       Istanbul Museum of The History of          Science and Tech. in Islam 6.       Istanbul Archaeology Museum 7.       Spice Bazaar 8.       Arasta Bazaar + Marmara Seaside 9.       Mosaic Museum 10.    Basilica Cistern

My TOP 5 Mosque to visit: 1.       Blue Mosque 2.       Suleymaniye Mosque 3.       Shahzeda Mosque 4.       Fatih Mosque 5.       Eyup Sultan Mosque (outside Fatih)

The other places to visit outside Fatih District:

1.       Dolmabache Palace

2.       Bosphorus Cruise (going to Bursa take only 1 hour trip)

3.       Rumeli Hisari (Rumeli Fort - construction led by Sultan Muhammad II prior the fall of  
Constantinople)

4.       Miniataturk (just like Taman Islam Terengganu & Mini China, Shenzen)

5.       Golden gate and Theodosian Walls (Just like visiting China's Great Wall)

6.       Galata Tower (It just a big tower but you can dine at the tower top restaurant)

7.       Taksim square

First compartment of the Topkapi Sarayi (Palace)

Istanbul, Part I

Inside the blue mosque

Allahuakbar!That's the only word that popped up from my mouth as I entered the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. Really enchanted by the beauty, colourful and glimmering of this mosque. Definitely I adore to the people who built this mosque - their spirit, willingness, resilience and passion to achieve such a great masterpiece. Located near the Marmara sea, this mosque is not the first mosque built by the Ottomans after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The first mosque built by the Ottomans was the Fatih Mosque - yeah, after the name of its conqueror - Sultan Mehmed II Fatih (Sultan Muhammad II). Fatih/Fath means 'open' in Arabic. Oh, I'm not good in Arabic - but the pronounciation sounds something like that. Hagia Sophia, the Byzantine Great Cathedral had been converted into a mosque just after the fall of Constantinople. This post is just the beginning of my Turkey travelogue. I will explain more about the sultanate and its empire, their leaders, their growth and declination in the next few posts. Istanbul is the modern name of the city. I really like this city. It is an unique city. It is located near the Bosphorus strait, a meeting point of two seas; the Black sea and the Marmara sea.