Leaving Istanbul, the interesting landscapes seemed reminiscent of pictures I've seen of Iran, filled with gentle hills, dry, yellow and burnt green grasslands dotted with intermittent fig trees and random patches of wildflowers, first in clusters of yellow and then yielding to fields of red (possibly poppies). The area truly had a Middle Eastern feel, though not that of the parched deserts that often come to mind. The bus sped down the coast, eventually ending up at Gallipoli, the site of an important battle in World War I, particularly for Australians and New Zealanders who still celebrate the date of the battle as ANZAC day, April 25. Essentially the site of an Allied failure while attempting to open up Turkey and another route to inland Russia, the site is bittersweet for many, though I only saw a few of the memorials from the road. We eventually neared the end of the peninsula, and our bus drove onto a quick ferry across the Dardanelles, another famous straight from mythological times, spanning the narrow opening that eventually widens out to the Sea of Marmara before passing by Istanbul and reaching the vast Black Sea.
After our bus left the ferry, we were let off in Çanakkale (that c is pronounced "ch"), the large port town that was surprisingly nice. I wandered in and out of the small lanes off the main road, trying in vain to find any street names, eventually realizing that my intended hotel was just three minutes from the ferry station, after my 30 minute circle around town. I dropped my stuff in the room and took a stroll down the boardwalk, delighting in the mass of locals enjoying the comfortable evening air as the sun set over the hills. Despite the relatively large number of people, it was calm and relaxed with very few tourists along the vast stretch of sidewalk along the harbor. Soon I came upon a huge representation of the Trojan horse. I decided to check out the plaque which told the well-known story of the Trojan War. As the Greeks were unable to penetrate the city walls, they came up with a plan to sail away, letting the Trojans see them disappear over the horizon only to hide and return at nightfall with an enormous wooden horse waiting on the doorstep to the city. The Trojans eventually brought the horse into the city center where it sat undisturbed until the night came, when the Greek soldiers hidden inside emerged and conquered the city. Thinking this was surely a historically significant landmark for the city, I continued reading, and the plaque then made a big deal out of the Warner Brothers movie, "Troy", which I thought was a little odd. Reading further, I found that this was the actual horse used in the movie, and it said something to the effect of "it has been standing here proudly since 2004." So maybe it wasn't quite historical, but it was still interesting and drew a crowd of people posing for pictures around it.
The following day I took a minibus an hour out to the actual site of Troy, which is either called Troia or Truva or both in Turkish; I can't really tell. For such a historically significant site, I found the place almost empty after the two tour buses left just as I arrived, which allowed me to enjoy my stroll through history in peace and quiet. The actual story of Troy is that the site has been occupied for something like 5,000 years, and the archaeologists identify about nine separate eras in which the city grew and declined, always building back up on top of the fallen ruins. This meant that some of the modest stone ruins among the overgrown grass fields were extremely old, while others were from slightly more modern times of around 1,500 years ago (still impressive to us Americans). Though the ruins were not breathtaking, it was certainly interesting to see the remains of the ancient city, layered on top of each other, displaying pieces of old roads, columns and even an amphitheater. As it turns out, the real reason for the Trojan War was probably less romantic than for the hand of the most beautiful woman in the world; Troy was an important trading port positioned at a very strategic harbor inland to Constantinople and also down the Aegean coast. The winds also dictated that many sailors had to spend days there waiting for rare winds to steer them up the channel, hence the slogan "the winds brought wealth to Troy."
I wasn't blown away by the ruins, but I did enjoy the peaceful walks through the fields of grass and sparse trees, all baked by the constant sunshine, though the weather was just cool enough to still make it pleasant. Back at the entrance, I stopped off at the largest attraction of the site, a huge re-creation of the Trojan horse, complete with a steep set of steps to enter the belly of the wooden creature, just as the soldiers would have, though I get the feeling that this one is probably a little more tourist-friendly. Heading back to Çanakkale, I met a nice owner of a small restaurant and discovered "pide," the Turkish version of pizza, which is a long, flat bread shaped somewhat like a canoe, covered with a little bit of meat and cheese and baked in brick oven. I was also amused to find that both on some of the buses and in the restaurants, the locals are quick to pour out some strongly scented lemon hand sanitizer, as it seems to be the cure all for everything, and you are given a puzzling look if you would refuse this elixir.
(The Trojan horse of Çanakkale. It turned out that this is the actual horse...used in the movie "Troy," and it has been standing there proudly since...2004. Wow, how historic.)
(Some of the typical ruins of Troy/Troia/Truva. I wish someone would just tell me what the real name was, as you see it all different ways.)
(These ruins could be anywhere from 1,500 to 5,000 years old. Amazingly, I didn't have my portable carbon dating kit with me, so I couldn't tell you.)
(One of the more elaborate ruins. That circle thing used to be used for doing circle stuff, and the diamond thing used to be used for doing diamond stuff...maybe a jeweler.)
(The small, mostly intact theater in the ancient city of Troy.)
(A few columns strewn among the grass and red poppies. This site was really scenic, not so much in the sense of extensive ruins, but just being a peaceful, pleasant grassy field amongst other pretty countryside.)
(I overheard one guide telling someone else that this piece on the right was an ancient roadway. Soon after, I was entertained by a turtle making his way noisily through the dry undergrowth.)
(That's me waving from inside the second level of the Trojan horse. This of course is a re-creation of the horse, as the Trojans probably didn't feel like keeping the original one around after causing the demise of their city. "Oh look, here's the joke that destroyed our culture. Haha. Those were good times.")
(Mmmmmm. Pide = Turkish version of pizza. This one had minced meat, cheese and some spices, topped with a chili sauce and served with a side of lettuce, lemons (for squeezing), parsley and onions, along with those red things you see on the top left plate (maybe a couscous mix thing). I don't really know what they were, but I ate them as lettuce wraps and no one seemed to give me any weird looks...or at least no more than normal.)
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