Bountıful Bursa (late post)

A long, hard day of rıdıng ın the mountaıns ıs rewarded wıth a beautıful cıty full of amazıng food markets and our fırst dıp ınto the hamam. One more thıng that desperately needs to be ımported to the US. I've never felt so clean ın my lıfe. Helps to have some ham-fısted Turk beatıng and latherıng and scrubıng you wıth terry-clothed mıtts after a thorough steam, sweat and soak. The buildings themselves are beautiful. They were built alongside mosques and are old stone and brick. The insides, solid roof to floor in creamy marble with an enormous heated marble bench in the center. It's like being inside a giant frosted cake. The hamam "experience" deserves the same sort of waxing emotional that a Turkish haircut received but, I won't waste your time with my fond remembering.

(pic of Hannah looking blissed, outside the hamam)

Our hotel was run by an older couple from a mountain village. A pair of brothers married a pair of sisters and now take turns running the hotel for a couple of weeks at a time. Since they have to be there all the time, they've flung their doors open to all sorts of crazy characters who've made it their hangout. One such person is a highschool principle and a passionate fan of Turkish traditional culture. He told us about a cafe where, after work, people meet to play traditional music, sing, smoke and drink tea. Great fun and good training for Ireland, eh?







He also practically dragged us to a performance by "The society for the preservation of Dervish ceremoney and Mevlana poetry and philosophy".

The whirling dervishes.


A mix of religeon including readings from the Koran and a lecture (this time about the evils of littering), music, performance art and ecstatic ritual. Words will fail me so I hope we'll figure a way to post the video.


And of course, more amazıng food. Candıed chestnuts, more kepab, 30 kinds of olives to chose from and drıed carob pods anyone?

Then a ferry to the industrial heart of Turkey. No wish to bicycle into a city of 17 million people.