a ferry ride

Just before heading out on my adventure for the day, I spotted a naval ship cruising down the Bosphorus.  You do not see naval ships very often.  After it was out of range, I left the apartment and took the bus to Anadolu Kavagi, the northernmost ferry stop on the Asian side.  My goal was to take the ferry from Anadolu Kavagi across the Bosphorus to Rumeli Kavagi.  This is the only Bosphorus ferry crossing that I had yet to take.  Temperatures today were forecast for the low 60's, so it seemed a good day for this excursion.

 While in Anadolu Kavagi, it was much easier to spot the castle at the top of the hill with the leaves off the trees.

 The ferry pushed off from the village of fish restaurants and fishing boats, ...

My Mom's house sold last week, and to celebrate, I brought my copy of her front door key with me and slipped it into the Bosphorus.  It can spend the rest of its life flowing back and forth between the Black Sea, just beyond the horizon line of this picture and the Sea of Marmara.

 Looking back to Anadolu Kavagi and the castle.

 And approaching Rumeli Kavagi on the European side of the Bosphorus.

 We were in about 50 feet of the ferry landing when an attendant on land shouted to us.  Evidently there were no passengers to get on the ferry, so we did not stop, but continued to the next stop, Sariyer.  That was fine with me.  I was heading there to see the exhibit of terra-cotta figures at the Sadberk Hanim museum.  No picture taking at that museum, but it is a very good one.

 After Sariyer, I bussed down to Yenikoy and after passing the cats on the pumpkin ledge, ferried back to Asia

Anadolu Kavagi

Yesterday was sunny after a rainy week, so I hopped on the 15A bus to Anadolu Kavagi, the last ferry stop on the Asian side of Istanbul before the Black Sea.  The village is not large and tucked in between forested hills belonging to the Turkish military.  A sign in English at the ferry landing notes that the word "kavagi" is derived from the Turkish word "kavak", which means to hold, to stop, to turn around.  For the past several centuries, this and Rumeli Kavagi, on the European side of the Bosphorus, mark the point where traffic flow into the Bosphorus can be controled.  My own Turkish-English dictionary notes that "kavak" means poplar tree, so I continue to wonder about Turkish signs in English.

Rumeli Kavagi on the opposite bank of the Bosphorus is also a small village known for good fish dinners.  Both villages are popular day trip destinations for Istanbulites.

I hiked inland from the village, which also means up hill, to the remains of the Yoros Castle.  From this vantage point, great views can be had, ...

looking south towards the Bosphorus, and...

north towards the Black Sea.

The castle was built in the Byzantine style of alternating layers of brick and stone, 

and includes marble plaques in Greek, which may identify the name of the family.  During the 14th century, the castle was claimed by Byzantines, Ottomans and Genoese at different times.  As with all real estate, the strategic key was location, location, and location.                                                  

On the hilltop, there were some free range chickens roaming around as well as bashful guinea fowl (?).  They did not let me get too close.

Walking back down the hill, I spotted the most artistic home in the village with their front wall done in broken ceramic pieces, ala Gaudi.

Another enjoyable adventure in Istanbul!