Sunday, June 26th
Weather - 75 degrees, cloudy w/ some showers in the morning (gasp!), sunny in the afternoon
Plans - Umu Camii in Bursa, Isa Bey Camii in Ephesus, and Hotel Kismet on the Aegean Sea in Kuşadesı
Umu Camii
The Umu Camii (pronounced Oo-moo Jam-ee) or "Camel Mosque" was probably my favorite religious site after the Hagia Sophia. Stationed in Bursa next to the silk bazaar, the mosque is one
of the oldest in Turkey. Constructed in 1399, it was the epicenter of worship in the old Ottoman capital, and I loved its simplicity. The mosque had beautiful fountains on all sides for worshipers to wash their hands and feet before entering for prayer. There's nothing special or ornate about the mosque, but, like I said, I just really liked the look and feel of the place. I also really enjoyed being there so early in the morning (8:00am), so we were pretty much the only tour group in there, and we joined about 10 guys who pointed themselves to Mecca for their morning prayer. To see a video of the Umu Camii, click here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg5qdCEtxMwIsa Bey Camii
The Isa Bey Camii or "Brother Jesus Mosque" is located in Ephesus, and was constructed 15
years prior to the Umu Camii in Bursa. This 1375 architectural piece was constructed at the end of the Seljuk era of Turkish history, and while the previous mosque celebrated a beginning, the Isa Bey was more of a knell to the end of the Seljuks. That doesn't mean this place wasn't beautiful, as, just like some other mosques, the Seljuks used other portions of the architecture, including the nearby Temple of Artemis (one of the original 7 Wonders of the World), among other things. The Isa Bey was used for prayer all the way up until the 1950s, when an earthquake (which plague the country) destructed the minaret and caused it to be of no use. The Isa Bey is also one of the first mosques to sport a courtyard for prayer and congregating, and it is one of the few relics from the Seljuk period that still stands today. Mark also completed his daily burpees with Cynthia, an art teacher from Florida, here among the ruins - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jcw03laK-gcI also have a video of the inside of Isa Bey, which you can see here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2djpunxp04M
Kuşadesı
Man, I love this town. Think of your favorite sweet, clean shore town and then remove all the
annoying tourists, give yourself 80 degree temps all day everyday, and place your room on the largest deck overlooking the Aegean Sea, and you'll have my room at the Hotel Kimset in the town of Kuşadesı (pronounced Koo-shah-day-shee). The town only has about 5,000 - 10,000 people, so it's large enough to sport a fun night life, but small enough to not be overrun with tourists like OCMD or Atlantic City. It's really a very nice town, and the people all walk around with a smile on their faces. I love it because it's not expensive, either. When we walked through the town center, places were advertising food for 10-15 Lira ($7-$10) and bier for 4 Lira ($2.75). However I'd hate to see the cost of our hotel, only because I'd want to be here again. Check out my photo of the sunset from my room's balcony.Tomorrow should be a fun day. We get to hike around the ruins of the famous Greek town of Ephesus (where Paul dictated his letter of Ephisians, now a Biblical book) and then come back and hit up the beach all day. I love learning on the teacher tours!
Gule Gule!
Jake
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