Cool Head Warm Heart

Beautiful Shanghai at night. It reminds me of the song “Shanghai night” (ye shang hai).

On probably 11 April 2010, our last night in Siem Reap, the town we stayed to visit Angkor Wat, I walked around the old market at night and taking photo of the restaurants.

I continue with my travelogue to Turkey in 2006…

The next morning, if I remember correctly (in November 2006), we woke up before 5am so that we could take the hot air balloon ride. My son got a free seat as he was only 6 year old. (Anything above 6 are chargeble)

The last few minutes in the ferry backed from Blue Mountain. Seagulls flied with sunset on Sydney Opera House.

Writing this blog I know I am running away from the preparation of next Tuesday’s negotiation and discussion on vendor tendering process. Pretty lousy, why people want finance people to deal with people? Can’t I just work with my computer?

And so now I am indulging in my memory. Even with important issues on coming Tuesday.

Let me worry that on Monday. These two photos are soothing.

More beautiful mansions along Parramatta River backed from Homebush Bay toward Sydney…

A seagull followed the ferry we took. At times landed at my friends’ heads. She just flew right above the ferry, like kite.

Beautiful yacht at Parramatta River.

Starting from Homebush Bay Wharf, along Parramatta River, we took a Ferry back to Sydney’s Circular Quay.

Beautiful sunset, shining river and a row boat/ racing shell crossed right under a bridge.

We saw many many Mansion houses along Parramatta River.

And some yacht clubs…I think.

There are more pictures from the ferry trip along Parramatta River in the next post. Below is the map starting from Homebush Bay Wharf.

View Larger Map

I went to Sydney in November 2007. Together with my friends, we took a trip to Blue Mountain and came back to Sydney by ferry.

Does Blue Mountain look blue?

If I remember correctly, I was the only non-Muslim of the tour group that followed the night trip to this Caravanserai to watch the the ritual or ceremony of Mevlana’s whirling dervishes. There were probably about 15 of us, mostly Muslim, went to this Caravanserai. My wife and son and probably 20 others in the tour group decided to stay in the hotel and to prepare to wake up early for tomorrow hot air balloon experience.

It was the early or mid November of 2006, early winter. I wrote in my earlier incomplete travelogue post, highlights of my Turkiye trip:

In a chilling winter night, at this remote 800 year-old caravanserai near Avanos, we watched the ritual or ceremoney of Mevlana’s whirling dervishes. (Mevlana’s teaching) This photo of the caravanserai was taken at about 10pm-11pm, after the ceremony. It was a cold and serene night of early winter. I watched with deep respect to the ritual.

After more than two years, I was unable to complete my travelogue and my memory of this cherished trip is slowly faded away. I love this land, Turkiye or as they called, Anatolia, very much. I just unwilling to forget or accept a blurred faded memory of this beautiful land and beautiful culture and people.

I searched the net to find the name of this Caravanserai, Sari Han Caranserai.

Looking at the architecture. I am very sure SariHan is the Caravanserai that I visited.

Caravanserai served as lodging place for the travellers at yore. Sarihan Caravanserai was part of the Silk Road. The Ottoman Sultans collected tax from the traders when they entered the country. In exchange, the Sultans provided free lodging to these traders. In today words, these are international trade.

It was an extremely quiet night at Avanos. Once the bus engine stopped, all you could hear was quietness. People talked softly. The dervishes songs/ chants were clear and distinct from the background quietness.

This was the hall where the dervishes performed their whirling ritual. It began with plain single vocal. We could hear the echo and it was mesmerizing. Then, the musical instruments joined in. There were some woodwinds, strings (something like a ancient version of guitar) & drums. Very simple background music, though not simple melody.

Then the Whirling Dervishes started to whirl, probably entered into a kind of trance.

The performers were, as I was told, the direct descendants & disciples of Mevlana. There was at least a university professor in the 4-5 whirling dervishes. There were, if I remember correctly, 5-7 musicians playing the ancient musical instruments.

From the little I know, I think Mevlana’s whirling dervishes are not part of Islamic’s sect. The performers are probably Muslims but carry on with the Mevlana’s culture. In today perspectives Mevlana’s Whirling Dervishes movement are peace activists. Mevlana, when he was alive, promoted peace among religions and ethnics. He believed music and dances are the keys to enable people to forget about differences and to live in peace with each other.

In Turkiye, Ataturk banned all religions sects. I supposed it is still illegal to have religion’s rituals until recently. We were not allowed to take photo of the Whirling Dervishes.

Before the bus left for Hotel, I rushed to the left side of the Caravanserai to take this photo. The night was cold, very cold.

This is the map and the location of Sari Han Caravanserai.

View Larger Map

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It was surprising to see a busy and crowded Sydney and that was what I saw. Last November I went to Sydney. It is a beautiful city, though with the usual city’s problems like traffic jam and quick-paced.

Unlike the photo in my Calendar (or most other photos I saw about Sydney) showing a beautiful but empty architecture of Sydney Opera House, the real Sydney the real Sydney Opera House I saw packed with happy people drinking, socialising and having fun. This is the one. Oh! So beautiful, I mean the crowd, the setting sun’s rays, the blue blue sea and, though less, the building.

It was a Saturday evening of early November 2008, summer just began. The air was still cool. Summer heat? That would be a week later. The place was packed with people. The Opera House’s restaurant filled with people with Tuxedo and evening gown. Outside the Opera House beside the sea stood many many people outside and inside pubs and cafes. At Circular Quay, you see people people and people filling the leisure atmosphaere with excitement.

There are more people at Sydney now. Many years ago, my friends who studied at Australia told me…”everything close after 6pm. You can’t find a shop open after 6pm.”

The last time my wife visited Sydeny with her parents with a tour group more than ten years ago, the group stayed at a hotel near King Cross. Yeap, the red light area. At night she heard police sirens.

I imagined Sydney in November was quiet, boring, hot, with lots of flies, some dangerous gansters and probably has to be very careful of pick pocketing thief. But I was dead wrong.

I walked the city with my cousin, who stayed and worked along Sussex Street, at 10pm or later…probably till 12 mid night. From Darling Habour she led me to the Rock, Circular Quay, backed down to Hyde Park, and finally stopped at a Gloria Jean cafe to have tea. The toilet at the opposite McDonald was the dirtiest of all I saw in Australia, UK plus Turkey. But walking at night at Sydney, we both feel safe. It was one of the best walk since a long while ago. We both walked quietly, only few unsequence sentences of conversation. Or may be not, may be we did talk, just that I forgot what we were talking.

I took this silhouette of Sydney’s cityscape from the Ferry. I gave this photo a name “Nocturnal CityScape of Sydney”. The ferry ride came with formal dinner. The food in the ferry is bad. One large chunk of beef.

An Opera House’s evening. We were on the ferry coming back from Bluemountain through Homebush Bay Wharf.

Ferry ride past through many nice yatches.

 
This is the Sydney I remember, crowded, quick-paced yet you can find calmness just a sail away…

Crossing Dardanelles Straight early morning. Leaving Asia to Europe.

Hour long Bosphorus cruise. Beautiful scenery.

Hagia Sophia. Do you realise the co-existence of Mother and Child with Koran’s writing? I think it is the symbol of religion tolerance. It makes Hagia Sofia, Istanbul and Turkey great.

Evening outside Grand Bazaar.

Topkapi Palace. Does it look like Disney Land’s castle?

Inside Topkapi Palace

Tag: Hagia Sofia, Dardanelles Straight, Bosphorus cruise, Grand Bazaar, Topkapi Palace, Istanbul, Turbo Tagger