Trabzon
Three things I notice almost instantly on arrival in Turkey:
They drink a whole lot more tea than anywhere I have been - in cute glasses with sugar cubes;
They smoke a whole lot more than I have seen elsewhere on this trip;
They read newspapers more here - not saying much, because I don’t think I saw anyone reading one in China or Central Asia.
Combine the three and it’s probably not a bad way to pass the time. Anyway, my first stop in Turkey is Trabzon, an ancient city on the Black Sea - it has a more than 2,500 year history as a centre for trade, starting life as a Greek colony, but has been won and lost in numerous battles over the years. It is known in literature, opera and other musical forms as Trebizond (Don Quixote apparently wanted to possess it).
These days, it remains an important port city, and its main exports are hazelnuts, anchovies and tea. It must be a good port, because otherwise it doesn’t seem to be a very logical place to put a city - there’s a small amount of flat land, almost entirely taken up by the six lane highway and airport, which is right on the sea shore. The city has to climb the hills, although there is a substantial plateau about 500 metres up.
They have made a really nice park and promenade which runs between the shore and highway.
I have carefully chosen my hotel, because it is close to the bus station - it is in an otherwise unusual location: I am surrounded by small blocks of four storey buildings, with their ground floors taken up by every sort of car related business imaginable, apart from the actual sale of cars. I do notice one interloper, a timber merchant. There aren’t many food places - I do find a line of four or five cafes, but there’s no one eating anything - just drinking tea, smoking and reading the newspaper. So I go for a bit of a walk - there’s a fancy new mall, the Forum, where I think I’ll get dinner. On the way, I am dismayed to find a blank space where the bus station should be.
The mall has a couple of quite large restaurants, but my attention is caught by the line of cafes. There’s one place called Cafer Erol - he was a confectioner who started up in 1807. I have to go in (I do actually walk in to all of them, have some tea in one, but this place is next level).
I have a wee snack - the chocolate and milk cake is heated and truly delicious. I think it is only proper that I have some Delight (yes, it’s called Turkish Delight, but is that necessary in Turkey?).
Not sure why, but I don’t fancy dinner in the mall, so start climbing the hill - google maps suggests its a busy area with lots of cafés. They are right, but don’t mention the twisty, steep streets or the fact that everyone in the busy cafes is just drinking tea, smoking and, no, not reading newspapers - playing very serious games of backgammon. That’s a fourth thing I should have listed! The places devoted to food have no customers, so I have an average burger and hang out in one of the cafés.
In the morning, I head the other way, towards the city proper - the commercial centre is on the plateau I mentioned, with its central square or Meydan, a couple of long, very busy streets and jumbles of more narrow ones. It seems to be a very prosperous place.
On the way, I stop for tea at this pleasant hillside park.
This is Meydan
Yes, I’ve gone into Coffeeshop Company, the yellow building in the top photo. It claims to be a Viennese coffee shop, but the food on offer is entirely Turkish. I try menemen - its a dish of stewed tomatoes and peppers, into which an egg or two is stirred - but not quite scrambled. Much better than it looks! I also have what they call Viennese coffee.
I spend the rest of the afternoon wandering the streets and going down to the waterfront.
This is a pretty impressive looking café with a huge number of seats, all occupied, but I’m really there to get a clear shot of a building I’ve spotted (I think it is a University building).
Oh, and there’s a glimpse of the Black Sea - this area is so built up, you wouldn’t even know its there. I should really have started my day a bit earlier - Trabzon’s most important tourist attraction is its Hagia Sophia Mosque, but it’s late in the day and the mosque is another 50 minute walk to the west. Instead, I hunt for a beer to close the day - I am about to give up, when I finally find a bar. I do go to the Forum mall for dinner, and am disappointed - should have eaten while still in town, but wasn’t hungry.
Cheers!