Black Sea Cruise -- The Bosporus Strait

By water the only way to the Black Sea is through the Bosporus Strait -- one of the most strategic waterways in a world growing increasingly smaller, yet sometimes more distant.  The week we sailed was one of those weeks.  Arriving in Istanbul on a Saturday night in late July, we awoke to see the Bosporus shimmering outside our balcony.  By nightfall, a terrorist attack had killed 16 of the townspeople. About a week later, we sailed up the Bosporus to the Black Sea.  Before we could return to Istanbul, Russia had Georgia on its mind and its mines in Georgia.  

Project Plowshare: Forts to Bridges

Fortress Europe: was this the first arms race?

In no place is the Bosporus very wide, but where it narrows even further in the sprawling city of Istanbul, modern Turkey has suspended two intercontinental bridges.  In the past, these narrow points held forts where cannon could dictate commerce and bar enemy combatants.  As they attempted to wrest control of Constantinople from the fading Byzantines, the Ottomans built two of these forts that still stand across from each other: Fortress Europe and Fortress Asia.

The Sultans' Strait

The Ortakoy mosque

Once the Ottomans arrived, their sultans began to raise palaces and mosques upon the banks of the Bosporus.  Sometimes they created real estate by filling in bays to make room for their huge gardens. While we'd expect these to have distinctly Eastern and Muslim flavors, most are baroque and designed by the same prolific and long-lived Armenian Christian family.

A Place in the Sun

Yalis: Posh Pastels Palaces for the Pashas 

Not just the sultans built summer homes on the Bosporus shores: their noble pashas and viziers vied to outdo each other by building the most lavish Yalis (Ottoman villas).  Over 600 line the strait, mostly built in the 19th century as the Ottoman empire declined.

There's much more of the shore to see by clicking here or follow the link below to see our first stop on the cruise.

Click here to see more Bosporus Pictures and commentary from this trip Click here to see our next stop: Amasra, Turkey