Bursa, Turkey

Bursa, Turkey

Click here to see my web-album with pictures of Bursa. Here are some more.

The decision to go to Bursa was a good one. To get there from Istanbul, one needs to cross the Sea of Marmara. The bus depot for getting to Bursa is on the Asia side of Istanbul, and the instant I got off the ferry with my luggage I was spotted by a bus company operative, and hustled over to the coach office to purchase my ticket. It was about a 3 or 4 hour journey, including the ferrying across the sea. Catching the city bus at the Bursa bus depot felt a bit sketchy, because I really had no idea where I was supposed to get off, but with a bit of help from another passenger, whospoke no English but was happy to help, I exited the bus at the correct stop, and got my bearings.

The city of Bursa is small in comparison to Istanbul - only 2 million. It has a glorious and interesting past as well, and among other things, it was and still is the silk centre of excellence. Nearby the hotel where I stayed, is the market area, including the covered market, and the various “Hans”, where the different trades and marketers met, back in the day, to do business and strike deals. These Hans, or lodges, were dedicated to, for instance, silk traders and they make up part of the larger market in general, where you can purchase anything thing your heart desires. There are old photos in the Silk Han showing heaps and heaps of cocoons being sold to the silk producers, and it is still where the silk shops are mostly found, with a dazzling array of choices of scarves and garments. Here I was sorely tempted to step inside the shops to consider a purchase. Alas, I did not give in to temptation, and left Bursa empty handed. Bad decision!

There is a local high school principal who goes to the Gunes Hotel, where I stayed, every evening after work. There Ahmet greets all the new guests and basically takes them under his wing to share his passion for his home city. The first order of business is to accompany him to a tea house just around the corner, where locals gather every evening to play and sing traditional music, and of course drink tea. Once ushered into the back room where this daily event takes place, everyone is welcome and welcoming. The musicians are of a few generations, and they all seem to know all the tunes, sharing the lead vocals and lead on the long necked lute-like instrument. There is always a hand drummer and sometimes another will play a large boran-like drum (like a large tambourine withot the jingley-jangley bits). They also have a version of “spoons“, made of wood with a small striker that make a fabulously fun percussive addition to the mix. These spoons will be passed around the group, and you can expect to be invited to join in the ensemble. Once you figure out how to hold them, it is remarkably easy to come off sounding like you actually know what you are doing! It was with great pleasure that I attended three of these jam sessions, each evening hearing different singers and players, thus being introduced to various styles in the local genre. Each evening in the midst of a tune in full flight, the music would suddenly stop, in unison, at which point the instruments were replaced and the gentlemen left for prayers. And that was that, until tomorrow! Quite amazing!

My first evening in Bursa, after meeting Ahmet, I teamed up with a few other guests, one of whom was a “veteran” and already know the ropes. Together, under instructions from Ahmet, we went to see the Whirling Dervishes at their school. It was truly an incredible experience, where any and all are welcome to witness this ritual, at no cost. There were mostly Turkish people watching on, but foreign tourists as well. As is typical in Islamic temples, men are downstairs and women and children upstairs in the balconies. There ritual includes a group of musicians and singers, and a master Sufi who oversees the event. In turn, each of the dancers greet the master and each other twice, and when the music begins, each in turn, begins to whirl. There is a set pattern to their movements across the floor, with one man is stationed in the centre. There pattern represents the universe and the position of their arms represents receiving and giving of light. Some men had one arm extended up (receiving) and the other down(giving), while others had both arms in the receiving position, and with various gradations between, depending on their seniority. The head is tilted to one side for the entire dance, which last about one hour. Sufism is the mystical branch of Islam and Bursa is one of the main centres of the sect. One can see Sufi dancing in Istanbul, where it is a tourist spectacle for which one pays dearly. In Bursa, this was truly a mystical experience, and one of absolute inclusion. After the dance was complete, tea was offered to anyone who wished it in the adjoining garden, where members of the congregation provided information pamphlets on the restoration of the temple and dvd’s of the dance.

Apart from the main attractions within the city of Bursa itself (various mosques and neighbourhoods of particular interest and the market - oh the beautiful produce!) that Ahmet insisted we all take the opportunity to visit, there was another big attraction that he recommended. It was a visit to a nearby Ottoman village, where every weekend the entire town becomes a market place. Fortunately for me and 3 others at the hotel, we were able to join Ahmet for this excursion. We took the local bus, and within about an hour, we were sitting at a table in the garden of one of the local families, indulging in a fabulous spread of local specialities laid out before us. The cherry trees were in bloom and it was a perfect warm spring day. When we had sufficiently stuffed ourselves, we made our way up through the town, being greeted by the friendly locals as we wandered. There was an air of genuine joy and happiness that pervaded the scene, with visitors and vendors all relishing the fine weather and the bounty of the earth such as homemade breads, preserves, honey and propolis, figs, olives, cheese, vegetables and freshly prepared crepes with spinach and cheese. It was a beautiful and memorable outing for us all and we were very grateful to Ahmet for being so caring and taking the time to share the best of Bursa with us.

After five days in Bursa I made my way back across the sea of Marmara to Istanbul to catch my flight, same day, to Amman Jordan.

Click here to see my web-album with pictures of Bursa.