Istanbul to Iznik

When I left, it was too early for breakfast, so I just had coffee alone looking at the Blue Mosque and watched the sunrise from the terrace dining area at the hotel. I underestimated the distance to the ferry dock and missed the ferry to Bandirma by about 36 minutes. The book mentioned Yalova, and Yalova is close to Iznik where those beautiful tiles in Topkapi were made. I didn't really care about seeing the ruins in Efesus anyway, I guess that's why I didn't have much of a plan.

It was time to leave Istanbul but I didn't want to go. After the long walk to the ferry terminal at Yenikapi, I waited for the departure and watched two guys in ties and jackets work with a crane and a homemade steel cage with a jury-rigged pin-in-joint attachment. As I watched the scene unfold, the extremely heavy metal cage banged him right on the instep of his worn out dress shoes. Three guys came over after he hobbled off and got the cage rig attached. It looked pretty unsafe, and so did the loading of the ferry. Cars and people boarded using the same ramp, and a woman and her baby almost got bumped by a car. The ferry and terminals are really new and clean though. The ferry is a catamaran--very large and supposedly fast too with seats like an airplane.

After a couple of buses, I made it to Iznik where I stayed at the bed and breakfast attached to the Iznik Foundation's tile factory. They gave me a complete tour of the factory and a nice room. I explored the small town and walked along lake Iznik. Later in my room, I watched a small musical band of young people march in front of the hotel. I'm not sure what it was for, but the next day, there was a celebration at one of the museums in town.