An island with horses for motors and a nice little peak

My last full day in Istanbul and it is time to take another boat. I head for the Princes' Islands, in particular Buyukada (which translates as Big Island). After a ferry schedule miscalculation and an hour and a half delay, I am on the ferry, headed out to sea. The good news is that the ferry was only 2YTL for a 80 minute ride. The bad news is that this is not news to anyone, and the ferry is jam-packed full, with no seats to be found anywhere. However, the views of Sultanahmet as we head into the Sea of Marmara make me forget the crowded conditions.

Landing on the island and heading through the ferry building, I ran smack into gobs of humanity. Wow. This was a popular place. Its big draw is that it has no motorized vehicles on the island, instead relying on bicycles and horse-drawn carriages. I had not expected to see so many people take advantage of the car-free environs. I quickly made my way forward, up the one main hill.

Along the way, houses demonstrated some of the island's history. It acquired the name Princes Island because it used to be a place to which princes were exiled to get them out of the way. Succession in the Ottoman Empire was a tricky business, and so princes that were not next in line were often subject to extreme measures, including exile. They didn't seem to suffer much, here at least, as the Victorian houses and large gardens bear history to their lifestyles.

Beyond the houses was a large public park, full of reveling picnickers. A thoroughly nice place to hang out, though it could use some volunteer clean-up crews and a better ethic about packing out your trash.

At last, I made it to the top! The hill got steeper and steeper, with less and less shade, so it was not a sweat-free affair. But it was worth it. From up top, 360 degree views let me see the other three islands, the Asian side of Istanbul, and, off in the hazy distance, the minarets of the Blue Mosque.

Crowned on top of the hill was a little church and monastery. Nothing too notable about that. However, next door was a cafeteria, that turned out to be worth writing about...