The Postcard Race: ROUND 3 Winners Announced

Congratulations Audrhea Lande and Lori Johnson from Winnipeg, Manitoba; they win round three of The Postcard Race. Audrhea confirmed receipt of her postcard Friday May 22, less than one week (if we take the time change into account), from when it was sent from Istanbul. Audrhea and Lori win "something mailed to them from another country". We are on our way to Amorgos in Greece on June 1st, I am sure we can find something there to send them.

Congratulations gals and please congratulate your very efficient postal worker for us!

The Postcard Race- Round 3

May in Istanbul

Akbil: a cute little, metal, musical ticket you load at vending machines in Istanbul. It allows you to ride trams or buses or trains or ferries or funiculars. Musical notes correspond to: your on, your still on (though not you first ride in 90 minutes) or a sad note tells you (and everyone around you) that your Akbil is out of cash and needs loading.

Istanbul is situated precisely above the North Anatolian Fault, one of the fastest moving and most active fault lines in the world. It shows similarities to the San Andreas fault in terms of age and structure and produces earthquakes of similar size and at similar intervals

Istanbul is on the banks of The Golden Horn a unique sheltered harbour with an open passageway to the Bosphoros, the Sea of Marmara and the Mediterranean. It is home to the second largest serving dockyards in the world after Venice.

Hamam/Turkish Bath: Like the “harem” and “belly-dancing” have all taken their place in the Western mind. Once a titillating constituent of the Orientalist imagination, it is today a nostalgic element of the western image of Turks, existing hamams cater mostly to tourists.

According to the year 2000 data there are 2562 mosques in Istanbul and all of them broadcast the call to prayer five times a day beginning at 5AM.

According to 2008 data there are 1,731,732 vehicles driving in the city, there are 73 parking lots with the capacity to hold 22,229 vehicles. In reality any urban surface can become a parking spot at any time no matter how many vehicles are blocked from movement.

Simit: The perfect marriage of flour, water, salt, yeast, grape molasses and sesame in wood fire. An army of simit-sellers seep every morning into the city after they load their mobile sales units from the stone-oven bakeries. Delicious!

The silent millions (or street cats and dogs), circulate in the city without any legal documentation. They are part of the neighbourhood fabric; by day asleep in a sunny spot. You see them everywhere and one migh even think they are worshipped here.

Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi, an inhabitant of Istanbul in the 17th century Ottoman Empire is credited with the first flight using artificial wings in the history of aviation. The event took place in the year 1638. Hezarfen took off from the 183-foot tall Galata Tower near Bosporus and landed successfully at Uskudar, on the other side six kilometers away.

Agatha Christie wrote her famous mystery “Murder on the Orient Express” at the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul.

First traffic accident occurred in 1912 at Sisli district of Istanbul, when the driver of the Italian Embassy hit a pedestrian and tried to run away from the scene.

The four bronze horses that decorate San Marco Cathedral in Venice, were taken from Istanbul (Constantinople back than) by the Crusaders in the 13th century.