So, even though 99.8% of the population is technically Muslim it is possible to find a Christian church (although I had to settle for a Catholic mass at St. Antony’s Church). It was actually very interesting. Given by a Nigerian minister with a thick accent and supported by a chorus of middle aged Asian women. Although it was in English I had a hard time following his accent, but the songs were well chosen and the space itself was beautiful.
Directly over the mass we headed down to Besitash to catch a ferry to one of the big islands several miles off the coast of Turkey. When we finally arrived I found an island full of wild cats and dogs. The entirety of Istanbul is full of cats and dogs who no one owns, yet everyone takes care of. This island, however, probably had more felines than people. What industry there was, was concentrated near the port in the form of a number of restaurants and bike shops. There are thousands of bikes for rent, because there are two tracks which go around the length of the Island. We were going to ride around the longer trail, but there were a couple of factors which got in the way of that plan. First, none of us were in very good shape and it was much more fun to bike for 5 minutes and stop for tea, or a snack. Secondly, I lost the group when my crappy bike chain came off. And then, I found my cell phone wasn’t working… Anyways they eventually came back for me.
Today, Bayrum’s friends were named Zafer (victory) and Ginon (world). They were ridiculous and we probably took a hundred silly pictures. All in all, it was a very good day.
