Arrivederci Italia!

Roma. This ancient and great city almost deserves a blog of its own because it is...um well, so ancient and so great! Yes it is super touristy, yes there are tacky souvenir stores strewn everywhere and yes there are people dressed up as Gladiators constantly harassing tourists to be photographed with them. Aside from all of that, it is difficult not to be awed by the sheer amount of significant historic monutments. It's hard to believe that they all fit into the confines of one city.

Our first morning in Roma didn't start off smoothly for us though. Whilst Italians are exceptional makers of coffee, the take-away variety is still pretty much non-existent. Especially where we were staying, in the suburbs of Rome, a lazy one hour journey to the city centre (mistake #1). Conscience of the one hour commute ahead of us and wanting to fit in as much sight-seeing as possible, Jay and I made our way to the local cafe, and ordered a takeaway coffee and tea (mistake #2). After some confusion, a few hand gestures and the assistance of a couple of locals, the barrister finally understood that we were after takeaway beverages. Unbeknownst to us, she was making them in pre-used plastic juice bottles, which we soon found out still retained the flavours of their original contents. It was hard not to hide the disappointment we felt on our faces as we half-heartedly thanked the barrister for her efforts and made on with the rest of our day, albeit with a coffe tasting like grapefruit and tea tasting off pineapple.

The fateful vessel of our early morning beverages

The significance of Roma as the capital of Catholicism shouldn't go unmentioned either. Despite ongoing controversies surrounding the Pope and the frustratingly conservative nature of the Catholic church, it goes without saying that the Vatican complex, including St Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel, were incredibly breathtaking to visit. And to think that these immense and intricately decorated places of worship were built during the 16th and 17th centuries is another feat in itself.

Inside Saint Peter's Basilica

A view over the Vatican from the dome of St Peter's Basilica

Funny uniformed Vatican guards

The impressive walkway leading to the Sistine Chapel

Having well and truly walked ourselves out in Rome, we decided to give our feet a bit of a rest and hopped on a 12 hour train down to Sicily in southern Italy. Even though the train ride itself was uneventful, it's worth mentioning that to cross the channel from mainland Italy to Sicily, our train drove directly onto an awaiting ferry. With the train on board (and us too), the ferry then crossed the channel.  Once arriving in Sicily the train disembarked the ferry and continued in its tracks! Wowzas!

Our first stop was Palermo. Being in Palermo was like arriving in another country. Aside from people speaking Italian, we never would have guessed we were still in Italy. It was utterly chaotic, with horns blaring, piles of rubbish dumped everywhere, run-down grey buildings lining the streets and the smell of pollution encompassing the city. A stark contrast to the vivid green hills and fresh country air of central Italy. Also in stark contrast was our first night's accommodation with a genuine drug addict. But the story of our hasty exit has no place in this G-rated blog.   

Sicilians evidently also love foosball...there were tables placed around all over the city!

But what Sicily did have was granita (a Sicilian speciality made from ice and typically almond syrup). And cannolli. And lots of almonds (they even come in a crushed form to sprinkle over meals instead of parmesan). And, most excitedly, the brioche con gelati – or less eloquently put, an ice-cream sandwich. Literally. We were acquainted with this devilish dessert on our first night in Palermo, and after seeing hoards and hoards of Sicilians lining up to purchase this treat, we joined in to see what all the fuss was about!

Get in my belly! Ironically the chocolate flavours we chose happened to make our brioche look like a meat-filled one!

Mmmmm yum cannolli!

 

After Palermo, we made our way to the east coast of Sicily, to a lovely little town called Siracuse. Siracuse was a lot less chaotic and dirty than Palermo. It was a lot less touristy too. There was a gorgeous old-town area by the port with an outrageously good market we had lots of fun visiting. We left the market with fresh, handmade pasta and pistachio pesto to make for dinner that night, molto delizioso!! 

The very awesome market of Siracuse

Crazy Sicilian zucchini!

Siracuse also happened to be the home of the best gelati we had in Italy - the ricotta and pistachio flavours were a treat!

Jump if you love Italian food!

Our next stop was Taormina, a clifftop coastal town further north of Siracuse. Unfortunately Taormina has been overrun by tourists and the town itself has lost a lot of its quaint charm. That said, it had an absolutely stunning beachfront for us to enjoy – we didn't take our camera there so this postcard image will have to make do.

Our last destination in Italy was Napoli (Naples), the city which happens to be the birthplace of Italy's most famous and ingenious foods – the humble pizza. Admittedly it was rather intimidating being in THE HOME TOWN OF PIZZA, a food so very world-renowned. Nevertheless, we did not shy away from the challenge of finding THE BEST PIZZA IN NAPOLI (which, given that Napoli is the home of pizza, would mean we were seeking the best pizza in the world). And, I am proud to admit, we came very close, if not actually succeeding, in accomplishing this challenge! Having consumed many a pizzas in our lifetime, in many a different cities, I can confidently say that we undoubtedly ate the best pizzas possible in Napoli. 

A speedy Napolian pizza connoisseur

What was it that set these pizzas miles apart from the common-place varieties of our pasts? Put simply, it was due to their sheer simplicity. A well-rested dough, coupled with an outrageous, bursting-with-flavour passata (tomato) paste, layered with deliciously creamy buffalo cheese, cooked in a searing wood-fired oven for no longer than 3 minutes, was all that was needed to create the best pizzas of our entire lives. That was it. No unnecessary vegetables or silly stuffed crusts. Just a simple, well-prepared and executed combination of tomatoes, cheese and dough. Coupled with a beer (as is customary to have with pizza and subsequently the only time we tried beer in Italy), the meal was most definitely a bon appetit!

Oh-my-goodness-yum in a box!!!!

 

Aside from out-of-this-world pizzas, Napoli was another incredibly chaotic Italian city. It too was loud, dirty and grungy, but it definitely had a lot more charm and appeal in comparison to Palermo. And a lot more washing hanging up in the streets too.

It was laundry day everyday in Napoli!

We went on a day-trip to Pompeii too. To be able to walk around such a well-preserved ancient city (Mount Vesuvius erupted and buried the city in 79AD) was a truly unique experience, especially as it wasn't difficult to imagine day-to-day life in what would have been a very bustling town. It was a great way to finish off our Italian adventure and we left with our eyes, ears and stomachs incredibly satisfied! Grazie mille Italia!

The notorious Mt. Vesuvius looming in the background of Pompeii

A plaster cast of an ill-fated Pompeiian

The main street of Pompeii

Tantalising Turkey

Grand Bazaar. Hookah. Lanterns. Spice Market. Kebabs. Mosques. Carpets. Ataturk. Turkish coffee. Turkish tea. Turkish Delights. Baklava. All of these words burst into mind when thinking of the vibrantly chaotic and captivating city that is Istanbul.

The iconic Blue Mosque

Home to more than 13 million people, Istanbul is the only city in the world expanding across the continents of both Europe and Asia. It is a city so historically and culturally fertile that each cell in my body was immediately intoxicated by the buzzing excitement emanating from the streets. Turkish flags adorned the façades of many buildings across the cityscape, along with images of the beloved late Ataturk. Every few hours the adhān (Islamic call-to-prayer) was heard from speakers dispersed throughout the entire city. It felt like hundreds, if not thousands, of people were bustling around us constantly, which surprisingly only added to the charm of the city. 

Jay being a true local, smoking a hookah after being a Turkish soccer hooligan!

Few people visit Istanbul without passing through the renowned Grand Bazaar. The Sultan of markets, the Grand Bazaar is one of world's oldest and largest covered markets, home to over 3000 shops. This labyrinth of market stalls is home to everything from scarves to crockery to antique clocks to glittery jewellery – you name it, it can be found! Tea sellers weave in and out of stalls carrying trayfuls of hot beverages to fellow vendors, whilst the vendors themselves are busy convincing potential customers that their products are the best quality and price going around. 

How bizarre!?

And the food – the food! Everyday was an absolute culinary delight, whether the matter was sweet, savoury or a tasty combination of the two. I'll start off with the world renowned kebab. Just about everyday, without fail, we purchased and thoroughly enjoyed this classic meal-in-a-pita delectation. Any previous misconceptions I admittedly had about the doner kebab – that it's simply a greasy food left to late-night, intoxicated binging – were quickly expelled. Instead, I was gob-smacked by how mouth-watering these slabs of meat, riddled with flavoursome chunks of paprika and spices, tasted. Particularly as I'm not normally someone who considers such large amounts of meat appetising. Add to this combination some tomatoes, onions, lettuce and......wait for it.....even fries (which we soon found out was a surprisingly common-place addition to kebabs), the doner kebab quickly became our favourite lunch-time meal!

But the highlight of our (savoury) culinary escapades in Istanbul occurred on our second last night. Having had to book two days in advance to secure a seat in this 4-storey establishment, we very quickly learnt why this restaurant was so greatly revered. Walking out onto the top floor, we were greeted with a stunning, dusk-lit view of the giant, glowing domes of Istanbul's nearby mosques and the Bosphorus River. We were soon distracted by the tasty variety of appetisers laid out on our table. Unfortunately we were too excited to try it all so we forgot to take any pictures as evidence of them, but instead have the following photos to share with you.

Flat pizza topped with spiced meat - mmm yum!

Juicy and soft koftas

And now onto the sweets. You would merely have to step inside a sweet store before being promptly greeted by a cheery staff member offering a handful of sliced-up sugar-filled goodies. Benches were piled high with fresh, tubular rolls of Turkish delights (lokum). Trayfuls of baklava and kadayıf dripping in molten sugar covered the benches, tempting us to taste them. Needless to say we didn't need very much convincing to purchase these treats, and we left with a tasty selection after every visit!

Rolls upon rolls of Turkish Delights filled with pistachios or hazlenuts!

 

Our main purpose of visiting Turkey in the first place was to attend the Anzac Day dawn service ceremony at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli. Having booked a tour, we hopped onto a bus along with 40-odd other Aussies and farewelled Istanbul to make our way to the commemorative site. Despite the solemn nature of the trip, the following events ensued quite a few laughs:

• Our 'tour guide' for the trip was really anything but. Dressed in a Canadian tuxedo (for those of you playing at home this is a denim jacket worn concurrently with denim jeans), obnoxiously reflective sunglasses which never came off, and a bandana tied around his neck, he resembled someone ready to go clubbing. This suited his frequent tendency to raise his arms in the air and loudly declare, 'Whoooooooh,' before addressing the tour group. A Turkish version of Corey 'Party Boy' Worthington if you like. If that wasn't bad enough, it didn't take Mr Canadian Tuxedo long to develop a liking for our popular Aussie chant of “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi oi oi!”, and he consistently felt compelled to shout it at us at irregular and inappropriate intervals. It became clearer and clearer to us that Mr Canadian Tuxedo had obviously missed the debrief regarding Gallipoli and the nature of this particular tour.
  
  
  
  
  
• If we weren't already questioning the professionalism of our tour, our concerns were definitely confounded when our bus driver missed an important exit on the freeway. An honest and common-place mistake, I hear you say? Well, instead of simply taking the next exit, our bus driver decided it would be more efficient to stop and REVERSE the entire 1 kilometre back to the previous exit. Despite the fact that the rest of the tour group was rightfully freaking out at the sight of the trucks and cars blazing along around us, our bus driver remained unphased. And so we chugged along backwards until we reached the correct exit, and continued on our way to Gallipoli.
  
  

• One attraction of the tour group we booked with was that it was the only one with a 'ferry cruise' along the Dardanelles, the passage of water the Anzac soldiers travelled across to reach Gallipoli. So despite the solemn nature of our journey, we couldn't help but get excited about this ferry trip. That was until we were led to our 'ferry' docked along the wharf. No, it wasn't any of the gleaming white, 3-storey vessels which we passed along the way, but rather a humble, uncovered cargo barge with a few plastic chairs sprinkled across the deck. Which, I'll just add, didn't add much protection from the gusty winds sweeping across the waterway for the duration of our 2 hour journey.

Aside from the unexpectedly comical nature of our journey to Anzac Cove, the service itself was deeply moving. Looking out onto the inlet where the Anzacs landed, it was incredibly eerie to see what little chance our diggers had of succeeding against the Turks. There was literally no where for them to escape the onslaught of gunfire aimed at them, with the looming sand dunes above obliterating any chance they had of success. As each name of a deceased soldier was read out during the Dawn Service, along with their epitaphs, the devastating severity of the events that took place in 1915 hit home, as well as thinking of the pain their families would have faced learning the fates of their loved ones. Private Raymond Stanley Ellis', aged 18, reads “To Have, To Love And Then To Part, Is The Saddest Thing To A Human Heart”. Sergeant Frank Albert Rawlings' is simply “My only darling son”. To then share such a moment with fellow Australians, New Zealanders, Canadians and Turks, who all made their way out to Gallipoli to pay their respects, was truly memorable. 

Lone Pine

I was equally grateful to learn and appreciate how special and unique Australia's relationship with Turkey is, and how respectful the Turkish people were (and are) of the bond Australians have with this piece of Turkish land. To help encapsulate this point, I will conclude with a quote from Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the first President of Turkey, in a beautiful and deeply moving tribute he wrote to the Anzacs killed at Gallipoli:

'Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives... You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side now here in this country of ours... you, the mothers, who sent their sons from faraway countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land. They have become our sons as well.' 

The Hon. Julia Gillard even requested a photo with me!

We had a great time meeting Nell and Cathy too!