Yesterday we learned that Istanbul has 16 million residents. However, during the day that number increases to 20 million. This is due to the influx of commuters from the suburbs and tourists. Today we experienced the impact of this as we started out of the city. The inbound traffic was at a standstill as far as we could see. This went on for almost an hour.
Breakfast First
We were leaving Istanbul and driving to Canakkale where we would spend the night. On the way we passed the new bridge over the Dardanelles Straight. This narrow body of water separates Europe and Asia. Turkey is on both continents. It also connects the Sea of Marmara and the Bosporus. In July we passed under the bridge on Oosterdam. Now we passed it on land on the European side.
Then we arrived at Gallipoli. This is the site of a World War I battle in April, 1915 between the Turkish army and the British, who were represented primarily by forces from the Australian and New Zealand armies. Due to a series of strategic mistakes the landing Australian and New Zealand forces were slaughtered on arrival. Their courage and perseverance led to severe casualties on the Turkish side as well. More than 70,000 men lost their lives in the fighting here.
Today all three of these nations have memorials here. We visited each of them. They are beautifully kept, but it is a somber experience. Alice and I visited the ANZAC (Australian New Zealand Army Corp) Memorial in Darwin, Australia a few years ago. We did not get the full significance of it then. We have a much greater appreciation now.
From here the coach took us to Canakkale where the coach boarded the ferry from Canakkale in Europe to Canakkale in Asia. there we stayed the night.
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