Pilgrimage Day 4

Brave participants climbing in the home of St. Simeon!

One of the many churches in Goreme Open Air Museum

Participants at Goreme Open Air Museum

Hand-Woven Turkish Rug Demonstration

Today was spent outdoors in Cappadocia, the city often described as “moonscape” because of the magnificent sculpting caused by erosion. Since there are over 3,500 rock churches formed from various types of volcanic rock, we visited the Goreme Open Air Museum, which houses 30 of these rock churches dating back to the 9^th-11^th centuries. One of the most impressive of these, the Dark Church, is lit only by one tiny window, preserving the brightness of the frescoes depicting scenes from the New Testament. After leaving the Goreme Valley, we headed toward an equally beautiful area with fairy chimneys, the Hunter Valley. Here we got an up close look at how people lived in these rock formations. Some of us even climbed into the home of St. Simeon, a towering formation with steep steps and several levels of windows and chambers. What a beautiful way to experience the region’s geological landscape and rich religious heritage.

After lunch we got to experience a live hand-woven rug demonstration in an enormous Turkish rug warehouse. The silk was harvested there from individual silkworms, spun into thread, and then delicately hand-woven into beautifully intricate rugs. The salesmen were so charming that many could not resist leaving without taking one home! The rain put a damper on the end of our afternoon, but it didn’t stop us from taking in the view of Cappadocia’s highest peak, Mt. Erciyes. Some of us continued touring into the evening with a stop at a whirling dervish show, where men of the Mevlevi order danced a symbolic ritualized routine that incorporates twirling. The rest of the group called it an evening, anticipating an early morning wake-up call (4:40am!) for the hot air balloon ride over Cappadocia.

Pilgrimage Day 3: The Ecumenical Patriarchate

Pilgrimage Participants before our audience with His All Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew

His Grace Bishop Savas and young adults in front of the relics of St. John Chrysostom and St. Gregory the Theologian

Our group in the Cathedral of St. George

We started our day at the Grand Bazaar. This covered marketplace is the largest in Istanbul, and contains a bedazzling selection of items, from spices to jewelry to swords. Our day continued at the Ecumenical Patriarchate, when His Grace Bishop Savas and Patriarchal Deacon Nephon guided us through the Cathedral of St. George. We venerated the relics of Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Gregory the Theologian, Saints Ephemia, Solomone, and Theophano, as well as a part of the post upon which the Romans flogged Christ. The highlight of the day was our audience with His All Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew, to whom we were personally introduced by His Grace Bishop Savas. His All Holiness then offered remarks and encouraged our future return to the Phanar, and presented each young adult pilgrim a gift. In return, our group of young adults presented a gift to His All Holiness.

After departing the Phanar, we grabbed a quick lunch and visited the Spice Bazaar, which was full of vendors selling exotic spices, teas, herbs, and sweets. Our last visit of the day was to Panagia Vlacherna, the most famous shrine of the Virgin Mary in Istanbul. In the 7^th Century, it is believed that the Virgin Mary protected the people of Constantinople from a foreign assault after they gathered in the church with her icon and sang the Akathist Hymn in her praise. Her intervention saved Constantinople, and the beautiful hymn, “Ti Ypermaho” (To You O Champion Leader), is still sung 1400 years later to commemorate this miraculous event. Feeling the inspiration, His Grace led our group in chanting this hymn, followed by “Christ is Risen.” We also filled bottles of agiasmo (holy water) from the holy natural spring and venerated Panagia’s icon, a great way to end our time in Constantinople.

Pilgrimage Day 2: Liturgy, Agia Sophia, Chora, and the Blue Mosque

Participants outside of Agia Sophia

Interior of Agia Sophia after many years of scaffolding

Pilgrims in awe of the mosaics at Chora Museum

We began our day with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Holy Trinity Church in Taksim Square. The church was packed with people, as there was a visiting Bishop as well as local Orthodox children gathered for a memorial in honor of their school’s founders. After a quick lunch and Starbucks at Taksim, we moved on to the magnificent mosaics and frescos of the Church of the Holy Savior of Chora. This is no longer a functioning church, but rather a museum of extensive Byzantine art. This is also one of the few churches that depict the life of the Virgin Mary, as well as an incredible depiction of the last judgment seat of Christ. Next, we visited Agia Sophia (Church of the Holy Wisdom), one of the world’s greatest architectural and spiritual masterpieces. This church, built under emperor Justinian, was the largest church in the world for a span of 1,000 years. Our visit was not only significant because of the anniversary of the Ottoman conquest, which took place on this day 553 years ago, but also because the obtrusive dome scaffolding had been removed. The sheer size of the interior space is amazing. The dome rises 182 feet (this is about 18 stories high!), and the diameter spans 103 feet. After taking a group picture out front, we made a short stop at the Blue Mosque, built to look larger than Agia Sophia and known for its blue tile work. A short walk away, we visited the Hippodrome, the social and sporting center of the Old City. It contains the oldest object in the city, a 3500-year-old Egyptian obelisk that Theodosius the Great brought from the Temple of Karnak in Luxor. Tomorrow we will start our day at the Grand Bazaar and continue on to the Ecumenical Patriarchate, where we will have an audience with His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.

Pilgrimage Day 1: Arrival in Constantinople

Our journey to Constantinople is underway! After meeting everyone at JFK Airport, meeting new friends as well as familiar faces, 25 young adults from across the U.S. (New York, Alaska, California, Rhode Island, Ohio, Colorado, Texas…the list goes on!) embarked on the 8 ½ hour flight to Turkey. Our plane touched down on Saturday morning and we headed toward our first tour stop. We arrived at Yedikule fortress, which is positioned within the great Theodosian land walls and the Golden Gate, the main ceremonial entrance into the capital. After climbing to the top of the fortress and peering out over the Sea of Marmara, our group began to get oriented with the triangular geography of the city. His Grace Bishop Savas also pointed out that we had arrived at the great city walls a day before the anniversary of the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire on May 29, 1453. Our next stop was the church of Zoodogos Pigi at Balukli Monastery, also located to the west of the city and right outside of the land walls. After drinking from the Holy Spring, the group visited the beautiful church, as well as honored the graves of former Patriarchs, including Athenagoras, the former Archbishop of America, and Dimitrios. We had the afternoon off for some well-deserved rest and to explore the city before liturgy tomorrow morning.

Pilgrimage Participants at Yedikule Fortress

Patriarchal Graves at Balukli Monastery

Inside of the Church at Balukli Monastery

National Young Adult Pilgrimage Travel Blog from Turkey...coming soon!

Christ is Risen!

Our Department is preparing for the departure of the National Young Adult Pilgrimage to Constantinople, Ephesus, and Cappadocia, which will arrive in Turkey this Saturday, May 28th. The trip will once again be lead by His Grace Bishop Savas of Troas, Director of the Office of Church and Society, as well as Rev. Fr. Bill Gikas, from St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Trenton, NJ. Check back on Saturday for the beginning of our live travel blog, which will follow us throughout our many stops in Turkey!