DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.62355#0064
22
BEAUTIES OF THE BOSPHORUS.
FOUNTAIN OF THE ASIAN SWEET WATERS.
" A glowing scene of water, leaves, and light,
And white-veil'd dames, and turban'd men are there;
And all around the earth and sea are bright
And beautiful in the sunshiny air;
Soft ripples dance upon the channel's breast,
Light breezes sweep along the mountain's crest,
And woman's voice, and childhood's laugh of glee,
Come blended on the ear harmoniously."
MS. Poem.
The Valley of Guiuk-Suy, charmingly situated about mid-way of the
Bosphorus, and called by Europeans the Asian Sweet Waters, owes its charm
and its popularity (like the glen of Kyat-Khana, already described,) to the
circumstance of its being intersected by a pretty stream of fresh water, which,
after flowing along under the shadows of tall and leafy trees, finally mingles
its pigmy ripples with the swifter waves of the channel. The Anadoli Hissari,
or Castle of Asia, stands upon its margin, and painfully recalls the mind to the
darker and sterner realities of life; or the visitor to Guiuk-Suy might fancy
himself in Arcadia, so lovely is the locality.
On Fridays, (the Mahommedan Sabbath,) the valley is thronged with holiday-
keeping idlers; and here the Frank traveller may see more of the habits and
morale of the Turkish women than he can hope to do elsewhere ; for here, being
on Asiatic ground, they appear to feel more at home, and less trammelled by
the restrictions of their creed than in any other environ of the capital ; their
1 ashmacs are less scrupulously arranged, they are more accessible to strangers,
and they do the honours of their lovely valley with a gentle courtesy extremely
pleasing.
All ranks alike frequent this sweet and balmy spot. The Sultanas move
along in quiet stateliness over the greensward in their gilded arabas, drawn
by oxen glittering with foil, and covered with awnings of velvet, heavy with
gold embroidery and fringes; the light carriages of the Pashas' harems roll
BEAUTIES OF THE BOSPHORUS.
FOUNTAIN OF THE ASIAN SWEET WATERS.
" A glowing scene of water, leaves, and light,
And white-veil'd dames, and turban'd men are there;
And all around the earth and sea are bright
And beautiful in the sunshiny air;
Soft ripples dance upon the channel's breast,
Light breezes sweep along the mountain's crest,
And woman's voice, and childhood's laugh of glee,
Come blended on the ear harmoniously."
MS. Poem.
The Valley of Guiuk-Suy, charmingly situated about mid-way of the
Bosphorus, and called by Europeans the Asian Sweet Waters, owes its charm
and its popularity (like the glen of Kyat-Khana, already described,) to the
circumstance of its being intersected by a pretty stream of fresh water, which,
after flowing along under the shadows of tall and leafy trees, finally mingles
its pigmy ripples with the swifter waves of the channel. The Anadoli Hissari,
or Castle of Asia, stands upon its margin, and painfully recalls the mind to the
darker and sterner realities of life; or the visitor to Guiuk-Suy might fancy
himself in Arcadia, so lovely is the locality.
On Fridays, (the Mahommedan Sabbath,) the valley is thronged with holiday-
keeping idlers; and here the Frank traveller may see more of the habits and
morale of the Turkish women than he can hope to do elsewhere ; for here, being
on Asiatic ground, they appear to feel more at home, and less trammelled by
the restrictions of their creed than in any other environ of the capital ; their
1 ashmacs are less scrupulously arranged, they are more accessible to strangers,
and they do the honours of their lovely valley with a gentle courtesy extremely
pleasing.
All ranks alike frequent this sweet and balmy spot. The Sultanas move
along in quiet stateliness over the greensward in their gilded arabas, drawn
by oxen glittering with foil, and covered with awnings of velvet, heavy with
gold embroidery and fringes; the light carriages of the Pashas' harems roll