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Published: March 2nd 2010
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me in front of Turkish bazaar
I find I look like a cardboard cut out! Hello everyone,
Where to begin? ...Istanbul is absolutely fabulous! Go there if you can...the history practically falls at your feet with every step. We stayed at the funniest little hotel called Avicenna in the old part of Istanbul. It was this maze of narrow corridors and outdoor walkways just to get to your room. The guy at the desk had all the information we needed and did not mind helping us even though he must have repeated the same information again and again. Our room...which was tiny had two beds.....an inch apart!! And they were single beds to boot. So funny!
We absolutely loved the weather...you could actually breath fresh air and we felt cool rain falling...something not felt since back in Canada. It was absolute heaven! Everywhere there was to go was within 10 to 20 minutes walking distance. You could also take the tram which was very easy to understand. Two things you have to have when you are in Istanbul....turkish coffee and BAKLAVA. Let me say again....BAKLAVA! They have the best baklava I have ever tasted in my life...and they had chocolate ones too! What more could a girl ask for? I wonder if there is a
Turkish coffee
We are doing what we love best...drinking coffee. We loved it! Turkish bakery somewhere in Toronto? hummm!
I could not wait to go to the turkish bazaar...it was everything I expected. Cool things to look at and touch with interesting people yelling out..."Where are you from?". Always those turkish men constantly hitting on you...expect it. One funny moment was when I came up to a corner in the bazaar and a guy standing in front of his store tells me about all the great things there while throwing in that he was not married. I nodded and kept going. When I came back around the corner he whispered to me "I'm single" just in case I had not understood the first time. Lol.
The underground roman cistern was amazing. After the conquest of the city by the Ottoman Turks, it was forgotten of and nobody knew that it existed. Today it has a rather eery and mystical ambiance. There are two carved Medusa heads which I thought where beautiful. There was a concert there that evening (perfect acoustics) but we ended up not going...we had barely slept that night and we had to pay to get in again so we did not go.
The blue mosque was cool...it is much older
On the streets of Istanbul.
A chestnut vendor...it smells so good but I just can't eat them! than the one in Abu Dhabi and it was interesting to compare the two. The highlight of the trip was the Haghia Sophia ("Church of Holy Wisdom") that is considered to be an enduring symbol of the Byzantine Empire. It is an astonishing 1,475 years old and it changed the face of architecture and merged religions. Originally an Orthodox Christian basilica, the building was constructed over five years by 10,000 workers. In 1453, Istanbul was conquered by the Ottoman Turks, and it was ordered to be converted into a mosque. It was declared a museum in 1935. For over a thousand years it was the largest church in the world and is now one of the twenty biggest churches on the planet, even fifteen centuries after it was built.
Once inside, evidence of Hagia Sophia's mixed history, as both a Christian and Muslim place of worship, is visible all around. Richly decorated with mosaics, over its centuries as a Christian basilica, many of the Hagia Sophia's historic paintings were plastered over when it became a mosque. However, many of these historic paintings inside the church are again visible thanks to a modern restoration project that is still ongoing. The
European streets
Loved feeling like I was in Europe with the cobble stone streets and oddly colored buildings. most beautiful mosaic is the one depicting Jesus. It is amazing!
The guy at the front desk of our hotel had encouraged us to go see a whirling dervish show. So we went...and they twirled and twirled and twirled. It was only after some research did I find out why. They believe in performing their “dhikr” (remembrance of Allah) in the form of a dance and music ceremony called the “Sema”. The Sema represents a mystical journey of man's spiritual ascent by turning towards the truth. The followers believe they grow through love, desert their ego, find the truth and arrive to the "Perfect." They then return from this spiritual journey as a man who has reached maturity and a greater perfection. Sufism, focuses on love, tolerance, worship of God, community development, and personal development through self-discipline and responsibility. Supposedly a Sufi’s way of life is to love and be of service to people, deserting the ego or false self and all illusion so that one can reach maturity and perfection and finally, God. The Sufis are known for their poverty and austerity. ...Wow all that from a twirl! Atleast I can say I saw it. Meg whom we
The haghia sophia
It was once a church then transformed into a mosque and is now a museum. had met that day came with us. She is an American working for the army who was travelling like us. We asked her to join us first on our Bosphorous boat trip (which was freezing) and then to the whirling dervish show. Unfortunately, her phone was stolen on the tram and she had to make a report at the police station so we accompanied her. Little did we know the adventure we had in store. Now I find humour in many things...the tourist police where no exception. It was like a skit right out of Saturday Night Live with the policeman asking stupid question after stupid question like "So...let me get this straight...you had your phone and now...it is gone...Is that right?" I had to go to the bathroom so I would not get arrested. Finally, it turned out that we had to go to the actual police station. So off we went. You can not even imagine where the station is...down a back alley that leads to a dead end in the middle of nowhere. We were scared just looking for it! We made it and were stopped by a police officer with an automatic riffle hanging around his
The doors
There were once crosses on these doors but the Muslims transformed them into arrows by removing the sides of the cross and placing them up top. neck. We explained the situation and he let us in. Our entrance into the station was so comical...the police officers were all huddled together talking. When we walked in they stopped and stared at us for a good minute. That was long enough for me to burst out laughing at the hilarity of it all. They spoke not one word of english so Meg and I mimed what happened. Well okay...it was mostly me miming and then laughing but you get the picture. We left after much confusion with no report in hand but Heather and I told her we would be a witness for her if she needed it...she certainly tried her best to get a report from them.
One of the weirdest things I did was going to a Turkish bath. I thought...why not..it's not like you have to be there naked of anything! We got in and were given a thin towel ...like a tea towel to wrap around ourselves as well as plastic shoes. We then went down for our turkish bath. I thought to myself...This towel is not coming off no matter what. Two steps into the "bath" room some women uttered "you...off" and she
Signs of Christianity
Here Mary is depicted at front of church...We were told by our guide that the Muslims hit this by covering it with a curtain. yanked my security blanket away. I figured when in Rome...This is what it looks like inside. It is a round room with a huge slab of marble that you lay on. Above are holes in the ceiling where water slowly drips down. Taps surround the room with cold water so you can fill buckets with water to splash. As I'm lying on this slab I'm thinking why oh why did I take the package where I get a massage. As I laid in wait not relaxing at all this women in a bra and underwear comes over and starts scrubbing me with this rough cloth. I had skin literally peeling away. She then rinsed me off and washed my hair with the strongest smelling perfume soap. It was quite nauseating as perfume smells actually can make me sick..not sure why? Afterwards, I went into this other room where I got to sit in a huge warm tub of water. Hey...what can I say...I'm North American and we are uptight about these things. I suppose if I went more often I would get used to it.
What a great trip...I recommend Istanbul to anyone and everyone.
Bye for now…I can’t
wait to be back.
Sherry
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jIll
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Cool Pics
Always great to hear from you Sherry. Jill