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Ortakoy Mosque
about 20 minutes from meI was just beginning to write about how incredibly quiet it is. I am sitting outside looking out at the Bosphorus and the only sounds I hear are the chirping birds and the constant humming of the cars crossing the bridge into Asia. Before I could even write all that the 5 o'clock prayer began, blasting through the minaret speakers. I don't mind hearing them throughout the day, sometimes I really enjoy it. There is always so much going on down below me, the streets are full of traffic and pedestrians, the Bosphorus Straight has hundreds of boats passing through all day and night. Fisherman line the straight. But from up here, it's surprisingly quiet and peaceful. The view is amazing, especially with the sporadic purple trees sprinkled across the water on the hillside. There are buildings everywhere and it seems like an impossible task to really explore this whole city.
Lacey and I had our first attempt on Friday, our first day off. Luckily we were off on the same day so I spent Thursday and Friday night at her place. We took a taxi to the subway and then the subway into Taxim, which I've seen called, "The Heart
of Istanbul." It is full of shops, restaurants, and some historic places and is definitely western feeling. We met a friend there, walked through masses of people, ate some food, drank some coffee, and kept walking. I haven't tried Turkish coffee yet, mostly because I am pretty sure I know what it will taste like just by looking at it. And I'm not sure I want to pay money to taste something that strong. I'll try it sometime 😊
We ended up at Galata Tower, originally Christea Turris, which means "The Tower of Christ" in Latin. It is a 9 story tower that was the highest building in the city when it was built. There is a restaurant/cafe and nightclub at the top with great views of the Bosphorus and Istanbul. I read inside the tower that it is the oldest tower in the world that is still open to visitors. It was first built in 507, but has obviously been reconstructed since then.
We then walked over the Golden Horn into a very touristy district, called Sultanahmet. We went inside the New Mosque, the Blue Mosque, and saw the outside of the Hagia Sophia. The mosque's are absolutely incredible.
They are massive, it's really unbelievable, and the pictures do not do them justice. The detail is incredible, and again, the size....enormous. I will share some pictures. I realize they get boring very quickly, but these places are quite a sight in real life.
After this, we kept walking and finally made it to the Grand Bazaar. This is one of the most popular things to do in Istanbul and I had heard about it quite a bit before arriving. It is massive. "It is one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world (wikipedia)." And I read that it employs nearly 30,000 people! Isn't that incredible? Despite all the hype, it was pretty obnoxious going inside. I wasn't looking to shop, I don't understand what you would actually need in that place. It's full of random, cheap things, and I wasn't looking for a knock off purse. But what makes it horrible is that it's full of hundreds of Turkish men constantly shouting out, "Where are you from? Excuse me, excuse me." I couldn't take it! I heard "excuse me" 3,000 times in 10 minutes. As we got deeper into the bazaar there was no sign of
daylight and I heard more and more "excuse me"'s. I had to get out of there!
That was the worst thing about shopping in Korea. You walk into a store that's completely empty, you just want to browse and suddenly you have an employee inches from you, breathing down your neck. The chances of me buying anything in that situation are none. It drives me crazy! Leave me alone, let me look, and if I have a question please answer it and then continue to leave me alone. Ha ha!
The Grand Bazaar is a must see. It's huge, historical and pretty impressive. However, I'll probably only go back if it's to show someone who's visiting.
Lacey and I took the tram back to the other side of the Golden Horn. We had dinner under a bridge as the sun set! It was beautiful! It was a enjoyable ending to our first successful day off, exploring the big city!
PS. I wrote a blog after a week here. There was an error when I published it but it's there if you're interested.
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Jeanne
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Wow!!
Bet!! You continue to amaze me with your travels!! Are you implying that my pictures of churches got boring?? haha!! But you're so right...pictures don't do them justice. I love looking at them anyway so feel free to bore me with them!! Can't wait to read your previous blog entry! Keep them coming! Love you!!