ISTANBUL, TURKEY (Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sofia, and Grand Bazaar)—Thursday, May 16, 20103

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ISTANBUL, TURKEY—Thursday, May 16, 20103

Grand Halic Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey

Our original plan was not to participate in Cosmos' optional tour of Istanbul scheduled for this morning. We planned on being in Istanbul for another 10 days and all of the tourist sites are located on public transportation, so we had expected to go on our own. What changed our minds, was the fact that tour groups do not have to stand in long, long lines to get tickets and then in another long, long line to get through the entrance plus we would have the very knowledgeable guide, Aykut Gun to tell us stuff. You still stand in line, so don't let someone tell you otherwise--they just aren’t as long.

We had noticed that two cruise ships were docked in the Golden Horn and Istanbul was crawling with tourist type people. So, onto the bus this morning we went to tour 3 sites: Topkapi Palace, the Hagia Sophia Cathedral/Mosque/now Museum, and the Grand Bazaar.

Topkapi Palace

Our group waited briefly in the park leading up to the main gate while Aykut headed to the much shorter “guide only” line to buy all of the tickets. While waiting we spotted several very pretty green parrots in the tulip poplars lining the pathways. Then it was on to another line at the main gate where we had to pass through security. It was easy to see why you would want to go with a guide or go early or go when cruise ships weren’t in town. Once inside Aykut told us of the history of the Palace and the Ottoman empire.

Topkapi Palace was the primary residence of the Ottoman Sultans for about 400 years (1465-1856). Not only was it a royal residence, but it was also the seat of government. It was used for state occasions, provided the meeting rooms for the Imperial Council, and housed the State Treasury, the mint, and space for holding audiences, etc. It was kind of a combination of the USA White House and Capitol in one location.

The palace is now a museum and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. This complex has four main courtyards and many smaller buildings within its walls. At the height of the Ottoman power it was home to as many as 4,000 people with large kitchens, mosques, and everything else that number of people needed day-to-day. The construction of the Palace started in 1459 by order of Sultan Mehmed II, the conqueror of Byzantine Constantinople.

Valerie and I knew we would not be able to see all that we wanted to see of the Palace in the time the tour allocated, so we listened to Aykut's overview and history lessons and then moved with the group into the back, fourth courtyard as he recommended. We decided when we were given "free time," we would work the courtyards and buildings back to front so that we would minimize the walking when we came back the next time.

We were only able to cover completely the 4th courtyard, which contained a number of rooms added on by various Sultans that were called kiosks. Each kiosk was decorated with beautiful tiles with a fireplace and each had a separate function; for example, one was the library, and another a place where the Sultan watched sports and entertainment in the nearby garden. The throne room and a Mosque are also located in the fourth courtyard.

Part of the old buildings in the 3rd courtyard, don't remember their original use, contains the treasury. If you are not there early, you again have to wait in long lines to get inside this section as each item is displayed in a separate case inset into the wall so that it can only be seen by walking single file along all of the 4 walls. Some of the jewels in some of the items are so big they look like fake glass---I can't see how the Sultans could carry the weight for any length of time on their head or around their neck or wherever. Photographs were not allowed of the treasury, so if you want to see what they looked like, visit: Topkapi Treasury Photos.

It was interesting later on to compare the treasures displayed here, with the Czar's Treasury we saw in Moscow a few years ago. In Moscow, there were at least 2 floors of objects and each glass free standing case was absolutely filled with gold and silver and jeweled objects and you couldn't begin to see it all. Here, there are a very limited number of items on display and as I said, each sat on its own. One thing I do have to remember is that we are talking centuries apart---1400's vs. late 1800-early 1900's. I guess many objects from that earlier time period were taken to other parts of the world to be displayed in foreign museums.

Additional pictures and discussion from when we returned to visit the rest of the Topkapi Palace and harem are in a later blog.

Hagia Sophia

Met back with the group on time and then walked out of the side gate and onto old, old streets lined with Ottoman-era wooden homes that were built up against the Palace walls. Continued to walk downhill and to the side door of the Hagia Sophia Cathedral. On the way Aykut pointed out the main gate with a chain configuration that prevented anyone on horseback from entering.

This building was constructed in 537 and until 1453 it was an Eastern Orthodox Cathedral and seat of the Patriarchate of Constantinople except between 1204 and 1261, when it was converted to a Roman Catholic Cathedral under a different regime. It was built with one of the first domes ever constructed and is the inspiration for many later European Cathedrals.

When Constantinople was conquered by the Ottoman Turks the Hagia Sophia wasn't destroyed, instead it was converted into a mosque. Although the Christian articles like the bells, altar, and other items were removed, many of the beautiful mosaics were just plastered over. Islamic details were added and it remained a mosque until 1931. Aykut said the names listed in calligraphy on the round Islamic discs were of Muhammad, his two sons and his two grandsons.

The building was restored and re-opened in 1935 as a museum with the plaster over several of the Christian mosaics having been removed. So, now it showcases both Christian and Islamic art. I sat and people watched while Valerie climbed up ramps at the back of the building (at about a 45 degree angle that folded back at least 4 times) allowing the Sultan and family to ride horses or a carriage up to his special balcony for services. Met with the group again and walked to where the bus was parked for a ride to the Grand Bazaar.

Lunch and the Grand Bazaar

After instructions by Aykut as to time and place to meet back up near Gate 2 of the Bazaar, Valerie and I got some lunch. We found a hole-in-the wall place closer to Gate 1 that sold doners and drinks at a very reasonable price and had 2-3 small tables in a very busy shop. Doners are gyros-like food (without the good Greek sauce) first invented by a Turkish man and you can get chicken or beef ones at stalls all over Turkey. These had French fries stuffed inside the pitas with the meat.

After lunch, we walked around just a bit--we were tired and were not into shopping for stuff at this time. The shops each had a hawker type person out in the aisles trying to get you to go inside. When one of our group said she was just looking and didn't wish to buy, the man responded sharply that, "this isn't a museum!!!" That is just what Valerie and I treated it like, a museum, housed in an ancient rock arched building of small individual shops that we were interested in looking at. The gate we went into was the area where leather goods and jewelry were sold, so we were even less interested in buying.

Found a spot to sit outside the Bazaar next to our tour meeting spot and nursed some cold drinks until the group was all together at 3:00. We paid for the seats, I guess, as they were the most expensive cold drinks we ever had on the whole trip—cost more than our lunch! Caught the bus and headed back to the hotel.

Dinner

We had arranged to meet with the "lads from Down Under" for a farewell dinner at 6:30. We walked up to the same restaurant we first ate at, called "The Big Chef." I had shrimp kabobs which was a mistake as the shrimp was overcooked and dried out. On the way back down the block to the hotel, we all stopped in for coffee (they and I each had a cookie) and met others from our tour group sitting there. Into bed by 10:30-11:00.

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