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Published: July 18th 2009
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“Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things - air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” - Cesare Pavese
Every so often we come across a city that takes our breath away. Istanbul is one of those cities that contain a certain mixture of elements that you just know don't exist anywhere else. Imagine if you will: You're on top of a balcony overlooking the city while lying in a pile of loosely arranged oversized pillows. Even though the sun has set the sky is illuminated with a strange plum-red color. The sea-breeze cools your skin as you hear the San Fransisco-esque trolleys below. Seagulls glide in never ending circles over the giant illuminated domes of the Blue Mosque, lifted by some unknown energy. You contemplate this strange phenomenon as you draw in another puff of apple tobacco from your ornate water pipe.
Situated on the Bosphorous River, the dividing line between Europe and Asia, Istanbul is as
modern as any major city in Europe while simultaneously giving a taste of the Middle East. We were looking forward to Turkey for a long time, but were secretly afraid that it would be another Egypt. We were surprised to find how diverse it was, and even more pleased to see the salesmen weren't as pushy as Egypt.
After settling in we made our first order of business finding a guidebook for Turkey. Not wanting to carry 20 books at once, we were hoping just to buy one and trade it was we went in hostels' book exchanges. While that technique usually works in South America, we weren't having much luck here, and we were forced to buy a new one. Luckily, after some internet research and traveling around the city and asking directions many times we found a hole in the wall bookstore where we could buy a book for the American price instead of the inflated $40 price everyone else was selling them for.
Guidebook in hand, we made our way to the Blue Mosque, so named because of the blue domes and blue tiles inside. With shoes off, we made our way across the large
Las Vegas Casino like carpet. The ever present vacuum cleaner guys were avoiding the sporadic men kneeling and praying in a corner. The first thing you're aware of is the sheer amount of space. There are no separate rooms and no pillars so the shape of the building is the same shape of the interior. There are large stain glass windows along the roof, lots of intricate calligraphy, and chandeliers that hang all the way from the roof to the floor by invisibly thin cables. If it were night and the chandeliers were lit I'm sure it would look like floating lights. Perhaps it was just me, or perhaps because I've already seen the super-huge cathedrals in Europe including the Sistine Chapel, but the Blue Mosque left me feeling slightly underwhelmed. Ammi enjoyed it though, and I'm glad I saw it. "Should we pay 40 Turkish Lyra to see the Aya Sofia?" I asked. "Nah, I hear it's basically the same thing but it's constantly under construction."
We made our way to the Basilica Cistern, which is an underground rain water collection system. The heat of the day evaporated as the cool underground air hit us. Our eyes slowly
readjusted to the darkness. A system of stone cat-walks appeared before us, zig-zagging their way through the five inch carp filled water. We heard a constant Drip Drip Drip sound, and I expected to see Gollum at any moment, climbing up one of the intricately carved stone pillars. It was a fun experience and was a nice break from the rigors of sight seeing in the heat. Plus, I had an opportunity to try experimental photography with the extended exposure setting that came out decent.
We took a cheap Bosphorous cruise up to the Black Sea, stopping at a ruined castle atop a hill. It was great to spend the day on the water with beautiful things to see on either side. The castle was surprisingly unattended and people were climbing up the the ruined walls. The activity looked tantalizingly dangerous and Ammi was just itching to go but being the sensible one I had to say no. She pouted for a while--she loves the thrill of doing anything with the potential of great bodily injury. Even with her disappointment we both enjoyed the spectacular view the climb up the hill afforded. However, the best part of the whole
excursion with the ice cream place near the dock--chocolate-chocolate chip with a thick fudge sauce and nuts. Like all Turkish ice cream it was slightly stretchy like taffy but it had a certain indescribable quality that made it better than all the rest. It alone was worth the trip.
We went to the Grand Bazaar, which wasn't what we were expecting. It's basically a giant mall with shops that sell the same stuff over and over again. We stopped at the Spice Market to pick up Ammi's favorite new tea: rose hip, which tastes like cherry Jolly Ranchers. I chose not to buy the Turkish Viagra, however, which is simply a mixture of almonds and dates ground into a paste (Don't ask me where to apply it!). We were also on the lookout for a water pipe to send home. Ever since Egypt we had been enjoying the pleasures of an afternoon session of sheesha/nargile/hookah and a rousing game of chess. We chose not to get a Turkish massage as it was expensive in Istanbul and we'd heard stories of people being touched inappropriately. No thanks. The last thing we did was to see the Topkapi Palace, which I
Entrance to the Grand Bazaar
Can you find your way out again? Enter if you dare! pictured as being similar to the Forbidden City in China or the Alhambra in Spain. It wasn't bad for it's history and exhibits but it wasn't what I expected.
Next stop: Pamukkale 😱
***TIPS FOR TRAVELERS***
-The Bosphorus is well worth doing. Show up early (30 minutes) to get a seat on the upper deck near the side so you get a nice view. Get off at the last stop, Anadolu and take the road up the hill to see the castle ruins and the spectacular view. Don't forget to try the chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce and nuts, it is down the road from the dock on your left. Best in Turkey! Aarrgguuahh. (Sorry, I just drooled a little on the keyboard.)
-If you want to get your smoke on, water pipe that is, then head down the road that goes between the Aya Sophia and the Blue Mosque (follow the tram tracks) on your right you will see a mosque with an Ottoman cemetery. Inside is a great little tea garden with great tea, great prices (8 YTL for nargile in Istanbul is the best we found) and great service. Play a game of chess and smoke the afternoon away.
-Try rose hip or apple tea. Some of the best to be found is at Semazen Restaurant across from the park on the same road as the tea garden (see above). The food is also terrific and the prices are reasonable. Ask to sit upstairs on the balcony and you get a great view of the Blue Mosque. The best time to go is a weekend night when they have live music playing in the park across the street.
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Sandy Owens
non-member comment
Istanbul looks amazing!
Wow!!! Your trip really looks like a blast! Your pictures look incredible!