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Published: October 9th 2015
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Today, our last day, was all about "our favorites" and revisiting the sights and food (ok mostly the food) that we enjoyed the most. However, there still was one site we had yet to visit and that was the Chora Church which we made our first destination this morning. We caught a cab as it was a good 20 minute drive from the hotel and got there shortly after opening. Our museum pass has totally paid for itself, and it was the Chora Church that definitely put us over in savings, not to mention you get to skip the queue.
The Chora Church was built around 400 A.D. and features what is considered to be the best examples of late-period Byzantine mosaics anywhere in the world. There was a section closed off for renovation (how large we don't know?) but what we did see was remarkable. Most of what we see today with the mosaics and structure of the church are from around 1315 after a large part of the church had collapsed in the early 12th century. The artists of the mosaics remain unknown, but they are of impeccable detail and in such good condition considering their
age.
We spent about an hour there and intentionally skipped hotel breakfast because we knew we wanted to go back to Siirt Seref, the Buryan Kebab place that we had lunch at on the food tour. This was the place that cooks the lamb in underground pits for 3+ hours and yes, they open at 10am....and yes we had lamb for breakfast....and yes it was glorious. I mean audible sounds of pleasure with every bite. We had to get their curtain rice which was better than yesterday's at Ciya as well as this tomato salad that is heaven. It's a salsa consistency and is so smoky and rich in flavor....dipping bread in it is divine. We had each ordered a water but who knows what they thought I said because they brought me a yogurt drink instead which turned out to be pretty darn tasty. Basically a thinned out greek yogurt that help cut the spice a bit.
Sooo....we were both stuffed to the gills and regretting not just ordering one serving of the lamb. We decided to go back to the hotel for a brief siesta, our only one of the trip so
far (and it was heavenly) before heading back into old town a little after noon. We visited the candy shop from the food tour to buy our turkish delights to bring home to our work friends as well as some of their homemade hard candy. Again, the owner was amazing in packaging our boxes of mixed flavors carefully, wrapping them with paper and ribbon, and consistently continuing to bring us samples of different things. It just feels so special in this shop....to know they have been making and selling candy since the late 1800s!
Our next "favorite" was back to the Boza shop. Apple maps took us a different way and we ended up walking through a very impoverished area of the city that felt for the first time, third world. However, as with this city in general it has felt VERY safe at all times, people are nice, and I get a few stares here in there largely due to my blond head. In these types of neighborhoods I deliberately ensure I do not make direct eye contact with men and just keep my sunglasses on when I can. I will say unlike other parts of
Our fav beer while here.
Several restaurants ran out which was completely irritating since all other Turk beers sucked the world, very very little begging here from adults or children.
We made it to the boza shop and each enjoyed our cup of healthy goodness. One of its biggest boasts is that it aides in digestion....great because we had more eating to do. Again, this shop feels so special as they have not changed a single thing since 1876....the decor, tile, nothing!!! In fact the divot in the marble entrance is proof enough this place has been popular as hell for hundreds of years (like old churches that have their marble worn down!) I know Matt is seriously bummed we can't bring this home with us......
Back down the hill we went (did I forget to mention the steepness of the climb up? LOL) to the Cag kebab place from the food tour in the Trading District. I said the other night when we found another Cag Kebob place for dinner that we can't get enough. And ok....I can hear you. Yes!!! Lamb for breakfast and lunch but we don't care! When in Istanbul.....indulge! And it was sooooooo goooooood!!!
We decided to see if we could grab a quick drink
at a place across the street on the water near the Galata bridge that looked like it had a nice view called Surplus. The reviews were dicey in terms of their food and honesty in billing but for drinks only we decided why not just see? We were able to sit by an open window looking out on the city and enjoy the beautiful day and breeze before catching a taxi to Hagia Sofia (it was our favorite and worth to pay to see again!)
OK....tourist tip of the universe here!! The perfect time to visit Hagia Sofia???? 1.5 hours before closing! No line and appx 5% of the tourists we experienced our first visit....it's like it's just you and her with the fading sunlight that shines through the windows and lights up all of her golden hues. She's magnificent and we enjoyed just walking though and just standing in quietness taking her in.....great way to end our visit.
Today was about favorites right? We went back to the place we had lunch in twice with the great view of the Blue Mosque, Safir Et-Teras, and had 2 small Turkish Pizzas (SUPER thin crispy
bread with mincemeat and finely chopped tomatoes/herbs) that encompass the flavors of this city. And then....a Kunefe which sadly was a little too drenched in the sugar syrup tonight but still tasted good.
We meandered a bit before catching a taxi back to the hotel to pack, type this blog, and get ready to get up at 3am 😞
One thing I forget to mention in earlier posts are the street animals here. If you saw the pic of birdhouses on the building from Ottoman times, it represented their care of animals on the outside. Pets are not popular here and virtually unheard of. People do not want them in their homes for cleanliness reasons, don't wear shoes inside etc, so animals live on the streets here and people still care for them. You see piles of pet food, bowls of water, people throwing scraps of meat to dogs, even makeshift cat crate shelters built in areas of the city. You see people loving them, petting them, and they themselves look pretty darn healthy. The animals sleep everywhere (even on piles of books - see pic) and the city works to spay/neuter and vaccinate
them. You can see most of them are tagged showing this has occurred.
In closing, this has been a wonderful trip and surprising in many ways. We read a lot around pickpockets, being a woman, scams, getting sucked into shops with tea and not being able to escape......none of which occurred for us. We felt safe, welcomed, had very little haggle with shops over price, only had a couple of taxi drivers try to quote prices that you walk away from (if they quote a price and aren't going to use the meter something is wrong!), and as a woman I felt completely comfortable here and would have no concerns being here by myself. It's a city that caters to tourists and you see all walks of life and religious belief here. What we've enjoyed the most is the diverse clash of tradition and modern and how it plays so nicely here together!
Cheers to another wonderful adventure!
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Tom lyle
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Last day
I see nothing wrong with lamb for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if necessary. It sounds like this adventure was a great one too. We are glad you were safe too. Safe flight, hopefully you have a day or two before you start the grind again. Ral misses you!