In and Around Istanbul

Here are random shots of various things we saw during our walk around Istanbul. When in Turkey Barry and I took a cab twice - once from the airport and once back to the airport. Walking proved to be the best mode of transportation even for our walk from Galata Bridge to to Taksim Sq via Istiklal Caddesi on the Beyoglu side of the Bosphorus. Mind you that was a LONG walk and we took the tram back to Sultanahment.

Hagia Sophia

It was so easy to sightsee in Turkey – it seems there is something around every corner.

Next stop, Hagia Sophia. This mosque is a former patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, now a museum. Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture. It was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years, until the completion of the Medieval Seville Cathedral in 1520.

Basilica Cistern

We visited the Basilica Cistern (aka Yerebatan Sarnıcı), it is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that still lie beneath the city of Istanbul. The cistern was used as a location for the James Bond film From Russia with Love.

The Medusa heads were very interesting to see! The origin of the two heads is unknown, though it is rumoured that the heads were brought to the cistern after being removed from an antique building of the late Roman period. Another mystery is why one of the heads is upside down, while the other is tilted to one side. It is commonly accepted by scientists that they were placed that way deliberately.

Blue Mosque

The Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii) is one of the main reasons I wanted to see Istanbul. Visiting this mosque was a very significant part of the trip. In order to see the mosque without hordes of people ruining the experience, we woke up very early (not quite as early as the call to prayer). We were lucky the Blue Mosque was only a 5 minute walk away from our hotel. Later in the day we went back and visited the inside.

The Blue Mosque It was built between 1609 and 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I. Like many other mosques, it also comprises a tomb of the founder.

Hamam (aka Turkish Bath)

The Turkish Bath is the Middle Eastern variant of a steam bath, which can be categorized as a wet relative of the sauna. They have played an important role in cultures of the Middle-East, serving as places of social gathering, ritual cleansing, and as architectural structures and institutions. I heard mothers frequented hamams to find wives for their sons.

How do I explain this with grace? I don’t know that I can. . . . . .a bunch of naked women of all colour, shape and size walking around wet and soapy (except for the men's side of the building of course).

The Hamam we visted was built in 1584 and it was beautiful! The idea is that you lay on a massive circular marble slap in the middle of the round room. The roof was a massive dome which had stars cut into it. Depending on the service you selected (self-service, traditional, or Luxury style) you are given two small domino-type coloured tags and a scrubbing cloth. One tag shows that you are there to be bathed and the other shows that you will then go for a massage.

After lying on the marble stone in the centre of the room, pouring water over yourself from the several “sinks” around the outside of the room, a hamam lady will go over to you and bath you on the marble stone. This involves hard scrubbing followed by lots of bubbles, rinsing and hair washing. That’s as much detail as I will go into on the blog.

For obvious reasons there was no picture taking inside. For pictures check out the website:

http://www.cemberlitashamami.com.tr/

P.S. my locker key was number 30 :-)

Things I loved about Istanbul

Interesting architecture;
Narrow streets with cobblestone roads;
Cafés on every corner;
Quaint shops everywhere; and
Mosques on every street;
The night view from our hotel room.

Istanbul's Grand Bazaar

Since the plane was late taking off (darned charter flights) we only had a few hours in the Grand Bazaar before it closed for Eid. The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is one of the largest covered markets in the world and is comprised of more than 58 streets and 4,000 shops. We tried to make our way through the walkways to see all the jewelry, gold, silver, pottery, spice, leather and carpet shops we could. Being well trained in the art of shopping by my mother, I was successful in purchasing a few items which will remind me of this trip in years to come. I could not stop taking pictures of the Bazaar’s painted ceilings!

We have arrived in Istanbul!

The charter package offered a hotel on the Beyoglu side of the Bosphorus so we booked the flight only and arranged our own accommodation in the Sultanahmet area. We stayed at the Stone Hotel and requested room 402 as the Lonely Planet recommended. Above are pictures of our view. The weather was a nice change from Dubai so we had the windows open the whole time - the mosque being right outside our window provided a wake-up call, albeit way to early. Our only criticism to the hotel is their choice in very tacky bedspread - "criticism" is a bit harsh - amusing is more like it. Oh, and I think a shower curtain may be a North American thing.

Happy Birthday Heidi!

For as long as I can remember I have wanted to see the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. Therefore, visiting this city on my noteworthy birthday was very special for me. It was the end of Ramadan in Dubai and for those who followed by blog last year know that this means an Eid long weekend! I found a special charter package for Istanbul and signed up as soon as I got the okay from my financial advisor (a.k.a. Barry). Once the damn plane took off - Sultanahmet here we come!

A Gift

This is kinda hard to explain. In this picture there is coal, three different kinds of wood from different parts of the world (...I forget where exactly) and a podium thingy to burn the wood and coal together.

In the Middle East people like to burn the wood in their closets so their clothes (usually their dishdasha and abaya) take on the smell of the wood - the wood smells super nice! Wood ranges in price and the smells are very different from one to the other. Stores and shops (both in the mall and souk) tend to burn it like incense outside their stores to draw people inside. The three types which were chosen for me all smell great. Thank you Omar!

Stop? Yield?

Is it just me or can this sign be easily misinterpreted? Am I yielding or stopping? I think it must be my choice.

This is a sign close to our apartment in the Marina.