We arrived in Istanbul after our extended beach holiday in Marmaris, Turkey. We couldn't find our hotel in the Sultanahmet area, but we did find a Starbucks, and took a rest there. The Tourism Information Office showed us the way on a map, and the Castle Hostel was located close to the Starbucks. We stayed two nights, just enough to get the feel of the city.
Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey with a population of about 14 million people divided by the Bosporus Strait, which forms the divide between Europe and Asia. The strait is one of the world's major shipping lanes, with ships headed to and from the Black Sea serving many countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, and Bulgaria.
As soon as we had dropped our backpacks, we went to visit the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmet Mosque),
but we couldn't get in as Andy wasn't wearing long pants, and, furthermore, it was closed for prayers, so in stead we headed for a walk along the strait.
At every hotel we stayed in Turkey, we were served a Turkish breakfast. It is very nutritious, but can be tiring (same thing) after 10 days!
After breakfast we went to the Blue Mosque, this time properly dressed. To enter the Blue Mosque, you must be conservatively dressed, similar to entering the Vatican.
Muslims pray 5 times a day, and the call to prayer is played over speakers; the first call being around 5:00am. This is what Call to Prayer sounds like from the Blue Mosque and surrounding mosques
The ceiling of the Mosque is which gives it its name.
Later that day, we visited the Basilica Cistern, which was built by the Romans in the 6th century by to meet the population's water requirements in case of a siege. This cathedral-size cistern is an underground chamber approximately 138 metres (453 ft) by 64.6 metres (212 ft)[5] - about 9,800 square metres (105,000 sq ft) in area - capable of holding 80,000 cubic metres (2,800,000 cu ft) of water. The ceiling is supported by a forest of 336 marble columns, which gave it the nickname 'The Sunken Palace'.
At the bases of two columns are two blocks carved with the visage of Medusa. The origin of the two heads is unknown, though it is thought that the heads were brought to the cistern after being removed from a building of the late Roman period, and the blocks just fitted the columns. One of the many Medusa myths say that if a Medusa head is placed upside down or sideways, you will not turn into stone when you look at it - we can confirm this is true!
That day was also quite busy, because we also visited both the Grand Bazaar built in the 15th century, and covering an area of 54,653 square meters, which is the largest and oldest bazaar in the world.
We also visited the Spice Bazaar, which had wonderful aromas of all the spices.
On our last day in Turkey, we slept in and then walked to the Bozdogan Aqueduct, which was built around 340 A.D. by the ..... yes, Romans! serving the city with water. The portion remaining is about 900 metre long, and 28 meters high. This part of town was very conservative and very easy to tell by the burqa dressed women.
Do you notice anything unusual in this picture of an outdoor cafe?
Yes, there is no women, only men.
We had our best meal in this part of town. Unfortunately, when you visit a place, you often find something you really like at the last minute.
We also took the tram to the last stop, Kabatas, and walked by the impressive Dolnabahce Palace, and along the straight looking towards Asia. Despite the tram ride, this was a typical walking day for us on our trip, usually anywhere between 10-15 km.
We had a very nice roof top dinner at Pierre Loti Roof Restaurant overlooking the Bosporus Strait, and signifying our departure from Europe and moving on to Middle East and Asia.
