First stop in Europe...Istanbul, Turkey

After spending a week in the blistering heat of Dubai, we said farewell to the Asia part of our trip and were full of anticipation as we entered into the European portion. Uncertain of what to expect, we only knew that it would be expensive. Europe is foreign to me and this inaugural visit will most likely be far more superior to what I have read in books, seen on TV and movies. We tightened our belts another notch and entered into city #31 and country #11, Istanbul, Turkey to a cool 18 degrees Celsius with the sun setting on the water.

I was astonished by the lack of large modern buildings in the skyline of Istanbul. In all of the major cities that we had visited thus far (even south east Asia), they each had a skyscraper or two adorning the skyline, but here in Istanbul instead of the familiar steel and glass modern buildings, there stands plentiful of minarets built of stone and concrete. It was quite a site to see. There are hundreds of mosques throughout all of Istanbul, but none are as impressive as that of the Blue Mosque and the Aiya Sophia located within the heart of Sultanahmet (old town) where we stayed while in Istanbul.

The mosques with their massive dome shaped roofs on top of monochromatic mason walls, with tall yet slender minarets pointing skyward creates an architectural vocabulary that demands your complete attention when looking at the skyline. These works of art punctuate the landscape repeatedly, as a constant visual reminder of the Islamic faith. The beauty and elegance of the exterior is captured within the geometric shapes, despite the lack of intricate details. Conversely, inside the mosques lives the richness of the mosaics that is awe inspiring.

We were taken aback when we entered the Aiya Sophia. Although much of the interior are in ruins there are glimpses of the profound artistry and devotion but surprisingly, not of the Islamic faith, but to that of Christianity. Images of Christ and the stories within the bible are found throughout the church. Yes, Aiya Sophia was built in the 6th century as a church, but converted into a mosque when the Ottoman Empire conquered this region in the late 15th century.

Aiya Sophia, our favorite mosque in Istanbul

Aiya Sophia at night

Mosaic of Christ in Aiya Sophia

Addition of Islamic faith within Aiya Sophia

The Blue Mosque was built in the 16th century and has become one of the most famous religious buildings in the world. Our visit into the Blue Mosque was not as profound as some of the literature has proclaimed as we found we were not as impressed with the interior as we had imagined. Perhaps visiting the Aiya Sophia first overshadowed our visit to the Blue Mosque. We had envisioned walking into the Blue Mosque and finding a greater sense of awe but perhaps not being able to explore all components of the mosque (a major portion of the mosque was off limits to foreign visitors and only Muslims were allowed in to pray) may have lessened our experience of this space.

Blue Mosque

Blue Mosque at night

Inside the Blue Mosque…typical mosaics of most mosques

The Turkmen Hotel and Pension (a pension is similar to a hostel) was where we stayed for 5 nights. Rav with her PHD in bargaining from South East Asia brought the price down from 45 Euros to 45 Turkish Liras (equivalent to $36 CDN) including breakfast. Still a little more than we had hoped for but it was the best in town. The hotel was clean, with a private bathroom and it was close to everything we had wanted to see in Istanbul, only a 5 minute walk to the amazing sites of the Blue Mosque and Aiya Sofia.

We walked everywhere and were amazed by the fact that this area is over 4,000 years old, and there have been many civilizations that have come and gone; including the Greek, Roman and Byzantine empires of the past. The streets were narrow and winding, covered with cobble stones of irregular shapes and sizes, mimicking the numerous carpet shops that adorn these streets.

Typical street in Sultanahmet area

Rav and a carpet salesman… “no really I do not want any carpet”

We even ventured across the Golden Horn to the Beyoglu area where we visited Istiklal Caddesi, a thriving and lively pedestrian street near Taksim Square where we saw 1 million of the 15 million inhabitants of Istanbul that day. This pedestrian walkway was riddled with modern day shops selling everything from designer clothes to local handicrafts on the ground floor with 19th century apartment blocks on the upper floors. The side streets and alley ways were filled with restaurants, jazz bars and little tea shops full of locals on wooden stools sipping the common drink of Turkey, cay (tea). We could not help but join them for a sip of apple tea and take in all that surrounded us. We meandered through the busy shopping quarter and found ourselves at the Galata Tower (the tallest tower in Istanbul), formerly used as a look out point, but is now a restaurant with an amazing panoramic view of the city. On our walk back to the hotel, we walked across the bridge connecting the Beyoglu area to the Bazaar Quarter (which is right next to the Sulanahmet area) where we came across many fishermen on the bridge poaching (Derek please refrain from taking action). We also visited the Book Bazaar, Grand Bazaar, and Spice Bazaar. It was pretty bizarre that I walked out with a couple of bags and Rav with none.

Istiklal Caddesi pedestrian shopping street

Galata Tower

Fisherman out on a beautiful sunny day

We also visited the Topkapi Palace (once the royal palace, now a museum) to see some of the traditional Turkish customs. The palace was not that big, but some of the artifacts that lay inside were quite impressive, especially the jewelry section. We saw an 86 carat diamond, which explained how the Sultan had over 1000 concubines in his Harem. Found out that the word Harem is actually Arabic for “forbidden”, but these days you can enter into the Sultan’s Harem for 10 lira. That was too rich for my blood, so we passed it up. Would have been a bunch of really old women sitting around anyways… Much of the palace was under surveillance and photography was not allowed so you all will just have to visit it for yourselves one day.

Topkapi Palace from afar

On our last day in Istanbul we went on a free 3 hour boat cruise around the Golden Horn and up the Bosphorus (a water way 1 km wide that separates Istanbul in two - Europe to the west and Asia to the east; as water from the Black Sea enters into the sea of Marmara.). We ventured to the Asia side of Istanbul to find mansions some $50 million US and above, expensive hotels ($5000 US per night) and of course more mosques. The financial district was also on the Asia side, as well as an old fortress of Asia and castles. It was a great way to end our visit to Istanbul as we had a chance to relax on top of a 50 foot boat coasting along the Bosphorus. That night we would board an overnight bus to Cappadocia known as the land of beautiful horses…

On the Golden Horn bridge

Suleymaniye Mosque

Us at the Blue Mosque