Istanbul, home of many famous buildings and rug sellers
28th July 2010
Aaron and I arrived in Istanbul five days ago, after an overnight bus journey from Kobuleti, Georgia. Olegi had secured us seats on a bus from Tiblisi therefore the bus was already full when we got on and we didn't have many stops other than a slow crossing at the border. Luckily the driver kept the AC on for just long enough intervals to make it a much pleasanter journey than our last trip across Turkey, despite that several Georgians had stuffed their air vents with the curtains.
Accommodation in Istanbul was more expensive than Aaron had experienced a few years ago when he visited off-peak, so we searched several hostels before deciding to try out a dorm room. The room was in the basement of the hostel and contained ten bunk-beds. In one corner of the room a window and door leading into a small yard provided daylight. During the night with the use of ear plugs and an eye mask I managed to sleep fine until I woke up by accidentally kicking someone. The bunk-beds were so close together that the neighbouring man's feet were in the end of my bed! After two nights in the dorm room we moved to a private room. One advantage of our search of hostels was that we got invited to watch some belly-dancing at another (full) hostel. We had a great laugh that evening as the lady invited the audience up to join in one-by-one and I got up to dance with her briefly twice!
Istanbul is home to a huge host of sights which kept us very busy during our stay. First we visited Topkapi palace, once residence of Ottoman Sultans. The palace is made up of several white buildings spaced out across green courtyards criss-crossed with paths. Inside the rooms were intricately decorated with repeating patterns mainly in red, blue and gold. The detail of the busy patterns was amazing, but sometimes when multiple different patterns were juxtaposed together I couldn't help but think I wouldn't want to wake up in that room with a hangover! Several of the rooms contained artefacts and treasures on display and the item that most caught my attention was the sparkle of one of the worlds largest diamonds. I was amused by the story of how it was found by a fisherman who sold it to a jeweller, who thought it was glass, for three spoons. The story made me think of modern day TV programmes where people scour their attics in search of valuable items that might have gone unnoticed. At the far end of the palace grounds was a beautiful view over the Bosphorous river.
After Topkapi Palace we relaxed under the leafy shade in the Hippodrome, a large green square with a few obelisks in it. It was interesting to watch the people go by and I was particularly curious to learn more about Turkish women's dress. 
A lot of the women here are fully covered and wear head-scarves, some of the head-scarves are so beautifully colourful it makes me want to wear one. However the outfits that I found most hard to understand were the young ladies wearing trench coats over their clothing, on such an extremely hot day. After our rest in the park we walked through a section of the bustling grand bazaar, where we restrained from buying anything other than Aaron's regular dinner of doner kebab.
Another sight we visited in Istanbul was the Hadia Sophia museum, which was once a church before being converted to a mosque and then a museum. We enjoyed strolling around the building admiring the beautiful murals and the marble pillars that adorn the immensely huge hall in the centre of the building. Later that day at the archaeological museum we were impressed by the collection of statues, mosaics and other items, in fact they had so much to display that several of the pillars and sculptures were placed outside in a leafy courtyard. Aaron and I tired to absorb as much of the information as we could at the museum, but with it being a very hot afternoon (and no AC in the building) and having been to several other archaeological museums in other countries recently we didn't stay all afternoon.
On our last day of sightseeing we visited another beautifully decorated building, the Sultan Ahmet (Blue) Mosque. I think that it's wonderful that people are happy for us to visit their religious building and they even provided sheets free of charge to people who needed to cover their shoulders or legs. As we approached the mosque we were met by a friendly man who directed us to the entrance and explained how we needed to cover up. He walked with us a short way whilst making conversation, but as we reached the building he revealed that he was in fact trying to sell carpets, rather then make friends. This happened many times in Istanbul as the rug sellers seem to be relentless, however Aaron and I managed to fend them off by telling them we don't own a house. Inside the mosque parts of the walls and pillars were adorned with Arabic script which I think looks exquisite.
We then ventured underground into the Basilica Cistern, an immense area designed for water storage supported by a vast number of pillars. The columns were subtly illuminated by fiery oranges and yellows, also pieces of modern artwork floated in the shallow water. The lights reflected in the water created a mythical/magical atmosphere. After returning to the surface Aaron and I went for some reminders of home and got a pizza hut lunch followed by a Tom Cruise movie at Taksim Square.
Aaron and I arrived in Istanbul five days ago, after an overnight bus journey from Kobuleti, Georgia. Olegi had secured us seats on a bus from Tiblisi therefore the bus was already full when we got on and we didn't have many stops other than a slow crossing at the border. Luckily the driver kept the AC on for just long enough intervals to make it a much pleasanter journey than our last trip across Turkey, despite that several Georgians had stuffed their air vents with the curtains.
Accommodation in Istanbul was more expensive than Aaron had experienced a few years ago when he visited off-peak, so we searched several hostels before deciding to try out a dorm room. The room was in the basement of the hostel and contained ten bunk-beds. In one corner of the room a window and door leading into a small yard provided daylight. During the night with the use of ear plugs and an eye mask I managed to sleep fine until I woke up by accidentally kicking someone. The bunk-beds were so close together that the neighbouring man's feet were in the end of my bed! After two nights in the dorm room we moved to a private room. One advantage of our search of hostels was that we got invited to watch some belly-dancing at another (full) hostel. We had a great laugh that evening as the lady invited the audience up to join in one-by-one and I got up to dance with her briefly twice!
Istanbul is home to a huge host of sights which kept us very busy during our stay. First we visited Topkapi palace, once residence of Ottoman Sultans. The palace is made up of several white buildings spaced out across green courtyards criss-crossed with paths. Inside the rooms were intricately decorated with repeating patterns mainly in red, blue and gold. The detail of the busy patterns was amazing, but sometimes when multiple different patterns were juxtaposed together I couldn't help but think I wouldn't want to wake up in that room with a hangover! Several of the rooms contained artefacts and treasures on display and the item that most caught my attention was the sparkle of one of the worlds largest diamonds. I was amused by the story of how it was found by a fisherman who sold it to a jeweller, who thought it was glass, for three spoons. The story made me think of modern day TV programmes where people scour their attics in search of valuable items that might have gone unnoticed. At the far end of the palace grounds was a beautiful view over the Bosphorous river.
After Topkapi Palace we relaxed under the leafy shade in the Hippodrome, a large green square with a few obelisks in it. It was interesting to watch the people go by and I was particularly curious to learn more about Turkish women's dress. 
A lot of the women here are fully covered and wear head-scarves, some of the head-scarves are so beautifully colourful it makes me want to wear one. However the outfits that I found most hard to understand were the young ladies wearing trench coats over their clothing, on such an extremely hot day. After our rest in the park we walked through a section of the bustling grand bazaar, where we restrained from buying anything other than Aaron's regular dinner of doner kebab.
Another sight we visited in Istanbul was the Hadia Sophia museum, which was once a church before being converted to a mosque and then a museum. We enjoyed strolling around the building admiring the beautiful murals and the marble pillars that adorn the immensely huge hall in the centre of the building. Later that day at the archaeological museum we were impressed by the collection of statues, mosaics and other items, in fact they had so much to display that several of the pillars and sculptures were placed outside in a leafy courtyard. Aaron and I tired to absorb as much of the information as we could at the museum, but with it being a very hot afternoon (and no AC in the building) and having been to several other archaeological museums in other countries recently we didn't stay all afternoon.On our last day of sightseeing we visited another beautifully decorated building, the Sultan Ahmet (Blue) Mosque. I think that it's wonderful that people are happy for us to visit their religious building and they even provided sheets free of charge to people who needed to cover their shoulders or legs. As we approached the mosque we were met by a friendly man who directed us to the entrance and explained how we needed to cover up. He walked with us a short way whilst making conversation, but as we reached the building he revealed that he was in fact trying to sell carpets, rather then make friends. This happened many times in Istanbul as the rug sellers seem to be relentless, however Aaron and I managed to fend them off by telling them we don't own a house. Inside the mosque parts of the walls and pillars were adorned with Arabic script which I think looks exquisite.
We then ventured underground into the Basilica Cistern, an immense area designed for water storage supported by a vast number of pillars. The columns were subtly illuminated by fiery oranges and yellows, also pieces of modern artwork floated in the shallow water. The lights reflected in the water created a mythical/magical atmosphere. After returning to the surface Aaron and I went for some reminders of home and got a pizza hut lunch followed by a Tom Cruise movie at Taksim Square.
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