Istanbul is one of the most exotic places I've ever been. You are constantly reminded that you're "not in Kansas anymore" by the regular calls to prayer broadcast by the Mosques across the city 5 times a day (starting at 5:00am!)
- In Rome, the day after the wedding, we decided to share a cab with sis to the airport. When we got in the cab, however, we realised that we were going to different airports! I had to leave her on the side of the road, taxi-less, so we could catch our flight.
- Weren’t sure if Alitalia were flying anymore. They were. Still weren’t sure if we could get back in 5 days time however.
- I was exhausted when we arrived in Istanbul. Ben went for a walk around the neighbourhood (we were down the street from the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, as well as the Hippodrome) and also saw the Mosaic Museum, an archaeological excavation site and a local bazaar.
- That night we went out for dinner. The whole month of September is Ramadan and this involves huge celebrations in the evening, because people can’t eat during the day. The Hippodrome square was turned into a carnival, with games and rides and stalls selling lots of sugar (especially popular were toffee apples, fairy floss and soft lolly pops that the store owner makes in front of you).
- When we eventually found somewhere to eat (with vegetarian kebabs) the waiter wanted to be friends with us. He sat down with us afterwards and we had a very awkward conversation in broken English. The only Turkish word we could say was teshekur (thank you. That’s not how you spell it though I’m sure!)
- I was unwell. Being sick before the wedding then all the organising of the wedding and the adreneline of the day itself eventually took its toll. I spent almost this entire day in bed. Lucky we were staying at a nice hotel (thanks to Ben’s parents!)
- So in the morning, Ben went to the St Xavier in Cora church and the Theodosian walls. He was like an excited 4 year old about the walls, the old city walls of Constantinople (I think. Better to ask him about this stuff!)
- In the afternoon, we attempted to see the Hagia Sophia but it’s closed on Mondays! Instead we went to the Byzantine Cistern, the ancient underground water supply. It was very dark and spooky, although the atmosphere was ruined somewhat by the synthesised pipe-organ music playing covers of bad pop songs! I swear that one of the tracks was a version of “You say it best when you say nothing at all” (can anyone remember who sang that high quality ballad? Was is Ronan Keating?)
- We also went to the Topkapi Palace (the Sultan’s Palace). It was pretty cool, but it cost extra to see the harem so we didn’t bother! Tourist sites in Istanbul are expensive, be warned.
- I went back to bed. Ben went for a walk and took another 100 photos. He was also offered drugs but (claims he) didn’t accept!
- Had dinner overlooking the Blue Mosque, which was lit up differently every night for Ramadan. I got a lollypop made.
- Feeling much better today, we went on a ferry cruise up the Bosphorous to a small town on the edge of the Black Sea.
- There was a castle atop a hill overlooking the black sea, an old fort, so we climbed up there and ALMOST DIED BECAUSE WE'RE SO UNFIT! It was quite hot and the hill just went on forever. I'd been so respectful of the culture up until that moment, always keeping my shoulders covered, but the mid-length sleeves had to come off and I climbed the last few metres in my singlet top.
- In the actual town it was very touristy. About 20 or more restaurants that all try to spruik for your business as soon as you get off the ferry. We chose a restaurant and sat by the water's edge. Not long after finishing our lunch, the waiter politely approached us and said "excuse me, there is wave coming". We looked out at the perfectly calm sea and could indeed spy a small wave rolling our way. We got out from our chairs and took a few steps back, just before the wave crashed over the restaurant, washing away two umbrellas and everything that was sitting on the first row of tables! Plates, glasses and more got washed into the ocean. We got drenched from the knees down. A pretty memorable meal, despite the fact that they overcharged us.
- We got back from the cruise in the late afternoon and walked (more walking) up to the Kalata tower (more uphill walking) overlooking the whole city. It would have been great if the narrow viewing platform hadn't been swamped with two tour groups, one large Japanese group and another German group.
- I was exhausted and drank a Turkish coffee to revive me. Tasted like mud but did the trick!
- That night we ate baked potatoes, a meal described by our hotel as a traditional Turkish dish introduced in the 1980s!
- There was a huge storm when we got back to our hotel. Ben got excited and went onto the rooftop to photograph it (!) but was washed away.
24th September
- The Hagia Sophia was open today so we went in. An incredible building, absolutely huge, and one that has passed through so many regimes and been worshipped in by Christians and Muslims.
- There are dozens of multilingual tour guides who hang out near the ticket office. It's amazing to think that these people speak 3 or more languages and yet they work as a tour guide! Perhaps the pay is really great. Or they just love the Hagia Sophia (that's easy to believe).
- We went briefly to the Grand Bazaar. Neither of us being shoppers we only lasted 10 minutes! It's really intense.
- Bought turkish delight from the shop that invented it in 1770.
- Also walked through the Spice Bazaar (which is much more interesting than the Grand Bazaar, if you ever go to Istanbul. The smells are incredible).
- In the afternoon, we each had a Turkish bath and massage. Coming from a country with no water this felt particularly indulgent! You are surrounded by steam and splashed with running water constantly. Completely naked, you are washed and massaged by an attendant. Evidently the men's and women's experiences are different, however. Mine was very gentle but Ben got pummelled by his masseur! I was slightly jealous. He came out of his bath walking like he was high on something.
- Thought we'd look at buying a carpet and went to the shop recommended in Lonely Planet for having reasonable prices, good quality carpets and an owner who isn't too pushy. I wanted 2 small carpets, one for me and one for a present for my sister. In the shop, Ben also took a fancy to a small Turkish carpet. We asked how much and were told $600 each! I was expecting $150-200! Needless to say, our faces dropped. No point in bargaining really, we exited the shop with our tails between our legs.
- To top off our indulgent day we went to a rooftop bar after dinner and smoked nargileh (a Turkish water pipe) with lemon tobacco. We both coughed a fair bit but it was very relaxing.
Will we make it back to Rome flying Alitalia so that we can catch our train to Nice?? Find out in the next installment...!
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