Sultanahmet: Day One

Sultanahmet is the oldest part of Istanbul. It has been inhabited by one culture or another for the last 8,000 years. The history in this part of the world is so deep, so rich and so important that I cannot possibly do it justice here. Western and Middle Eastern civilizations have their roots here from the Greeks, Romans and Ottomans right up to the modern day. I barely scratched the historical surface of this place in one of my earlier postings, listing the former names of this great city and some general time lines, so all I will bore you with here and now is this admonition: Read about it. Grab a book, the smallest, easiest read you can find, and read about it. Look closely at the pictures. Even if you're not all that interested in the subject to begin with, read about it. If you do, and you're still not interested, then go back to whatever it is you ARE interested in. But, if you find yourself drawn in by the place, if you marvel at the fact that these ancient cultures were capable of art and science on such a grand scale, if you admire the many different architectures on display, if you can actually wrap your mind around the reality that a place like this does exist, then please, go there. Do whatever you have to do. Save your allowance, get the time off from whatever it is you have to do and just go there. It will knock you out.

Sultan Ahmed Mosque (The Blue Mosque)

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque was built in only seven years. It was completed in the year 1616. At a time when there were no cranes, no power tools and no means of transporting anything rapidly (by modern standards) the Ottomans were able to build a stone structure that has a footprint of roughly one acre, can hold 10,000 people and is topped by a dome that stands 142 feet off the ground. At a time when the height of technology was the pulley and the lever they were able to construct a masterpiece of immense size and intricacy, even delicate in some respects. The fine mosaic and highly detailed stone work is startling when contrasted with the sheer mass of the place.

We got there about an hour before the next call to prayer and, as it is still a place of worship, we had to get our fill in that time. The crowds were relatively small due to the cold, wet weather that just wouldn't go away. Out of respect, all female visitors have to cover their heads before entering and all visitors must take off their shoes. Slippers are provided. I don't believe a first time visitor such as myself could really be prepared for the experience.

Near the entrance

A small section of the mosque

One of the other entrances

The main dome and some of the blue tiles that give the mosque
its nickname

Looking towards what I believe to be the front of the mosque.
Have I mentioned yet how many beautiful women there
are in Turkey? 

Stained glass

The main dome

The Basilica Cistern

The original idea was to visit the Blue Mosque, then head over to the Hagia Sophia (more on that later) and then go see the mosaic museum (more on that later, too). A little tip for any of you who might undertake to plan a trip to see these wondrous things: The Hagia Sophia and the mosaic museum are closed on Monday. You guessed it. It was Monday. So, after discovering our little tactical error we decide to make do with a trip to the Basilica Cistern which was a very short distance away. It was not disappointing.

The Basilica Cistern

The Basilica Cistern

The Basilica Cistern was built by the Emperor Justinian in the 6th Cenury and is the largest of scores of ancient cisterns that lie beneath the city of Istanbul. The cistern provided a water filtration system for the Great Palace of Constantinople nearby and continued to provide water to Topkapi Palace after the Ottoman conquest in 1453 and into modern times. It's a little over 100,000 square feet and holds 2.8 million gallons of water. Weirdly enough, there are also large fish swimming around in the water. I don't know what they eat because there is no sunlight to stimulate the growth of algae, but they're there.

There is a walkway that winds through the cisterns and affords you the chance to get a feel for the size of the place. The ceiling is very high and it is a little spooky down there. It is also quite beautiful.

Medusa standing on her head

Medusa laying on her sid

There are two columns that differ from all others by virtue of the fact they have medusa heads at their base. They are located way back in the furthest corner from the entrance. Nobody knows where they came from or what the significance of the medusa heads is or why they're wrong side up. They're just there. Personally, I think a couple of the workmen just felt like having a goof. But who knows?

The Hippodrome

We left the cisterns and walked over to the Hippodrome, which means horse racing track. Horse races and chariot races were big business back in the Greek and Roman times and this was where it went on in what was first Byzantium and later Constantinople. In case you haven't noticed, all these places we're looking at today are in a relatively small area, probably no bigger than a half-mile square. It is a very easy place to spend a day or two without walking yourself to death but still being able to see many sights. As mentioned earlier, the Hagia Sophia and the mosaic museum are also in the immediate area.

The Obelisk of Theodosius

 At one end of the hippodrome is the Obelisk of Theodosius. It was brought from Egypt and erected in this very spot in the year 390 AD where it has stood ever since. I think they used it to mark one of the turns in the track as there is another obelisk at the other end of the hippodrome, like they had to race around them to complete a lap.

Carvings at the base of the obelisk

Detail

Random Goings On

Here are some photos of the rest of the day, in no particular order. We spent our time wandering semi-aimlessly around the neighborhood of Sultanahmet and then back towards our hotel. Check it out. 

Typical Byzantine construction. Stones alternating
with brick tiles. Old stuff.

Not sure who built this. Old structures like this are
everywhere you look. 

The entrance to the Grand Bazaar. For no good reason it's
the only picture I took here. I walked around inside
for an hour or so and didn't take one more picture.
Sorry.

A nice, modern mall. Gevahir shopping mall. 

They have McDonald's, Pizza Hut, KFC, etc.
Yuck!!

Last But Not Least. Meze.

Meze

In Turkey there is a style of eating that is similar to Spanish Tapas. It's called Meze (mez-zay). They bring a platter out with many small dishes on it, you pick a few out, eat them at your leisure and when you're ready, you order some more. All while drinking the national drink of Turkey; Raki (rock-uh). Raki has a very mild taste of anise and is clear like vodka, until you add water. Then it clouds up. It's not particularly strong and it pairs very nicely with the food. It's a great way to spend a long evening with friends and family. Eat, drink and be merry.

At this point there should be a short video of the musicians who came and played a couple of songs at our table. For some reason this blog won't upload the video. After four attempts I'm throwing in the towel. I will post it at a later date if I can ever figure out how to get it uploaded. 

That's it for Day 4. I was mistaken at the conclusion of my last post when I said this would be the Blue Mosque and Mosaic Museum post.  I should have said Blue Mosque and Basilica Cistern. Hagia Sophia and Mosaic Museum are next up on the hit parade. Stay tuned. And hey, don't be shy about leaving a comment. At least I'll know someone is reading. 

Until next time.....

A Ride on the Feribot; Anadolu Kavagi

Day three was the worst weather we had the whole five days we were in Istanbul. The sky was dark, the clouds were thick and low and there was a damp, blustery wind blowing. All day. It drizzled. All day. Visibility was severely hampered by the weather conditions. All day. It was face numbingly chilly. All. Damn. Day.

In short, a perfect day for a boat ride on the Bosphorus. Wooohoooo!!


The Feribot

The Feribot

The feribot (ferry boat, get it?) was spacious and warm and there was actually a pretty good sized crowd on board that day. We taxied down from the hotel to the landing, took a little walk around the neighborhood and, after a little more sightseeing, got on the boat.

The boat departs from Eminonu (near the spice bazaar and Galata Bridge) and heads north towards the Black Sea. It makes several stops along the European side before reaching a small town at the very northern end of the Bosphorous on the Asian side called Anadolu Kavagi. It parks there for three hours before turning around and heading south, back to Eminonu and the heart of Istanbul. It is a very picturesque ride and a great way to see the sights along the Bosphorous without spending a ton of money.

Originally, the feribots were used by the residents of Istanbul as a means of daily transportation up and down the strait, but the operators noticed as time went along that more and more tourists were getting on and riding it all the way up and all the way back without getting off. So, they decided to start selling the trips as "Nostalgic Rides Along the Bosphorous". It wasn't nostalgic for me, but it was well worth the time and money. If the weather had been better I'm sure it would have been incredible.

Galata Tower

Galata Tower

It is said that if you dig deep enough anywhere in Turkey you'll find evidence of ancient cultures. I'm sure that is not too far from the literal truth. The most riveting thing about Istanbul, for me, is that anywhere you travel in the city you will see buildings, artwork, neighborhoods, that are older than most countries in the world. There is evidence of civilizations here that predate Christ.

The structure in the picture to the left is now known as Galata Tower. It was originally called the "Christea Turris" (Tower of Christ in Latin) when it was complete in 1348. It was built by the Genoese as part of the fortification surrounding the Genoese citadel of Galata. It is roughly 220 feet tall and has a commanding view of the Bosphorous and the city below. At times it was used as a lookout for military reasons. The Ottomans later used it to spot fires in the city. Now the top levels house a restaurant and nightclub and there are elevators to take visitors up and down. There are many sights to see along the Bosphorous, both old and new, and this is just one of them.

Dolmabahce Palace

Dolmabahce Palace

Dolmabahce Palace was built by the empire's 31st sultan, Abdulmecid I, and was constructed between the years 1843 and 1856. It's not all that old, but it is spectacular. It was home to six sultans from 1856 until the abolition of the caliphate in 1924. It sits right at the water's edge and it is beautiful, but again, had the weather been better the picture might do it justice.

Ataturk, the founder of the Republic and its first president, spent his last days in Dolmabahce. He passed away there November 10, 1938 at 9:05 am. For a time, all the clocks in the palace were set to 9:05 and left there. Now, only the clock in the room he died in remains set to 9:05.

Sights Unknown, Unnamed


I took many pictures along the way of things that looked interesting, and a few pictures that I just liked because they're good pictures. Here are some of the things I photographed not knowing what they were at the time. Some of them I've been able to look up and name here, and some not. I'll give what explanation I can in each caption. One thing I would like to say is that all the pictures used in this blog, unless credited to someone else, are taken by me. I hope you have enjoyed the ones you've already seen and I hope you keep coming back to see more.

A lighthouse in the distance.

Yaz getting after the biggest cookie I've ever seen.

One of the ferry stops along the way. Click on the picture
and check out the architecture. 

A view from the boat looking north
towards the Sultan Mehmet Bridge.

Mehmet Bridge, up close and personal.

An ancient fort flying the Turkish flag.
No idea who built it or when.

Ottoman era waterfront houses on the Bosphorus

More waterfront houses.
Click on the picture and check out the flock of storks
that flew into the picture at the upper right.
Honest to God. Freakin' storks.

Anadolu Kavagi


Anadolu Kavagi (Onna-doe-loo Kuh-vai) is the furthest stop to the north on this feribot ride. It is on the Asian side of the Bosphorous and within sight of the Black Sea (when it's not foggy and drizzly). Anadolu Kavagi sits opposite Rumeli Kavagi on the European side of the Bosphorus. Anadolu Kavagi is also home to the ruins of Yoros Castle, a Byzantine fort.

Anadolu Kavagi is also a fishing village and we had what was possibly the best meal of grilled fish and fresh vegetable I've ever had the pleasure of consuming.

Up the trail to Yoros Castle. 

The gates to Yoros Castle flanked by towers.
It was foggy, remember?

Typical Byzantine construction with alternating layers of stone and
brick tiles. These walls are several feet thick. 

This is what every stray dog I saw in Turkey looked like.
Large, calm and with a distinct air of "don't fuck with me".

Catch of the day. As fresh as any fish you've ever eaten unless you
walked it from the water's edge to the frying pan yourself. 

Cold, wet and waiting for customers. Glad to oblige. 

They call this "Levrek". It looked like sea bass to me and it was FANTASTIC.

It was a long day. Mom nodding off on the ride back.
She told me to delete this picture. Uh-huh.
Love you, mom.

That was it for the day's activities. The boat ride was six hours in duration and wore us all out pretty good. We went out for a local-style dinner, met up with one of my mother's friends from her previous trips to Turkey, had a little visit and went back to the hotel and to bed. Jet lag was almost licked by this point, but I was still tiring out early. Traveling is hard work, man. 

The next post will be one of the highlights of the trip. I'll be sharing the day we had in Sultanahmet seeing the Blue Mosque and the Mosaic Museum. Sound boring? Yeah, I don't think so. 

See you very soon...

The Spice Bazaar

My niece Yaz feeding pigeons outside Yeni Mosque

Alright kids, we're getting to the good stuff.

As previously mentioned, I was egregiously over served on my first night in Istanbul, and due to sleep deprivation and the irresponsible behavior of some Turkish waiters who wouldn't allow me to stop drinking their cursed alchohol, I awoke on Day 2 feeling a little, shall we say........under the weather? Which actually turned out to be apropos of the day. It was cold (high 40's), drizzly and foggy for the entire day. So, heavy coat on and beany protecting my hairless scalp, we went out into the city.

We went for a long walk down to the water's edge by the Strait of Bosphorous. We saw the Galata Bridge spanning the Golden Horn. We walked through the Spice Bazaar, which is an intoxicating experience both visually and aromatically. The huge mounds of brightly colored spices all neatly arranged, the food stalls; olives, fish, meat, bread, cheese, all in one place. There are bead shops, jewelry shops, hookah shops, clothing, etc. The Spice Bazaar is housed partly within the confines of the Yeni Mosque, also referred to as the "new" mosque because it's merely 350  years old. Not REALLY old like some of the other mosques around town. The original intent was that the rent from the shops would help pay the upkeep on the mosque. Evidently it's working out, because both entities seem to be going strong.

Brother Ralph, Yaz, Cousin Cheryl, Mom

Yeni Mosque, completed in 1660

One of the many spice merchants in the Bazaar

Beans and other dried foods

Shopping in the Spice Bazaar

Yummy, delicious olives

Fish shop

"Koyun" means sheep. Your guess is as good as mine
from there. 

Nuts of every description

Check out the cheese on the right
The best cheese EVER is in Turkey

A view back down the row of shops in one of the
few outdoor areas of the Spice Bazaar

One thing I would like to very briefly comment on at this juncture is my impression of the food scene in Turkey. Being a westerner, it was very hard for me to reconcile my preconceived notions about what things would look like in a megalopolis such as Istanbul with the reality I found myself immersed in there. Like the friends and acquaintances I mentioned in an earlier post, I couldn't help but picture Turkey as somewhat backwards. I ignorantly thought, as hard as I tried not to, that life would be a little grim and hardscrabble in this place. I could not have been more wrong. You can't walk one block, ONE block, without seeing multiple fresh food stores. They're small, but they're everywhere, and they have produce and meat and fish and cheese and bread that makes our supermarkets look weak. It is all produced nearby and brought in fresh constantly. The quality and abundance of food in Turkey is staggering and delightful. Even the flowers being sold at corner flower stands put the ones I see in my hometown to shame. I will be devoting an entire post in the not too distant future to the food in Turkey. It is a feast for the eyes as well as the body. Incredible, and better than the food you and I eat here. Believe it.

Sooooo, back to Day 2 in Istanbul. After a long day walking through the marketplace and strolling along the shore of the Bosphorous, we stopped and had lunch. There was a big football game (soccer to us) taking place that night and my brother had me all talked into going, but by the time we got back to the hotel late that afternoon the previous night's debauchery had joined forces with the jet lag I was carrying around and they basically put a beat down on my dumb ass. I collapsed into bed early that night and slept like a baby. The following morning I awoke feeling like a million bucks and we got down to some serious sightseeing.

That next day we took a ferry ride along the Bosphorous to within sight of the Black Sea. At least it would have been had the cold skies not been filled with low, dark, drizzly clouds.

The next post: Anadolu Kavagi and the sights along the Bosphorous. See you then...