Istanbul

As you approach from the sea,  Istanbul’s “modern” skyline speaks to its ancient roots.  The modern is overshadowed by the great buildings… the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, the minarets and the Tapaki palace.  The harbor is congested with ferries and tugs and pleasure boats.  

We stepped off the ship, thought a sea of taxi cabs and a gauntlet of drivers each offering or rather imploring you to allow him (for all the drivers seen were male) to give you a ride to the old quarter.  (research suggests the tram takes 20 minutes or less, a cab, stuck in traffic typically takes more than an hour).  Instead we walked 200 yards (in this city evidently everything is 200 yards away, sometimes it’s a long 200 yards, sometimes a very short 200 yards, but is seems it is always 200 yards to where every you are going, even when its isn’t)

We had 10 in our group, T and I, her brothers and wives, her two sisters, and a couple we met at the Cruise Critics gathering… we had Turkish Lira, so locating an ATM wasn’t an issue (and wouldn’t have been if we didn’t have local money).  We found the tram stop, purchased tokens from the machine, passed through the turnstile and almost immediately boarded a very crowded tram…   It was a happy crowd, (not at all your typical British soccer hooligans) celebrating their victory at a local soccer game with cheers and songs… we were encouraged to join in … I may have...

The tram passed over the Galata bridge across the Golden Horn, down narrow congested streets.  It is clear we are not in Kansas anymore.   We got off between the Blue Mosque and the Hophia Sophia… it was less a few hundred feet (a very short 200 yards) to the front gate.  The ticket line was long, but we had tickets purchased on line in advance, and walked right in.  From the outside, from up close the building is heavy and squat, speaking to its Byzantine origins, but once inside it opens up and nothing about it is heavy.   It is a spectacular space, even with massive scaffolding inside.  Like so many things in the area, it is layers upon layers of building and history…  A Basilica (once the largest in the world) built on the ruins of a church, converted to mosque, now a museum.   We stay until they close, then gather out in front in the square near a fountain…  it was full of people… vendors roasting corn and chestnuts and making taffy suckers,  People walking, sitting, taking pictures…  

Half our group, headed back via the tram, 4 of us headed back walking… Eventually Erik and Mia decided to break away and head back directly while Tina and I took our time.   We had dinner in a Kabob place, 10 feet from the tram tracks, sitting outside watching the world walk by, then made our way back to the ship as well. 

Day 2

Now Monday, Dawn, but not yet sunrise over the Istanbul’s harbor.  Grey’s and dark blues giving way to colors as the sky lightens…  I am up early, sitting with a cup of coffee in the Lido, Tina still asleep downstairs.  The first of the days ferries head across for the Asian side.  Eventually I headed downstairs and wake sleeping beauty… we are due to gather at 8:00 to go into town.

The clan gathered on the dock at 8:00, promptly, no laggards…  we had much to see and too little time.

Now understanding the tram system having used it the previous day, we purchased tokens, and rode to the old quarter.  Most of our party needed Turkish lira, so they stopped at an ATM (there was a bank of 3 stand alone ATM’s at the tram stop… finding an ATM was not difficult.)  We walk up the street, feeling confident that we know where we are going… and apparently we do…  Istanbul is a city of free roaming cats and dogs… gentle dogs that seem unconcerned with cats, cats who are friendly enough to let you pet them… and only occasionally scratch or bite…

Our first stop was the Topaki Palace, the seat of government for the Ottoman Empire, as well as the residence of the Sultan and his family.    We arrived early, before it opened, then got in line for tickets

The Palace is a progression of courtyards, each more secure, the final being the seat of the government, with the petition hall, the treasury and such.  To one side is the Harem, in reality the residence of the Sultan, his family, ruled by his mother…  There were no scantily clad ladies seen…  but there were spectacular mosaics and wonderful spaces.  We started with the harem… then on to the treasury to see the crown jewels… after a few rooms were had seen enough gold and jewel encrusted boxes.

From the palace we walked down hill around the Hagia Sofia, to the cistern.  The cistern is variously called the “underground cistern” or the “Basilica Cistern” (in the depths of History).  The cistern is simply an underground water storage tank… but a big one, the roof supported by 336 columns, most if not all salvaged from older, ancient,  buildings.  Once again it is a spectacular space… this seems to be a theme here in Istanbul… spectacular spaces… the cistern is dark… there is several feet of water covering the  floor… you walk on raised wooden walkways, through the pillars.   Many years ago, Russia With Love, a James Bond film included the cistern in a scene…

From the cistern we walked across the square to the Blue Mosque.  The building huge, almost overwhelming, with 6 minarets seemingly guarding it.  Being a mosque, with Islamic rules not fully understood, makes it more foreboding…  We have to take our shoes off, We are not allowed inside during prayer.  Prayer takes place five times a day…   In fact, they were very welcoming.  There is a visitor’s entrance.   They have bags for your shoes.  They have wraps for women to cover their heads and for anyone, male or female to hide their legs if they are wearing shorts.  There are barriers establishing where we could go.  Everyone we met was welcoming (yes, I used welcoming twice, now three times... but it is the word that defines the place). Like the Hagia Sofia the space within is spectacular.  Our visit was short.  There was a prayer soon, and we left before they asked us.  This was probably our issue rather than theirs.

From the Blue Mosque we went in search of the Grand Bazaar… This took us across the Hippodrome, then uphill across the old quarter… dodging vehicles… Several of our party starting to suggest food and drink were in order… Just outside the Grand Bazaar we stopped in a Kabob café and has lunch and a few of us a beer.  Up until now we had kept the original group of 10 together, but now with some getting tired we split up…  Tina & I, followed by Erik and Mia headed into the Bazaar… it was much less chaotic and much cleaner than expected… almost mall like.   We made it through, with only a single purchase being made, emerged on the far side, and wandered the streets downward in search of the Spice Market.  With directions a few times along the way we found it, purchased some Turkish Delight, worked our way thought to the other side where we found the New Mosque, known for its pigeons… I suspect this is the pigeon mosque of the 19^th century, but so far can’t find a reference.  Tina got an ice cream, I purchased a plate of pigeon feed… I had to bargain for the feed… from 5 lira to 1 lira for the plate…  I fed the birds…  Tina ate her ice cream cone,  then we walked across the Galata bridge and back to the ship.

Our time in Istanbul was too short… We barely scratched to surface of the city… We hit the must see sights, but little more…