Istanbul
Trip Start
May 18, 2007
1
11
12
Trip End
May 31, 2007
Istanbul,
Turkey
Monday, May 28, 2007
The next morning, we went up for breakfast on the roof. What a view. We were sandwiched between the Topkapi Palace, the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque - a triple decker view - and our necks were cricking from all the craning around. Breakfast was typically Turkish - bread (buns), butter and jam, chunks of feta-like cheese, fruit and olives. We got tea which we asked to be brewed with milk, which was pretty good - that's one thing I always miss during hotel stays - good tea!
Then we set off for sightseeing. The Topkapi Palace was our first stop - a five minute walk away. It was starting to get hot already. The entrance into the Palace is a walk through the garden, full of tall, old trees - very welcoming. The Palace itself was gorgeous - we especially enjoyed seeing the Peacock Throne, which had come to Turkey from India by way of Punjab and Iran. It looks somewhat uncomfortable but is gorgeously decked in all kinds of previous stones (though the Koh-i-noor is now in the UK) and made of gold. Must weigh a ton! There were some other fascinating pieces on display including some lovely porcelain ware, some truly enormous dishes which were used during royal banquets and some typically Turkish paintings of the Sultans et al. there is also a relic of John the Baptist - his arm! The one issue I had with the displays was that the rooms were extremely dimly lit so we couldn't see the exhibits as well as we would have liked to. But for a sheer display of the pageantry and the riches of the Ottoman Empire, the Palace is a must see. We missed seeing the Harem because it opened only by one by which time we wanted to move on. One of the spectacular things in the Topkapi Palace is a verandah with a wide view of the Bosphorus.
If I sound rushed and short, it's because I was - little A had decided to give into an acute bout of jealousy and was in a series of tantrums, making it practically impossible for us to fully take in anything we saw.
We were hungry when we emerged so headed for a nearby café and ordered pasta - they didn't have anything that sounded too good on the menu. The pasta was pretty bad, in a weird tomato-ey sauce. We made up with icecreams all around and headed back to the hotel for a nap - we're big on afternoon naps while vacationing.
In the afternoon, we wanted to go hang out where the Young Turks hang out so we headed over to Beyoglu. The main thoroughfare here has trams running and is a cobbled street with shops on both sides - clothing, music, fashion etc. We roamed around all evening, shopping a little bit and mostly soaking in the atmosphere. We bought a wonderful CD of Turkish fusion music as well. Dinner was at a tiny restaurant here with outdoor, curbside seating - they served beans in sauce with rice, imam bayildi - eggplants with a meat-tomato sauce, vegetables in sauce and more. The food was simple but yummy.
What amazed us about Istanbul was the mix of races one could see and the fact that there didn't seem to be any lines about fraternizing with each other. Cheek by jowl with faces that could pass for Indian would be the most European looking ones. Women dressed conservatively in headscarves were walking arm in arm with girls wearing jeans and midriff-baring Tshirts. We were also impressed by the way Turks dressed and put themselves together - effortlessly chic and super confident of themselves.
We decided we really liked Istanbul and couldn't wait to explore some more.
