And so begins a new adventure...
Trip Start
Feb 22, 2007
1
2
38
Trip End
Jul 19, 2008
Istanbul,
Turkey
Friday, February 23, 2007
The newest chapter of my Arabic journey began in the final comfort of my own bed, the alarm clock waking me at 3:45am from a slumber that had begun just two hours before. Bleary-eyed, I bid my house a silent farewell and headed for the coach station and then on to Heathrow. Invariably - as those familiar with previous blogs will know - things tend to go wrong when I fly from Heathrow, but, having had a shockingly straight forward passage in to Istanbul, I made my way by shuttle bus to the Sultanahmet district of the city where a plethora of cheap hostels awaited my arrival
Aya Sofya Mosque
. I chose one, offloaded my luggage and then caught up on some lost sleep. I managed to pay a dirt cheap price for a dorm room too which, in reality, was like a single room because I had it all to myself for all three nights of my stay - maybe I just chose the wrong hostel, but mine was seemingly empty, and the presumably bustling streets of Sultanahmet's backpacker district during the high season seemed eerily sedate.
That first evening I took a walk around Sultanahmet and quickly drew the conclusion that I'd picked a prime location in which to stay. Almost all the major attractions - Blue Mosque, Aya Sofya Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Topkapi Palace, Grand Bazaar - to name but a few - were within spitting distance of my hostel, as too were a host of excellent eateries and bars. As it was already dark, I decided to leave my sightseeing until the following day and settle now for finding some good Turkish food, eventually deciding on a restaurant specialising in kofte (meatballs) where I duly lined my empty stomach with the specialty dish.
As I walked back to the hostel I stopped en-route to absorb the stunning setting of the Aya Sofya and Blue Mosques. The colossal structures shined like candlelight in the winter gloaming, their minarets towering proudly toward the heavens with glowing splendour. Each faced the other from across the picturesque concourse where awe-struck onlookers such as I wandered and wondered, not knowing in which direction to look, as if feeling a sense of loyalty to whichever had drawn one's initial gaze.
Back in my hostel bunk, I looked forward to seeing Istanbul in the daylight of tomorrow as I closed my eyes and sleep brought a close to a long day.
