Apr 202013
Apr 102013
Today was the last of our tour-type activities.
We had the same start as yesterday including the bus ride over the sea and back again to first visit the Spice Bazaar, which was quite interesting and colorful to see. There wasn’t just spices there,but souvenir items, scarves, jewelry, etc.
After that, we got on a boat for our half-day Bosphorus cruise, which means about 1.5 hours on the boat. Sadly, the weather was not great – in fact, the worst we have had since we arrived that we had to be out in. So, although the cruise could have been quite beautiful, it was just okay.
Our tour ended with a drop off near the Grand Bazaar since it was closed yesterday.So, after a quick warm-up coffee at Starbucks, we explored the bazaar. For some reason,I expected it to be very chaotic and with stalls everywhere, but in fact, there are lots of small shops and it was fairly organized. People weren’t even that aggressive to try to sell us things, so that was a surprise.
After a few quick purchases, we had lunch at one of the shops and then meandered our way back to the hotel.
I had a Turkish hammam treatment and massage, which I had been dying to have since we got here. It was rather expensive for what it was, but it was still relaxing and a nice change. I need to have another one when I get back….
We went back to Istiklal Street for dinner at The House Cafe. We road the tram again and then got on the second oldest and shortest ‘subway’ ever.It was quite fun for an experience. π
Now, we are back for an early night in to relax. Tomorrow is a free day, so we will relax and return to explore Istiklal street more in the daytime. π
I am actually looking forward to going home in a day as the weather is starting to get to me and I need to just relax in my own space….
– T π
Apr 092013
Upon arriving at our hotel yesterday, we had thought that someone from the tour would have contacted us to confirm a pick-up time for this morning; however, we just went off of what our itinerary said. It was very trusting of us and of the tour company to assume we would pay attention to it. π
So, it was nice to be free to sleep in a bit, but I was still awake at 4:30…why? Who knows….
Anyway, we made it to the lobby in time and waited in hopes that someone would show up. A bus arrived and we piled in with a random collection of people. The bus took us across the sea to a meeting point, where it was a rather crazed Chinese-fire-drill like activity of moving people to different buses based on their activity for the day and language of the tour. When our English-speaking bus was put together for the Old CIty tour, we headed back across the sea towards our original location to visit the sights in the area.
Strangely, we were on a bus for the tour, but most of it could have been walked in about half the time…No mind…we had a very entertaining tour guide for the day, which was a stark contrast to our guide the previous eight days. π
Our first stop was to the Blue Mosque or otherwise known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque. It was quite impressive inside.
Next came a quick walk through the old Hippodrome of Constantinople where chariot races like in Ben Hur were held. Now, it’s a long walkway with obelisks in the middle. From there we walked over to the Hagia (aya) Sophia. It was originally a basilica, then became a mosque and is now a very impressive looking museum.
Sadly, the Grand Bazaar was closed today – being Sunday – so we had to make do with a tourist trap shopping center (mall as it was called). We had some ‘fun’ looking at jewelry, but didn’t buy anything as I have caught on to their schemes of marking up pieces… π
We headed to lunch, but it was another sad showing of food to which we are starting to rebel against…. After lunch, we stopped at the Rustem Pasha Mosque, which is “more blue than the blue mosque” according to our guide. It is true, there were a ton of Iznik tiles of blue.
Our last stop was the Topkapi Palace, which is right next to our hotel, so we were free to head home whenever we finished. The palace was not overly impressive, but their collection of jewels and the third (?) largest diamond was definitely the envy of many a diamond-loving-woman who passed by!
After a bit of a rest in the hotel we headed out again to check out a bit Iskilal Street on the other side of the sea and the more central part of Istanbul that is away from the touristy area. We found a good place for dinner and then stopped at the famous chain, House Cafe, for dessert and coffee. It was sooooo wonderful to be away from the tourists and people harassing tourists and just act like a ‘local’ for a while. We are going to go back again on our free day to shop and enjoy it more again.
Thus ended our second evening in Istanbul! π
-T π
Apr 082013
We had a very early rise again (5am) to be ready to leave on a ferry across the Marmara sea to Gallipoli.
Gallipoli is famous from the war for the Australian and New Zealand forces coming to the aid of the British in an attempt to control the waterways and ultimately Istanbul. It was a rather brutal fighting ground where many, including Turks, lost their lives.There is an Australian film about this, I think. So, it was interesting and both sad and sweet to read the tombstones of both young and older men who sacrificed their lives in war.
From Gallipoli, we stopped for lunch on our way to Istanbul. We got a bit of a taste of the horrible traffic that is well-known in the city. Luckily, we still got to our hotel early enough in the evening to go out and explore Sultanhamet more.
We walked around after finding a decent restaurant to eat dinner at. It was nice to finally have some real food. I think that my stomach has revolted from all of the crappy food we have been eating the past week and very little exercise. So, after dinner, we walked up near the Topkapi castle, which also faces Hagia (Haya) Sophia. It was lovely. The area is very touristy as R had warned me and so many store workers were trying to get our attention –
“Ladies, may I ask you a question?” “Can I talk to you just for a minute? – No? – Why not?” “You’re so beautiful and sexy.” “Don’t talk this guy because he’s very horny.” (This is my favorite one). “Excuse me, I am not dangerous. I own that store over there…” “Girls, you dropped something…”
The tactics are creative and persistent. Some more annoying than others…. π
So passed our first night back in Istanbul’s Old City area. We will be touring it more tomorrow at a more decent hour of the morning!
-T π
Mar 312013
This will be a quick one, but we arrived last night in Istanbul.
The flight was fine, though Qatar Airways is not really the five-star kind of airlines they advertise, at least not in the peanut gallery. π
It took us a while to get out of the airport due to the visa lines. It is good to keep in mind that you need exact change and dollars or Euros to pay for your visa. I nearly got into a fight with the woman for not taking lira in their own airport, but anyway, they have all the power….
Once we got through immigration and met our tour company, we headed into Istanbul for one night at the Prince Hotel located in Serkici or the Sultanahamet area. We will be returning to that hotel when we go back to Istanbul at the end of the tour.
The first night was quick and we had an early start. More on that in Day 2.
-T π
Here’s some pics from the day –
