Returned to Istanbul from Gallipoli (Friday 19th), each party being dropped off at their accommodation. We had a hotel, Yasmak Sultan in the old district & the Swans were over the river in an apartment in the new area.
Michael & I settled in, then hit the streets on foot to get our bearings. We discovered our local was an English style pub but no cheap drinks to be had here which didn't deter us!
The people are very friendly & we were amazed how most people had a grasp of the English language.
Along the streets were many cart vendors selling sweet corn, nuts, bagels & Turkish pastries.
We mastered the trams in no time which were very efficient & ran 24 hrs. You just had to remember to look the right way first before crossing!
Windows had displays of food beautifully presented & doner kebabs were nearly at every turn.
They love their flags which were seen flying in varying sizes on castles, buildings & most hilltops.
There were roof top bars to be seen all over the city. Michael googled roof top bars & we had a drink at 2 ranked within the best in Istanbul (5-Kat& Seven Hills) & highly ranked in the world. Their prices matched!
As I had said previously it was Ramadan & the cry for prayer was heard 5 times a day, including 1 call at 0300. Most restaurants were full of people as they ceased their fasting daily at 2040.
Saturday 20th - Michael & I visited the Basilica Cistern (known as the sunken palace), which was used to store water for the Great Palace & surrounding buildings. It is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns being about 9,800 square metres in area & was capable of holding 100,000 tons of water. Today it is virtually empty, with only a few feet of water in the bottom with carp swimming around.
The Cistern was opened to the public in its current condition in 1987. It was used as a location in the film "From Russia with Love" & "The International" & also in Dan Brown's novel "Inferno".
It was constructed using columns from ruined buildings in 532AD and 2 columns have medusa heads at their bases. Medusa, in Greek mythology ("guardian", "protestress") was a monster, a Gorgan, generally having the face of a hideous human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair.
Michael didn't give this visit a very good rating however, I enjoyed it although found the darkness & illumination a bit of a challenge when taking photos.
We went to the Spice Markets which I think is a better place to browse & shop than the Grand Bazaar, at least your nostrils were filled up with beautiful fragrances of spices & coffee. They are vibrant & busy but not as hectic & confusing as the Grand Bazaar.
That night we had pre dinner drinks at the Swan's apartment (in the so not splendid surrounds of Karakoy) for a family celebration of Marg's 60th. They insisted we were to be part of it.
The following day we all went on a Bosphorus cruise from 1200-1630. This strait, (the inner strait), separates the European part from the Asian part of Istanbul & connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is a very busy waterway with shipment of freight to and from countries surrounding the Black Sea plus local fishing & ferries going back & forth. There are 2 bridges on the Bosphorus connecting Europe to Asia. We passed many summer houses, fortresses, hotels, Ottoman palaces, parks, gardens & restaurants along its shores. We breakfasted in Europe, lunched in Asia and had dinner in Europe! That day was our 1st & only AFD (alcohol free day)!!!
Monday 22: Michael & I were disappointed in the Hagia Sophia formally a Greek Orthodox basilica, then an imperial mosque & now (since 1935) a museum. It is famous for its huge dome however, was in poor repair with lots of scaffolding & patch up work going on. The Sagrada Familia in Barcelona was far more spectacular.
I decided not to miss out on a Turkish Bath known as a hamam. It is the Turkish variant of a steam bath or sauna with a focus on water rather than steam. I was put on a huge, warm round stone for 10 minutes lying on a piece of cloth in my nickers. This was followed by a scrub down, dousing of water, another scrubbing (all over) including my hair & head & more water then into a warm pool. Then dried off for a fabulous massage for 25 minutes. It was a wonderful experience which Michael decided to do on our final day & agreed with me, although nearly expired from being cooked on the large hot stone.
Our final night (Wed 24th) the Swans & Charlotte joined us at our roof top bar then onto our local for pre dinner drinks. It was Charlotte's 32nd B'day. We had a lovely meal nearby with music in the street & very friendly staff. Managed to embarrass some of the Swan family with a very smart and intellectual game.
Our 6+weeks holiday has come to an end.
Home to Perth via Dubai - 4hrs plus 2 hr stopover then 11hrs to Perth.
Window displays of delicious looking pastries & sweets.
Turkish flag.
Spice Markets.
Basilica Cistern.
A quiet spot in the Grand Bazaar.
Michael & I found Cag Kebabi, a restaurant Ermie recommended. The scaffolding around it didn't put us off! The Cag differs from the Doner as the marinated lamb is cooked on a horizontal spit over a wood fire. Served with a plate of piquant Ezme (a salad of finely chopped tomatoes, onion & parsley), delicious yoghurt & warm pieces of lavas.
Walking over the Galata bridge to the Swans - lots of fishing from the bridge (all hoping to catch fish the size of white bait).
The Swan's apartment on the waterfront with Galata Tower in the background.
Shirts may have shrunk a little.
Their apartment inside is far nicer than the surroundings outside!
Pre dinner drinks.
On the Bosphorus cruise.
Summer holiday homes.
Wooden shanties (right of centre - holiday shack, we may be able to afford).
Palace (and one we couldn't afford).
Note the lovely tiled ceilings.
A bit strong!
Tiles on the underground tunnel walls which is the world's 2nd oldest subway line (1875) after
London's Underground(1863).
What an enormous chandelier.
Street scenes (shoe shine man).
A casual Turkish restaurant.
I went off for a Turkish Bath.
What a great experience. A diet coke with a Swiss 18 year old who shared the experience with me.
At our roof top bar.
The Swans & Charlotte met us on our roof top bar to celebrate her b'day & our last night in Istanbul.
Ready boys for your surprises?!
$5.80 cup of coffee at Grand Bazaar when we tried finding a store to change something without any luck on our last day.
That ends 42 days, which apart from two days of 36-38 degrees in Seville and 32 today have all between 27 to 30 degrees and NO rain - lucky!
Best sayings - hi lady, you Aussie?
- you want to buy something you don't need?
- you want to buy genuine fake?
- welcome, how can I get your money?
