Albanys Unite!

At 5:30am, we got the magic message to say that Elliot and Lara had landed in Turkey! By 6:25 they had been efficiently transported to the hotel, and at 6:35 we were all enjoying buffet breakfast as if nothing had happened. The variety of offerings at the buffet was decent and the type of dishes interesting. 

Never been happier to see these two!

Hot food on the right, but not just your usual selection of eggs, bacon, or sausages

The cold meats, salads and interesting "desserts" further down

The "new" coffee machine next to the traditional hot drinks offering

su boregi - turkish pastry

Turkish Tea at the top, hot water for "normal" tea at the bottom

We were picked up by our guide, Hulya, promptly at 9am and drove to the historic centre where we were dropped off to continue the rest of the tour on foot. We started at the 4th century Hippodrome, an arena for chariot races during the reign of the Roman Empire. It was cold and wet but we pushed on and made our way to the Blue Mosque or Sultanahmet Mosque. Here, Hulya gave us the low down on Mosques. It was almost like doing the church tours of Europe. From there we walked across to the much older Hagia Sophia. The 3rd version of the church built on the same site was completed in the 6th century. It fluctuated from orthodox to catholic, then to a mosque, followed by a museum and for the last 3 years has gone back to being a mosque. Gotta love politics and history! The Hagia Sophia beautifully highlights the rich and fascinating history of Istanbul. A quick note to future visitors that ladies need their heads covered so do bring a scarf. For those visiting in winter, the hoodie of your jacket will also suffice! 

Hulya, our guide, and our van for the day

Walking through the Hippodrome. It was cold and it drizzled or rained the whole day

The Obelisk of Theodosius is the Ancient Egyptian obelisk of Pharaoh Thutmose III re-erected in the Hippodrome of Constantinople. Not bad for something over 3,500 years old

The inner courtyard of the Blue Mosque

The inside of the Blue Mosque

Writing in the form of art everywhere

Ostrich eggs to ward off spiders!

Hagia Sophia

Great time to indulge in Simit (Turkish pretzel) while in line!

The outside of the Hagia Sophia

These Christian mosaics were covered in plaster during the Hagia Sophia's first time as a mosque. However, as it is now a UNESCO site, it was decreed that it could not be replastered over again despite now being a mosque again after its time as a museum

Same principles apply to pictures of people/idols. Instead of being covered over, they now use curtains to obscure Mary and baby Jesus

Curtains cover what is forbidden in a mosque

So many famous movies have been filmed in Istanbul that it seemed bizarre to suddenly name the ones filmed in the Basilica Cistern but I'll do it anyway! From Russia With Love and Inferno were the most famous ones that we recognised filmed in the largest of many ancient cisterns found underneath Istanbul. The cisterns were built by the Romans as part of a sophisticated water management system including an aqueduct that transported the water from the mountains. The cistern was impressive, but importantly it was also a relatively warm refuge from wet and cold.

The darkness and every changing light colours make it hard to take good photos!

It is hard to properly capture the size of the cistern

The supports were not decorative but functional so they were all slightly different being leftover or recycled from other projects

There were 2 medusa heads thought to be for protecting the water. One was placed sideways and the other upside down. Who knew why...

Poor upside down Medusa

My favourite combo was the aqua at the bottom and orange lights at the top. Made the water look almost like bioluminescence

I never thought I'd be one to enter a carpet shop but into one we went. Hulya informed us that it was a great way to learn about carpets, as an authentic cultural part of Turkey. The experience was definitely unique! The owner was actually a really friendly and personable man. Of course we were certain he was also an excellent salesman and man of business but he never made us feel awkward. The welcome was genuine, and he was obviously proud of the Turkish carpet heritage. Unfortunately, you'd have to rely on my description as they requested no photographs. He went through the history of carpet making and showed us the varying designs from different parts of the country. One of the carpet makers showed us how it was done and she was incredible. All the carpets were handmade, knot by knot. I had never before been so tempted to buy a carpet! There were that beautiful and so luxurious to touch. Unfortunately, we weren't that appreciative of the art to part with that much money. We did walk away with a much better appreciation of it.

The suggestion for lunch was to go to a kebab place. The response was a unanimous yes. Hulya's recommendation was the pistachio kebab (self explantory), or Ali Nazik which was a mixed lamb and beef kebab on a bed of eggplant mash and garlic yoghurt. The food did not disappoint! We worked our way through garlicky goodness and set off on foot to the nearby Grand Bazaar. 

We had to pull Oma and Opa away from the street vendors

Lunch time

Seriously the most yummy Turkish bread ever

Made even better with hummus and goats cheese and butter

Mixed beef/lamb kebab with eggplant mash and garlic yohurt. So yummy

The only one who ordered something different! The mix grill

Lunch

The Grand Bazaar was the world's oldest shopping mall, established in the 1400s, a labyrinth of streets with over 4000 shops and 22 entrances. Hulya lamented that the traditional crafts have very much given way to factory and mass produced goods. Where previously you had to go to certain sections to find certain goods, now it is a free for all with all kinds of shops jumbled everywhere. We did venture into a cashmere and pashmina shop where Oma showcased her superior bargaining skills. I fear I lack the thick skin and stomach required to make my bargaining obsessed family (husband included) proud. My mother's tricks included pretending to pull out a credit card when it was a hotel key and going lower in price rather than increasing her price to meet the seller. Either way, I was glad she was there because I managed to get myself a cashmere scarf for a great price! Once again, like the carpets, the designs were just gorgeous.

One of the 22 entrances to the Grand Bazaar

One of the many streets in the Grand Bazaar

Important purchases! Cashmere and pashmina

It was a great way to end our day and we were dropped back at our hotel. Simit and cheese it was for dinner as we were still full from lunch!

Our hotel was around the corner from the Pera Palace Hotel, built in1892 to accommodate the high end clientele of the famous The Orient Express who travelled from Paris to Istanbul. Just another example of the incredible history of this amazing city!