Merve was back in Istanbul for her winter break. She's currently based in New York, where this smart cookie is scoring straight A's in her MFA at Parson's. Throughout our time at Istanbul, we stayed at her family's summer house out in the suburbs. The house is a 15 minute drive on a winding forest road away from the city, but it gets so pastoral out there that sheep and cows graze outside the house sometimes, which I was really excited about.
Istanbul is the only city in the world that spans two continents. The European side, where I spent most of my time, is separated from the Asian side (a.k.a. Anatolia) by the Bosphorus Strait, which links the Black Sea and the Marmara sea. On a bright sunny day (a rare commodity indeed, on my trip), the Bosphorus is an amazing turquoise colour. Merve and I wanted to take a ferry to the Princess Islands but the weather and the timing never worked in our favour :(
Some impressions of Istanbul:
1. It is a city of minarets. Everywhere you go, there are mosques. Some large and impressive like the Aga Sofia and the Blue Mosque (which we later found out was also known as the Sultan Ahmet mosque), and some tiny neighbourhood ones that are no less charming. There are dozens of mosques on the historical peninsula alone, but you can tell them apart by the number of minarets they have.
2. The traffic is terrible, especially when crossing the Bosphorus. We dropped Merve's friend off at her place on the Asian side of the Bosphorus once and the round trip took us about four and a half hours. Here's a tip: never cross the bridge unless you've emptied your bladder first.
I didn't think to take a picture, but here's one I found of the traffic queuing up to cross one of the Bosphorus bridges. 3. The food is amazing. There is, of course, the kebabs in all their various wonderful forms. And then there are the sweet treats, with baklava as the king. And then there are giant baked potatoes, known as kumpir, that they whip with butter and cheese in the skins before adding a vast variety of toppings, including corn, sausages, olives, walnut paste, pickles etc before topping it all off with ketchup and mayo. Fantastically delicious stuff. I'm surprised I didn't gain 10 pounds there.
4. Merve and her family assure me that the winter is not as cold, grey, drizzling and dreary as it was on my trip, and I really want to believe them. However, everyone still recommends going at any time other than the winter. Believe me, you wouldn't think it, but it DOES snow in Istanbul.5. The Turks are awesome hosts. From Merve's wonderful family, who treated me like one of their own, to the shop owners at the Grand Bazaar, to the little cheese shop in the mountains that we visited, the Turkish hospitality was warm, genuine, and amazing.
6. Stray dogs and cats are a big problem. Some of them had diseases. One of them had scratched himself raw. Most appeared healthy and well-fed, though. The Turks may not be doing anything to keep them off the streets, but at least they feed them. Interestingly enough, the Turkish muslims don't seem to have a problem with touching dogs. Maybe that's another Malaysian taboo thing?
7. The Grand Bazaar is a must see. It's called "grand" for a reason - it's very possible to get lost in the maze of shop-lined streets there. Think of a huge building that contains 58 streets and 6,000 shops, all on one level. It's a great place for shopping. You can find anything there, from scarves and cushion covers to tea pots and glasses to antiques, and of course, carpets. If you get dehydrated wandering around in here, not to worry, because you can always duck into any shop and you will be offered some tea. Try the apple, it's delicious. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the place because my battery died, but here's a photo I found on istanbulside.net.
Here's a sample of what you can get at the Grand Bazaar - I actually took this picture in one of the shops on Istiklal, the main street in Taksim, but the wares are similar.8. I liked the Spice Bazaar more, though, simply because of the sheer variety of edible goodies that was for sale. There were all sorts of dried fruits, nuts, teas, cheeses, olives, and of course, spices. They even had stuff like soaps and henna for sale. Size-wise, it can't compare to the Grand Bazaar because it only comprises two covered lanes and one outdoors, but it felt more intimate and friendly to me.
9. The Aga Sofia (or Hagia Sophia) is another must see. Originally a church, the Aga Sofia, meaning Holy Wisdom, was constructed during the Byzantine empire around 1500 years ago. However, in 1453, Istanbul, or Constantinople at the time, was conquered by the Ottoman Turks, who converted the majestic building into a mosque as their ultimate symbol of victory. The building is now a church, and visitors can walk freely in the building, provided they put little plastic booties over their shoes.
This is the "Weeping Hole" in one of the pillars. Legend has it that if you stick your thumb in there and turn it 360 degrees while making a wish, your wish will come true if your thumb comes out wet.10. The Turks have a love affair with water. It's very important in the Islam religion, with devotees having to wash themselves as a symbol of purification before they pray. Consequently, one can find these huge buildings, often made of marble, dotted throughout the city, usually next to a mosque. The only function of these buildings, as far as I can tell, is to provide water. The concept as a whole is great, but the thing I can't understand is - if you're going to build such a giant edifice, the sole purpose of which is to provide water, why not provide more spigots?
The building in the foreground is one of those giant tap buildings. The only spigot I saw was in the middle archway on the right. The building in the background is the local mosque. Merve's mom said they were traditionally used as meeting points so women would gossip as they lined up for their turn at the tap. It still doesn't make sense to me.
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