July 16, 2009 at 11:45 p.m. in Istanbul
Almost used to the sunrise breakfast on the hotel rooftop overlooking Istanbul – almost. We had to eat a quick breakfast since we overslept a little. Yea, we slept for more than 4 hours! Today looked to be a little less intense than the last 2 days. By the way, yesterday was a 17 hour day. Ugh. That was the longest day ever. Our first stop today was to the Hagia Sophia (Ayosofya.) This place is unbelievable. I couldn’t even comprehend the vastness of that ancient structure. It is gorgeous, inspiring, overwhelming and somehow adventurous all at once. Hagia Sophia was built as the center of the Easter Orthodox Church, then it was turned into a mosque by the Ottoman conquerors. Now it is a museum and has been since Ataturk took power. It is still being rediscovered in many ways. Underneath centuries-old plaster are idols and Christian symbols! Our tome there was limited, but it made an impact on me. It is the most important place I have ever seen in my life…….so far. I snook off for a few quiet moments alone upstairs to whisper a prayer for about 10 different reasons……I could just cry thinking about the effect that place had on me. I felt so tiny in this place, which isn’t easy at 5’10”. Inside of one of the columns shipped in from Egypt is a hole. Tradition holds that if you put your thumb in the hole and make a full rotation, your wish will come true. So of course I tried it! And then I promptly cleansed my hands with anti-bacterial wash. But hey, when in Rome!
Next we visited the underground cisterns. Cisterns are the underwater reservoirs in Istanbul, and the Basilica Cistern has over 300 columns, including the two with Medusa Heads. The cisterns were creepy and damp, but also nice to look at. There was also another wishing column with a hole. I took a picture but I didn’t like my chances considering it was damp and dark in there. I also took a pic of (I thought) myself in the cistern in front of the water. My finger slipped or my arm moved, because what turned out was something like a bad acid trip. I think it looks really cool!
Our tour continued with a visit to the Bahcesehir School of Science Technology. This was a completely different experience from yesterday’s school visit in that the school was immaculate and there were students (4 of them) three who led the tours, answered our questions and proved to be absolutely brilliant. They were all conversational in English, personable and intelligent and even quite funny. They reminded me so much of my own students. But again, the school was like a museum of sorts with its planetarium, hands-on exhibit halls and science store. Orhan was standing near an exhibit re: technological innovations over the years, and he put his cell near a model of the cotton gin. (We are always making fun of his antique cell phone.) Pretty funny. He then fell asleep in the Planetarium demonstration. He won’t admit it but I have evidence – I took a picture of it.
The school visit was eventful as well. Another tour member asked for a Tums only to be rushed to the school clinic for a full work-up including a check of her blood pressure and temperature. Also, I had an intriguing conversation with Bonnie re: the unifying effects of language. Guess you had to be there. I was also completely impressed with the level of national pride and commitment the young adults we met today were already capable of. Ataturk is in every classroom and honored throughout the schools in Turkey. The students of this country consider going to other countries for higher education but most plan to return to help promote and better their mother-land. At 15 they are thinking about this stuff!
Our final stop as a group was with the Turkish Cultural Foundation for a tea with some NGOs and sponsors. It was very informative and I will try to look more into the topics introduced there tonight. Early release meant that we had an early start to our last night in Istanbul! James, Megan, Karen, Addrienne and I quickly changed and headed out to the streets.
We had a street vendor create Ottoman calligraphy gifts for some of us. Then, we hit a patio for the native Efes and cuisine. We had a blast even though the waiter wouldn’t stop making some very forward comments. He even grabbed my hand as we were leaving, not even phased by the fact that I towered over him, to ask for a kiss and to let me know that he would see me again later tonight, “somewhere between the moon and the stars.” More like somewhere from behind jail bars! It is funny how some things are different and yet other things are exactly the same.
In order to go out with a bang and get the recommended full Istanbul experience, we decided to go next to the Haman, a Turkish bath house by our hotel. I really don’t know where to start but I promise to try to tell you in person if you ever want to know. I can’t even find the words right now to write about it in my own journal. I will tell you that it was something that I will never forget.
Finally, we stopped into a cool shop on the way back to the hotel that was trying to close shop. I had been eyeing a bag in there for days, so we kept them open so I could get the bag, while Karen purchased a snazzy pair of purple boots and a great dress. We met back up with James to see what he got while shopping. Wow, does he have a fantastic eye.
The night was silly and scary and so much fun all at once. I am still trying to process it all so I can get some sleep. Tomorrow we leave Istanbul for Bursa. Good night!
Factoid: Beautiful people and children are encouraged to wear an evil eye to ward off jealousy or evil affection. Turkish tradition has made this evil eye or nazar boncugu both a popular accessory as well as a necessary piece of jewelry and home décor.
Blog Playlist: I Turn My Camera On by Spoon; The World at Large by Modest Mouse; Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand; Over My Head by The Fray
Almost used to the sunrise breakfast on the hotel rooftop overlooking Istanbul – almost. We had to eat a quick breakfast since we overslept a little. Yea, we slept for more than 4 hours! Today looked to be a little less intense than the last 2 days. By the way, yesterday was a 17 hour day. Ugh. That was the longest day ever. Our first stop today was to the Hagia Sophia (Ayosofya.) This place is unbelievable. I couldn’t even comprehend the vastness of that ancient structure. It is gorgeous, inspiring, overwhelming and somehow adventurous all at once. Hagia Sophia was built as the center of the Easter Orthodox Church, then it was turned into a mosque by the Ottoman conquerors. Now it is a museum and has been since Ataturk took power. It is still being rediscovered in many ways. Underneath centuries-old plaster are idols and Christian symbols! Our tome there was limited, but it made an impact on me. It is the most important place I have ever seen in my life…….so far. I snook off for a few quiet moments alone upstairs to whisper a prayer for about 10 different reasons……I could just cry thinking about the effect that place had on me. I felt so tiny in this place, which isn’t easy at 5’10”. Inside of one of the columns shipped in from Egypt is a hole. Tradition holds that if you put your thumb in the hole and make a full rotation, your wish will come true. So of course I tried it! And then I promptly cleansed my hands with anti-bacterial wash. But hey, when in Rome!
Next we visited the underground cisterns. Cisterns are the underwater reservoirs in Istanbul, and the Basilica Cistern has over 300 columns, including the two with Medusa Heads. The cisterns were creepy and damp, but also nice to look at. There was also another wishing column with a hole. I took a picture but I didn’t like my chances considering it was damp and dark in there. I also took a pic of (I thought) myself in the cistern in front of the water. My finger slipped or my arm moved, because what turned out was something like a bad acid trip. I think it looks really cool!
Our tour continued with a visit to the Bahcesehir School of Science Technology. This was a completely different experience from yesterday’s school visit in that the school was immaculate and there were students (4 of them) three who led the tours, answered our questions and proved to be absolutely brilliant. They were all conversational in English, personable and intelligent and even quite funny. They reminded me so much of my own students. But again, the school was like a museum of sorts with its planetarium, hands-on exhibit halls and science store. Orhan was standing near an exhibit re: technological innovations over the years, and he put his cell near a model of the cotton gin. (We are always making fun of his antique cell phone.) Pretty funny. He then fell asleep in the Planetarium demonstration. He won’t admit it but I have evidence – I took a picture of it.
The school visit was eventful as well. Another tour member asked for a Tums only to be rushed to the school clinic for a full work-up including a check of her blood pressure and temperature. Also, I had an intriguing conversation with Bonnie re: the unifying effects of language. Guess you had to be there. I was also completely impressed with the level of national pride and commitment the young adults we met today were already capable of. Ataturk is in every classroom and honored throughout the schools in Turkey. The students of this country consider going to other countries for higher education but most plan to return to help promote and better their mother-land. At 15 they are thinking about this stuff!
Our final stop as a group was with the Turkish Cultural Foundation for a tea with some NGOs and sponsors. It was very informative and I will try to look more into the topics introduced there tonight. Early release meant that we had an early start to our last night in Istanbul! James, Megan, Karen, Addrienne and I quickly changed and headed out to the streets.
We had a street vendor create Ottoman calligraphy gifts for some of us. Then, we hit a patio for the native Efes and cuisine. We had a blast even though the waiter wouldn’t stop making some very forward comments. He even grabbed my hand as we were leaving, not even phased by the fact that I towered over him, to ask for a kiss and to let me know that he would see me again later tonight, “somewhere between the moon and the stars.” More like somewhere from behind jail bars! It is funny how some things are different and yet other things are exactly the same.
In order to go out with a bang and get the recommended full Istanbul experience, we decided to go next to the Haman, a Turkish bath house by our hotel. I really don’t know where to start but I promise to try to tell you in person if you ever want to know. I can’t even find the words right now to write about it in my own journal. I will tell you that it was something that I will never forget.
Finally, we stopped into a cool shop on the way back to the hotel that was trying to close shop. I had been eyeing a bag in there for days, so we kept them open so I could get the bag, while Karen purchased a snazzy pair of purple boots and a great dress. We met back up with James to see what he got while shopping. Wow, does he have a fantastic eye.
The night was silly and scary and so much fun all at once. I am still trying to process it all so I can get some sleep. Tomorrow we leave Istanbul for Bursa. Good night!
Factoid: Beautiful people and children are encouraged to wear an evil eye to ward off jealousy or evil affection. Turkish tradition has made this evil eye or nazar boncugu both a popular accessory as well as a necessary piece of jewelry and home décor.
Blog Playlist: I Turn My Camera On by Spoon; The World at Large by Modest Mouse; Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand; Over My Head by The Fray
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