July 15, 2009 Who knows or cares the time? Istanbul, Turkiye
My brain literally hurts from overuse. Today was so jammed packed. (I will probably continue in short sentences since that is all I can muster right now.) Breakfast again on the terrace, though I can't seem to get over that view. Today was soooo much information that my brain started to shut down sometime after lunch. First, we walked down to the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art and spent about an hour. It was pretty good with its location in the Palace of Ibrahim Pasha, but that palace was not well air-conditioned! Still, the artifacts and rugs from the 13th Century were pretty incredible. Orhan caught me and Adrienne trying to buy a coffee/soda from the cafe there, which was empty. He said "just leave the correct $ on the counter and take what you want." Foreigh concept.
Next, we ventured over to the Hippodrome, a courtyard/city center that houses 3 major historical structures - the Obelisk from Egypt, the Serpentine Column from Delphi and Constantine's Column, as well as the Fountain of Wilhelm. My favorite was easily the Serpentine Column, which was the shortest and least maintained, because it had the coolest back story. It is made of the armor and swords of fallen opposing soldiers by the Greeks into 3 serpents that wind up into one column. So cool!
The Blue Mosque was only steps away, so it was next on our list. It is the only mosque to have 6 minarets so it is pretty unique. That place was packed but it was well worth the wait. The courtyard was fantastic too but the weather suddenly turned dark so photo ops were hard to come by. Topkapi Palace is where the wheels started to fall off. I have no idea how many important things I saw there because my brain was backfiring. Oh, but I did take a pic by a guard of the palace who had a rifle inched from my head. He never even broke his focus, which is good. However, there are some that stick out – the actual arm and skull of John, the beard of Muhammad, actual gems from the Imperial Treasury (bling!) lavish dwellings of the Ottoman Sultans, the Harem at the Palace, and Muhammad’s footprint. System overload! By the way, Turkish museums are an experience all on their own. No lines, no order, and no flash photography. But, you can take pictures, touch things, and see more history that you ever imagines possible. In the Palace was the Istanbul Archeological Museum, which looked like something out of a movie, but we only had 45 minutes inside so I raced for it. There was an awesome sculpture of Zeus’ head hanging in a hallway and this patron walked up, put his hand in the mouth of Zeus, and a rock fell out of the bottom!!!! So that is why we aren’t allowed to touch stuff in our museums……seriously. There was also an amazing sculpture of Oceanus lying on his side like a centerfold. Addrienne tried to talk me into my crazy idea of mocking the pose on the floor below Oceanus for a photo op when my camera died! Ugh.
The Spice Bazaar was one of the wildest places I have ever seen or smelled. It was full of sleezy sales guys with amazing spices and other objects for sale. One hour was all we had so we did a little damage. A cool thing about shopkeepers in Istanbul is that they are hospitable like you are in their home. They offer you tea every time. Ryan, a group member from Montana, had some apple tea that made his face turn red and he walked sideways for quite a while. I don’t think all of those teas are regulated, just sayin’.
Dinner was served at Asitane Restaurant with a private performance of “Fasil” which is ancient classical music. Dinner was terrific, of course. We actually met a family from Dallas! I finally reached the point where I can’t eat so much anymore. That’s right folks, it has finally happened – I am full. So I am going to try to go sleep off some of this cuisine and prep for our final day in Istanbul. Good night Texas!
Factoid: Noah's Ark landed in Eastern Turkey. The Trojan Wars took place in Western Turkey, where you can still find the Trojan horse resting.
My brain literally hurts from overuse. Today was so jammed packed. (I will probably continue in short sentences since that is all I can muster right now.) Breakfast again on the terrace, though I can't seem to get over that view. Today was soooo much information that my brain started to shut down sometime after lunch. First, we walked down to the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art and spent about an hour. It was pretty good with its location in the Palace of Ibrahim Pasha, but that palace was not well air-conditioned! Still, the artifacts and rugs from the 13th Century were pretty incredible. Orhan caught me and Adrienne trying to buy a coffee/soda from the cafe there, which was empty. He said "just leave the correct $ on the counter and take what you want." Foreigh concept.
Next, we ventured over to the Hippodrome, a courtyard/city center that houses 3 major historical structures - the Obelisk from Egypt, the Serpentine Column from Delphi and Constantine's Column, as well as the Fountain of Wilhelm. My favorite was easily the Serpentine Column, which was the shortest and least maintained, because it had the coolest back story. It is made of the armor and swords of fallen opposing soldiers by the Greeks into 3 serpents that wind up into one column. So cool!
The Blue Mosque was only steps away, so it was next on our list. It is the only mosque to have 6 minarets so it is pretty unique. That place was packed but it was well worth the wait. The courtyard was fantastic too but the weather suddenly turned dark so photo ops were hard to come by. Topkapi Palace is where the wheels started to fall off. I have no idea how many important things I saw there because my brain was backfiring. Oh, but I did take a pic by a guard of the palace who had a rifle inched from my head. He never even broke his focus, which is good. However, there are some that stick out – the actual arm and skull of John, the beard of Muhammad, actual gems from the Imperial Treasury (bling!) lavish dwellings of the Ottoman Sultans, the Harem at the Palace, and Muhammad’s footprint. System overload! By the way, Turkish museums are an experience all on their own. No lines, no order, and no flash photography. But, you can take pictures, touch things, and see more history that you ever imagines possible. In the Palace was the Istanbul Archeological Museum, which looked like something out of a movie, but we only had 45 minutes inside so I raced for it. There was an awesome sculpture of Zeus’ head hanging in a hallway and this patron walked up, put his hand in the mouth of Zeus, and a rock fell out of the bottom!!!! So that is why we aren’t allowed to touch stuff in our museums……seriously. There was also an amazing sculpture of Oceanus lying on his side like a centerfold. Addrienne tried to talk me into my crazy idea of mocking the pose on the floor below Oceanus for a photo op when my camera died! Ugh.
The Spice Bazaar was one of the wildest places I have ever seen or smelled. It was full of sleezy sales guys with amazing spices and other objects for sale. One hour was all we had so we did a little damage. A cool thing about shopkeepers in Istanbul is that they are hospitable like you are in their home. They offer you tea every time. Ryan, a group member from Montana, had some apple tea that made his face turn red and he walked sideways for quite a while. I don’t think all of those teas are regulated, just sayin’.
Dinner was served at Asitane Restaurant with a private performance of “Fasil” which is ancient classical music. Dinner was terrific, of course. We actually met a family from Dallas! I finally reached the point where I can’t eat so much anymore. That’s right folks, it has finally happened – I am full. So I am going to try to go sleep off some of this cuisine and prep for our final day in Istanbul. Good night Texas!
Factoid: Noah's Ark landed in Eastern Turkey. The Trojan Wars took place in Western Turkey, where you can still find the Trojan horse resting.
Blog Playlist: Seven Nation Army by the White Stripes; 'Till I Collapse by Eminem; I Get Around by Dragonet; Pictures of You by The Cure
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