Snapshots: Istanbul

Two days after I said goodbye to my parents, I was already packing my bags for my next trip: Turkey!

After having spoken with my (new) cousin Jake a few weeks earlier about how my semester was going and how I was planning on going to Turkey with my friends Erin and Sean, he excitedly promised to put me in touch with his friend Atakan who would hopefully be able to show us around. Like the lazy I am, I put off contacting Atakan until the night before we were supposed to arrive. Luckily he was able to rearrange his schedule at the last second, and he really turned out to be the factor that made our trip so wonderful.

We met Atakan, or rather he met us, at the airport and proceeded to spend the rest of the evening showing us around Istanbul. I don't know if we could have found our way to our hostel before dark had it not been for his help. Playing part tour guide and part translator, he showed us around the metropolis that is Istanbul. I don't think I exaggerate when I say that it was the largest city I have ever been to. LA might hold a candle to the population of Istanbul—the operative word being might. From the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia, to the Galata Tower and the urban shopping district of Taksim Square and a "secret" baklava bakery stop in between, our first evening in Turkey turned out to be unforgettable all because of him.

Sean, Atakan, Erin and Me in front of the Galata Tower

We parted ways with Atakan after visiting his favorite baklava bakery with the bittersweet knowledge that, had we come a week later, he would have been able to spend more time with us. Even still, I thankfully know that I have a friend to visit in a very beautiful part of this large world.

The next day we visited the breathtaking Blue Mosque and the richly historical Hagia Sophia. Both were stunning and so unlike anything I had ever seen before. I liked the mosque better, probably because it wasn't in such a state of disrepair as the former basilica, but then again, the mosaic of Jesus, Mary and John was amazingly detailed that I couldn't help but admire the religious devotion and power it represented. We went and discovered the deliciousness of Turkish apple tea at lunch afterward, and wrapped the day up by exploring the eerie depths of the Cistern and surviving the spice bazaar.

Inside the Blue Mosque

A man during prayer

Minaret in the warm Mediterranean sunshine 

Blue Mosque

Hagia Sophia

Being Tourists

Interior of the Hagia Sophia, a former Christian
basilica that was transformed into a mosque
during the Ottoman reign

Roundel and beautiful stained glass

Admiring the history and the beauty

Interior of the GIANT church

Awesome mosaic

Mary, Jesus and John

Erin's got God on her shoulder

Ruins outside the Hagia Sophia

Cistern, also known as the "Underwater Palace"

The head of Medusa mysteriously supporting one of the columns.

Peacock feathered column

Spice Bazaar

Crowded with customers and merchants

Galata Tower

Blue Mosque

Hagia Sophia

LAMPS! 

I SO wanted one, but couldn't think of a way to get them home...

The next day we visited Topkapi Palace, the former home to the Turkish sultans. This palace was pretty mind blowing. Imagine the Disney version of Aladdin where the squalid streets are home to the poor and the Taj Mahal houses the royals, and that's how I picture Topkapi in relation to the rest of Istanbul back in its heyday. The tiling throughout the palace, especially in the private quarters of the Harem, was immaculate, and the entire complex was like a garden oasis overlooking the jewel-like waters of the Bosporous. What was even more mind-blowing was the impossibly rich throne we saw in the treasure rooms which was being used while my countrymen fought for freedom in the American Revolution. The powerful individuals who occupied that lavishly decorated chair opposed everything my ancestors fought for. Incredible...

Blue Mosque through the gate of Topkapi Palace

Vie of the Bosporus from Topkapi grounds

Exterior of some Sultan's library . . . no big deal

Exquisite tiling

One thing I learned from eavesdropping on
a guide was that every building had a fountain
outside of it for the sound of the water which
was both tranquil and drowned out the details
of the conversations taking place within.

Concubines

Sumptuous interior of Sultan's rooms

Later that day we caught a ferry to the Asia side of the city. The districts are mostly residential and we only hiked the jetty area that looked westward toward the Mediterranean before grabbing some apple tea and heading back to the Europe side. While the views were awesome, the most exciting part of the trip was realizing that I could expand the number of continents I've visited from three to four.

Minarets decorating the skyline

Ferry to Asia

Ahoy there!

Busy Harbor

Asia!

Enjoying the sunshine on the jetty of
the Kadiköy neighborhood

After we arrived back on the Europe side, we stopped by the Grand Bazaar which was overwhelmingly huge! I might have been able to find my way around Venice, but there was no way I'd be able to navigate my way out of that place on my own. After a few aisles—miniature avenues, really—all stalls started to look the same and they all sold the same items: rugs, jewelry, trivets, clothes, bags, repeat. It's rather astonishing to think of how much stuff could fit into such a small area, compared to the rest of the city. Furthermore, to know that it caters to the entirety of the Istanbul population plus tourists makes it that much more impressive. I am admittedly not a barterer. I understand and respect the act of price negotiating with merchants, but the whole exchange makes me feel uncomfortable. This being said, I surprisingly found myself bargaining with a merchant over the price of a spice set after I realized that I had paid several lira less for a similar set at the spice bazaar. Although I need to work on my haggling skills, I can proudly say that I bartered at the Grand Bazaar!

Descending into the labyrinth

Crowded avenues of stall after stall . . .

Visiting Istanbul truly opened my eyes as to how big the world actually is. Within the urban sprawl, which literally stretched as far as I could see from my window seat on the flight in, there lived a few million people who would go through their busy lives interacting with one another, living with one another, loving one another, growing, learning, hating, hoping, being . . . They were people I could only imagine in the abstract before I arrived and they carried out their entire lives, big or small, without even dreaming of my existence. Thy hadn't existed for me, why should I exist for them? And the scary thing is that they aren't the only ones who inhabit such a "nonexistent" space. Think of the millions who live in the densely populated areas of China or India! It makes home seem like such a small place in comparison.

That night Sean and I went for a walk and some last minute souvenir shopping and were treated to an unexpected fireworks show that we happened to catch sparkling above the skyline. It seemed like a fitting goodbye from the city I had once regarded apprehensively but came to love. The next morning we arrived at the airport unnecessarily early and made it back to Florence despite a rather tight connection in Zurich. Oh, Zurich. It was there that I was briefly detained for not having the proper documentation to leave the EU. While it wasn't my fault that the Italian bureaucracy refused to issue me a "Permesso di Soggiorno," it was a bit unnerving to be looked up in a mysterious system by the Swiss passport controller who spoke predominantly in German.

P.S. For all you doubters, I will be writing an Ireland post from Ireland. Bear with me for a few more "snapshots," coming soon!

P.P.S. Do you like my new design? I can't help but feel nostalgia for my last glass of Chianti...