This city alone has been the epicenter of the world since into founding by the Byzantines in 330BC. Later the Roman, Latin and Ottoman Empires all chose this city to play a major part in their domains. Some made it their capital city, and others made it a secondary capital to their respective great nations. And this is noticeable by the amount of history you can find at every corner. Istanbul is, by far, the most impressive city I have ever visited.
It was a Thursday morning when I arrived. I collected my bags and made my way to customs. Keep in mind that, if you are an American, a $30 USD Tourist Visa is required to enter the city. Don't worry if you forgot to bring U.S. cash - an ATM machine is conveniently placed right where the line starts. A stamp was placed in my passport and after a quick scan of my passport and a stamp to go along with the stamp, I entered Istanbul. Even today, you can tell Istanbul still remains as the main port between East and West.
I exited the airport and negotiated a $16USD cab ride to my hotel, Recital Hotel, in old town Istanbul. The 40 minute cab ride to the city went along the waterfront which was plastered with heavy construction equipment. The hotel staff quickly checked me in, and after dropping my luggage off, I instantly made my way around the corner to the Blue Mosque. Pictures do not do this mosque justice. The grandeur of the Mosque is unbelievable! It's many domes and minarets stretch high into the sky, and just in front of it stands Hagia Sofia.
Once you make your way into the mosque, you are overwhelmed with copious details of Arabic calligraphy and stonework all the way up to the ceiling. Although the Blue Mosque isn't the largest Mosque in Istanbul, its definitely historic. I read my afternoon prayers, then decided to grab a bit to eat. Turkish Gyros is a must. Just between the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia was a doner spot which I decided to have a Gyro wrap accompanied by the thick, strong Turkish Coffee. Surprisingly, nearly every restaurant is inexpensive. The wrap was about $3USD, and coffee about $1USD. Satisfied, I proceeded behind the Hagia Sofia towards the Topkapi Museum.
After passing 2 different armed-guard checkpoints, I stood where essentially the entire world was run from for 700+ years. Formally the Sultans living quarters, the Topkapi Meuseum grounds are now open to public viewing. Inside you can find lavish living quarters, large halls where key political decisions were made, grand kitchens, and amazingly rich Islamic relics. The Museum housed what is believed to be Moses Staff, Prophet Joseph's sword, all three of the Prophet Muhammad's swords, each of the Khalifa's swords, manuscripts of the Prophet Muhammad, scrolls and their containers which were sent by Prophet Muhammad to the corners of the world, his beard and teeth fragments, and numerous keys of the Kabah from various decades. In addition, an actual Hafiz - someone who has memorized the entire Holy Qur'an - is continuously reciting the Holy Qur'an throughout the entire visit. FYI - that 5-day city pass works here too. I spent nearly 2 and a half hours admiring the entire site before it was time to head out.
Next up was back towards the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia to the Basilica Cistern. At the cistern, opt to buy the 5-day Istanbul City Museum Pass. You'll get access to nearly 20 different museums in the city for a measly 85 Turkish Lira (about 30 bucks). The cistern was originally built during the 6th century during the Byzantine era then later used by the Romans as a main commercial, legal and artistic center. Somewhere along the way it was forgotten about, but later discovered and now made into a Museum. The dark, damp quarters are eloquently lit and wooden walk ways installed above the water. Characters from Greek Mythology are carved into some of the pillars which put into perspective just how historic and antiquated the cistern is. No more than 30 minutes should be allocated to walk through and read the various placards in the cistern.
It was time to do a little bit of shopping.. at the Grand Bazaar. The Grand Bazaar is just that - GRAND. The bazaar has over 5000 shops packed inside. I literally had to pull out my phone and use Google Maps to navigate the entrances and exits. Shops on top of shops. Now at first I was getting annoyed at the countless attempts by shop owners to lure me in to their shop. I then realized that every single shop had someone standing outside trying to get you to buy something from them. EVERY SHOP. It wasn't until later that I realized that this isn't just specific to the Grand Bazaar. Anywhere I went in Istanbul, I had a shop owner or worker trying to convince me that their spot was the best. I quickly realized to not make eye contact with them, but to only stop and pop in if I saw something I liked from outside. Keep in mind that negotiating prices at the Grand Bazaar is a must; never go with their initial price. Listed prices are rare. I was able to get an amazing deal on some bracelets for my wife, mom and sisters, and a prayer mat for myself before I came across Inci. Inci is a gourmet Turkish Delight shop which was phenomenal! The store owner, Rayvan, approached me with some free samples. These got me wanting more. I entered his shop and his older brother, Muzaffar, began to give me all sorts of various Turkish Delight samples. Next came the free tea and Turkish Coffee. This amount of hospitality and sense of feeling welcomed was overcoming. I felt as though I was a long-lost relative that they hadn't seen in years. It was amazing. We sat and talked over tea and treats for nearly an hour. We exchanged contact information, and after heart-felt hugs and a selfie, it was time to call it a night.
The next morning I woke and made my way towards the Bosporus River. All along the river and the Bosporus Bridge you can find countless fish shops and restaurants. Unknowingly, I was tricked into Mariners Restaurant. The man outside assuring me his lamb chops were the best, but after being seated and given water, I was informed they had ran out of lamp chops. Same with the next item I wanted. I eventually settled with some basic chicken soup which I inhaled and left. Every single restaurant after that had the EXACT same menu. Not one different. It was as though they all had the same kitchen but different seating areas. Weird. I crossed over the bridge and made my way to the Galata Tower.
Istanbul sits on numerous hills. On nearly every hilltop sat a beautiful Mosque with towering minarets. The Galata Tower is probably the only hilltop building that wasn't a Mosque. The queue to go up was a bit long, and the weather was a bit cloudy, so I opted to skip going up and instead grabbed some baklava at the famous Karakoy Gulluoglu. They had nearly every type of baklava you can think of - and every one was amazing! The most interesting one was the chocolate baklava. It was like eating a chocolate glazed baklava on top of a chocolate brownie. Delicioussssss.
From there I took a stroll down Istiklal Road towards Taksim Square. Istiklal Road is famous for high end shops and the millions of pedestrians that walk it. Literally millions. Every week, over 3 million people walk up and down the street. I strolled to the end of the road, then back tracked towards the famous Dervish Museum. The Museum was one of the first Dervish Houses and was also apart of the Istanbul 5-Day pass I bought. It was interesting to read about how the Dervish sprung up a their own denomination of Islam via Sufism. The museum was closing as it was nearly 5PM now, so I departed and made my way back to the hotel to get some much needed R&R.
In the evening I decided to swing up to Ortakoy and check out the famous Ortakoy Mosque and the Bosporus Bridge. Walking was too far, and after checking the rates on Uber, the $5USD ride is what I went with. Uber, by the way, is GREAT in Istanbul. You'll get a massive Uber XL that will cost no more than a few bucks to get pretty much anywhere in the city. It was nighttime and a bit rainy by the time I got to Ortakoy. I captured a few long-exposure shots of the Mosque with the bridge in the back. The Uber driver recommended I check out Ali Baba Restaurant for some great lamb chops (had vented with him about my earlier debacle). It was a hookah/Shisha/Nargile shop, which I came to find out later, but really in Istanbul every single restaurant had it on the menu. After scarfing down the perfectly seasoned and grilled meat and salad, I called another Uber to take me back.
On my third day I head over to Hagia Sofia. Here, too, the 5-day pass worked, but still required a wait in the line. Before entering I grabbed some Turkish ice cream, which, yes, the guy did the whole trick-show-off-the-heazy thing. Entering into Hagia Sofia you can tell its old. For nearly a 1000 years it was the largest cathedral in the world. Later when the Ottomans overtook the city, It was transformed into a Mosque. Then once the Turkish Republic was founded, the Church/Mosque was eventually converted into a Museum. I entered via large, oak entrance doors. The main hall was massive! All around you can see large Arabic calligraphy with the various names of Allah written on them, along with restoration work done on plastered-over Christian murals. The colab of Christian/Islamic murals was beautiful, however half of the main hall was covered by scaffolds used for restoration work. Throughout the Museum large placards outline the buildings ancient history.
Next was the Archeological Museum and Suleman Mosque - the largest mosque in Istanbul. The Archeological Museum contained ancient artifacts from 3300 BC, the Byzantine, Greek, Roman, Latin and Ottoman eras. The layout of the Museum was perfectly done, as it took you from newest to oldest. As for the Suleman Mosque, this Mosque looked almost identical to the Blue Mosque (as most of the Mosques sort of looked like). It sat probably on the highest point in Istanbul, giving a great 180 degree view of the Bosporus and across to the Galata Tower. Again, I read my afternoon prayers inside the mosque and wandered around the grounds. Sultan Suleman's grave site is located here as well in a small building within the Mosque grounds. As I was leaving the Mosque, I stumbled upon another shop which had tons of women dresses and prayer mats. I got a great deal on two more prayer mats and a Turkish style burqa for my wife before I called it a day and walked back all the way to the hotel.
The people I met, the food I ate, the history I learned about - all of it was astonishing. The preservation of old and new, respect of other religions and their practices and the secularism of what is considered a "Muslim" state was beautifully balanced. People practiced their religion in peace, lived, laughed and went about their day. This is a must-do location for ANYONE who wants to go out and see the world for what it is - one massive collusion of people. I will visit again, God Willing!
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