Minarets, Turkish Delight and Tulips....Oh my!

Days #1 and #2
Istanbul: Rain, approx 10 degrees celcius....

Downing a couple of sleeping tablets helped with getting a good night's rest (thank you over-the-counter-drugs from Wal-Mart!!), then it was off to the airport to meet up with the kids and the other adults.

A painless journey through immigration and customs had us all eager to jump aboard our Singapore Airlines flight. And seriously: what a great way to fly!!! Wonderful service!! The 4 hour layover in Singapore was awful, as we didn't leave for Istanbul until 4am Melbourne time. Even a spin around the Tiffany store in the airport did little to relieve the boredom!

A 10 (ish) hour flight to Istanbul was again made palatable by the leniency of American supermarket chains. My purchase of noise cancelling headphones is perhaps THE greatest decision I have ever made. Why have I not cottoned on to this before now?? Made a long trip much quieter and I don't have that residual ringing in my ears from the hum of the plane's engines.

Istanbul is just amazing. All of this history that I have read about for so long, and I'm finally getting to see relics of the Ottoman and Byzantine Empires. It's just absolutely amazing. “Awesome” is getting a steady workout and I need to work on some alternative superlatives. Seriously awesome city mind you!!

We started out, after freshening up at the Eresin Hotel, with a short walk through the streets of Istanbul to the Blue Mosque. More accurately it is Sultanahmet Camii (Mosque), but has been named the 'Blue Mosque' by foreigners due to the magnificent blue tiles that create the mosaics inside the mosque. The photos I have taken just don't do it ANY justice. Whilst there we got to hear a couple of different prayers in Arabic, Turkish and English. Just amazing!!

The Blue Mosque

Inside the Blue Mosque (photo doesn't do it justice!!)

Outside of the Mosque is the Hippodrome where races where held. In this area there is an obelisk made in Egypt in about 1600 BC. It was one of the obelisks that was outside the Karnak Temple in Luxor. The base of the the obelisk is Roman and was made in about 5^th Century AD.

The base of the obelisk

Lunch then followed and we were treated to an entree of dolma (the Greek dolmades), cous cous, salad with an oil and vinegar dressing, a kind of cheese 'spring roll' and potato salad. Our main consisted of traditional chicken kebob meat, rice, mashed potato (a traditional Turkish dish???) and another cheese spring roll. Dessert was baklava (yeeeeeeah!!) and another Turkish pastry that was just fantastic. All of this washed down with a tiny cup of Turkish coffee which certainly perked us all up.

Next we headed to the Topkapi Palace which was built during the 15^th century and is the former home of the Sultans of the Ottoman Empire. The treasure palace included an outrageously huge diamond. Apparently it was found by a shoe salesman who thought it was fake and sold it for three spoons. Sounds like the kind of dumb arse thing I would do. As well as the treasures, we looked around various sections of the Palace, including the area where circumcisions were conducted. A few uncomfortable looks from the boys! In this area, we were able to see some fantastic mosaics and also the Grand Viziers rooms where policy was developed.

A last minute addition to our itinerary was to the Basilica Cistern (Yerebatan Sarnici). This was perhaps the highlight of the day....this underground cistern was built during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinianus as a water supply during ancient times. There are 336 stone columns that can be found in the structure. They are of different styles including Corinthian and Doric columns. There are also two Medusa heads that are used as bases for two of the columns. I've taken some pics, but you would be better off either (a) coming to Istanbul and checking out yourself or (b) check out the website: Yerebatan Sarnici



The columns at the Cistern (shocking photo....check the website!)

One of the Medusa heads

Our final destination for today was the Spice Market. Unlike the Grand Bazaar (which we will be going to on our return from Gallipoli), it is a market that the locals also make use of. Fantastic sights, sounds and smells awaited us here. I've never been a fan of Turkish Delight (or lokum as it is actually called), but I have definitely become a convert!! So far, pomegranate has been my favourite. There were a multitude of different spices and teas available to purchase. Damn you Australian Customs!! I would have loved to have bought a variety of different spices. They all looked and smelled just fantastic. It was difficult not to go nuts and buy a range of scarves, painted plates, protective eye talismans, my body weight in Turkish delight and tea and coffee sets.

The skyline here is just amazing: minarets pepper your views and, unlike churches at home, it is obvious that they are heavily patroned. Tulips are everywhere along the roadsides. The Turks obviously take great pride in their city and there are beautiful garden beds along all of the roads. Tulips originate from Turkey (not Holland!) and the word is taken from the word for 'turban'....if you look at a closed tulip, they kind of look like one.

I have very little recollection of dinner as by this point I had turned into a zombie.....So it was off to bed and I don't think I lasted 3 minutes before I was out to it!! What a FANTASTICALLY AWESOME first day of our trip!!!

Tomorrow....?? Gallipoli.....