A Weekend in Istanbul

Last Thursday I left for a weekend trip to Istanbul...or should I say Constantinople, since that is what the Greeks still call it: Poli ("City"), for short. Can you say bitter? In any case we arrived in Istanbul/Poli around 9 pm and drove to our hostel in Sultanehmet, the old part of the city. It seemed like a perfectly fine place to be for a couple of days, nothing special, but definitely sufficient. Although it was pouring rain outside we decided to explore for a little while and walked to dinner and then around the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya. Finally, we ended up in a bar on our street playing all American rock music and filled with foreigners, since we were in the heart of the hostel district.

Finally, we went home and woke up early the next morning to go to the Grand Bazaar, which was absolutely overwhelming. One man told us there were 4,500 shops in there! I was expecting a flea market, maybe even a large flea market, but this was just enormous. My friend Jamie and I just had to throw up our hands and say, "let's get lost" because there was no way we were going to be able to find our way around in a logical manner. There was so much stuff in there that I almost didn't feel like shopping, but no worries, I still managed to buy two Turkish shirts.

Next we went to the Basilica Cistern which was built in the 6th century AD in order to reserve water in times of seige and just for general comfort. It was beautiful inside, especially the way it was lit up. Also, we got to see two Medusa colums, the origins of which are unkown - as well as their positioning, since one is sideways and one is upside down. Very peculiar, but quite interesting as well.

After the cistern, we walked to lunch and got koftes (keftedes in Greek, meatballs in English), traditional Turkish fare. Nutritious and delicious. Afterwards we visited the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya. Of the two, I preferred the Blue Mosque, but both were incredible in their own right. Of course both of them were huge and imposing, but Aya Sofya felt loud and cold in comparison to the comfort and quiet of the Blue Mosque.

Later, we took a quick nap at the hostel and then met up with the rest of our friends who were staying in a different hotel to go to Taksim Square. This is the infamous area of Istanbul for eating and going out, sort of like the downtown of Istanbul, and it definitely lived up to the rumors. The main street was swarming with people and both our dinner (where we sat around a kebab grill) and our clubbing experience were very fun.

The next morning we went to Topkapi Palace, which is where the Ottoman sultans used to have one of their many residencies. It was a huge complex, now a museum obviously, but the most interesting part was probably the Islamic relics. They had pieces of Mohammed's beard and teeth, as well as the staf of Moses, the bowl of Abraham, the turban of Joseph, and the arm and skull of St. John. I had no idea that Istanbul was such an important center of Islam, always assuming they were located in Arab countries, like Mecca and Medina, but it was definitely cool to see and very informative as well. I felt the Muslim elements of society very strongly, especially when we would see and hear call to prayer a few times a day, but there were strong secular elements as well. Many people say Greece is where East meets West - well they say that about a lot of places in this part of the world - but I felt the juxtaposition more in Istanbul than in Athens...although the two cities are very similar in their pride in ancient history and struggle with modernization.

After the palace, we went on a boat ride on the Bosphorous to get a different angle of a lot of the sites. I got to see the bridge connecting Europe and Asia and I was even a few kilometres off the coast of Asia at one point. At the end of the cruise, we drove up to Pierre Roti Hill, named for the famous French author, in order to get yet another view of Istanbul. It was beautiful and enormous from every angle.

Next, the highlight of the trip: Turkish Bath. This is a very old tradition in Turkey - you might remember an earlier post when I said I went to a medeival Turkish bath in Athens...however, that one is no longer in use, but this one is. Basically they scrub you down and give you a massage - a very nice break in the middle of a long weekend of traveling. It was definitely the best 35 Turkish lira I have ever spent!

On Saturday night, we went to a delicious dinner and then chilled in a hookah bar for the night. After clubbing the night before, it was a nice respite.

Before catching our flight the next day, we went to the Museum of the Ancient Orient, the Archaeological Museum, and the Tiled Pavilion. Especially in the Archaeological Museum, it was great to see Hellenic and Hellenistic sculpture that I have been studying in my Aegean Art and Archaeology class. You forget just how far-reaching the Greek influence was and is until you're many miles away in a foreign country and realize that those same items you see in Athens were also produced in the place you are standing in.

The weekend as a whole was interesting, exciting, and fun. I really loved the city and would go back there in a heartbeat. I always say I'm a sucker for history and the historical records and remains in Istanbul rival those in Athens, Rome, or any other ancient city. Add in the Islamic and modern aspects as well and the city of Istanbul is as unique as they come.

Tomorrow I leave for a trip to Olympia and Delphi, so I will be sure to update when I get back!

Fillakia polla,
Mollie