Leaving Ourselves Behind

Whoa – Istanbul is so much more than we had anticipated. Bigger, noisier, grander, older, newer, hillier, more interesting, more captivating, more everything. And we’re already tired. Our trip is winding down, we’re beginning to shift gears to think about being home again and now we have Istanbul to contend with.

But we can do it! We have eight full days here – two down, six to go and so much to see.

We’re staying at a wonderful Airbnb in the Galata area. Bustling during the day and quiet at night – perfect. This is the view from our balcony.

See that tower at the end of our street? Galata Tower – built as a watchtower in 1349, it demands a two-hour wait and $40 admission to climb up inside for a good view of the city. A hard no on Galata Tower – not too many things we want to wait two hours in line for with dozens upon dozens of excited school kids. There are loads of tourists everywhere – almost the end of October and no sign of Istanbul taking a break.

So many compelling sites in Istanbul – we could spend hundreds of dollars and many, many hours lining up to see them all. We will carefully pick among them and try to balance it all for what we hope to find – the essence of Istanbul.

Here’s a beginning – Istanbul has endless carpet shops, mini-markets, laundry services, teensy food outlets, tea shops, coffee shops and it also has unbelievably curated specialty shops.

You can shop for a frangipani candle in a shop larger than the average Istanbul apartment, if the average Istanbul apartment had a massive chandelier and luxury furniture.

Why not go for something unexpected?

One can never have too many sunglasses, especially if they are vintage. There seem to be an inordinate number of eyeglass stores in Istanbul, all of them cool.

Or, for something a little less high-brow, let’s try the Grand Bazaar. I was under the impression the Grand Bazaar was all under one (massive) roof, but in fact, it sprawls for many, many blocks, both inside and out. I would imagine you can buy almost anything in the Grand Bazaar, from miniskirts to mousetraps. A lot of junk, a lot of shouting and competing for business. Everything I have read suggests that the Grand Bazaar is a great experience, but save the actual shipping for calmer, cheaper locales. If you’re not a fan of crowds, the Grand Bazaar might not be for you, but it is worth even a quick visit.

An interior shot.

The Spice Market runs right into the Grand Bazaar. Again – an overwhelming selection of spices, medicinal products, teas, etc. – each stall identical to the one before – the sheer quantity is astounding.

Everything is so neatly displayed – the dates and figs look as though they’ve been stacked by hand. Speaking of hands – how hygienic does this look to you? I would take a chance on buying spices, but the proximity of dried fruit to the hundreds of passersby makes me feel a bit squeamish.

On the other hand, Turkiye’s confectionary shops are simply beautiful. Filled with exquisite hand-made Turkish Delights, small bonbons – I will be bringing some of these back home.

Turkish people love their sweets, but they also love their snacks. Roasted chestnuts and roasted corn – two fall staples on many street corners.

Istanbul is a city of almost 16 million people, and most of them appear to be tearing about on motorcycles and scooters, doing their level best to run down pedestrians.

Pedestrians, on the other hand, can frustrate drivers by ignoring stoplights and walking en masse in front of traffic. Add to this buses, trams, a subway, ferries, and tunnels, plus a geography that is not the famed “seven hills” but over 50 hills – traffic is horrendous. Horrendous. Air quality is poor and everyone smokes. There is noise everywhere, but mainly there is life. It is exhilarating.

Our apartment is several blocks up to the top of a hill. There is nothing to do but heads-down and bend into the grade. Today as we puffed and wheezed, we came upon these two old gents.

They turned left onto this street (and we followed.) At the bottom of the photo, you can see a tire-shredding deterrent to ignoring the one-way street – nasty metal spikes pop up if you drive uphill and lie flat when you drive down.

We made it to the top, turned right and looked to see if our gents were following. (They were.) I’m wondering if Istanbul residents are in better shape as a result of these hills.

Our first Istanbul major site was the Blue Mosque.

Built between 1609-1617 in the classic Ottoman style with multiple domes and six minarets, this is a functioning mosque. It is open to the public, free of charge, but only during non-prayer hours ( closed 5 times a day for over an hour each time).

It was absolutely stunning inside, every square inch of the mosque embellished with painting, frescoes, engravings and over 21,000 blue Iznic tiles (thus the name).

Part of the ceiling.

A few men were still in prayer when we arrived.

The Blue Mosque is simply one of several magnificent mosques in the city. We hope to visit more before we leave.

If the mosque is a symbol of faith and humanity, then the Dolmabahce Palace is an ode to the grandiose egos of Ottoman Empire sultans.

Built between 1843 and 1856, the sultan at that time wanted a home to match (or outdo)European palaces. Built in the Baroque and Rococo style, it covers 45,000 square metres, has 285 rooms and 46 halls.

It also has the world’s largest chandelier. Now I am law-abiding and did not notice the small no-photo symbol on the signs as we wandered through. I took a photo of this chandelier (which looks like a flashlight in comparison to the famed “world’s largest“) and a number of other photos before I heard, “Lady! No photos!“

This photo will give you an idea of the opulence, the gilded surfaces, the excess of the palace. This was home to six sultans, their wives and concubines and after Türkiye became a republic in 1924, the palace came under the auspices of a National Heritage property.

An outside view of the palace, overlooking the Bosporous Strait, the body of water that runs between the Asian side of Istanbul to the European side.

Less opulent, but every bit as real – the dozens of fishermen who line the Galata bridge.

The constant boat traffic on the Bosporous.

And a break from the ancient – a trip to Istanbul Museum of Modern Art, or Istanbul Modern, as it is called.

Opened in 2004, this is Turkiye’s first modern and contemporary art gallery, with a focus on Turkish artists. It is a beautiful building, set on the water, with three floors or permanent and temporary exhibits.

Some examples:

That’s our first instalment of Istanbul – still so much to explore and share.