Turkish Delites

I'm taking a three month sabbatical from work. I've been wanting to do this for a long time, and I was finally able to make it happen. I'm spending the first couple of months traveling and the remaining time with my mother. She finally scheduled some much needed surgery, so I'll be helping her R&R. In the next two months, I'll be visiting seven countries, six of which I've never been to before. It's a little bit shocking that I'm already three weeks in and have visited four countries. 

FIRST UP - 48 HOURS IN ISTANBUL, TURKEY

I'm doing most of this trip solo but started with friends, my travel buddies from work. In 2017 we hiked the Salkantay Trail to Machu Picchu together, and this year we decided to do the Jordan Trail to Petra. On the way to Jordan, we stoped in Istanbul for a couple of nights. Because we only had one full day, we arranged a private guide to show us around. It was worth every penny to get the most out of our short time. He not only added a lot of knowledge, but was able to save us time getting into the most popular sites because of the expedited, separate "guide" entrance lanes. 

We started our morning in the drizzly cold but eventually the sun came out. The same places we had been in the morning were nearly unrecognizable, the sunshine transformed the city so vibrantly.

Hagia Sofia (Morning)

Hagia Sofia (Afternoon)

Hagia Sofia is a fascinating place. It was a church for 916 years and a mosque for 482 years. It's also super old, making it's construction and existence even more impressive. At the time of it's creation, it was such an achievement that it became a blueprint for many grand places of worship that followed.

When Hagia Sofia was converted into a mosque, they built the minarets, covered up Christian mosaics and paintings, and added verses from the Koran. Plaster was used to cover up the bright gold Christian mosaics, accidentally preserving them quite well. Today Hagia Sofia is not used for religious services and is under restoration. In some parts, they're restoring the original Christian images, in others the Islamic additions. The coexistence of Christian and Muslim symbolism is quite beautiful. 

Inside of Hagia Sofia

These use to be candles

Out a window of Hagia Sofia

Uncovered mosaic from the Christian period in Hagia Sofia

We also visited the Blue Mosque, which is still an active mosque today. It was also under construction.

Inside the Blue Mosque

Blue Mosque

The Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia are practically next to each other, as is the cistern - and underground aquifer. I recognized it immediately from a scene in Dan Browns' Angels & Demons. It was quite spooky and dark. Unfortunately the water was drained for cleaning while we were there, as I'm sure the reflections in the water would have made it even cooler and spookier. Hagia Sofia was built reusing many materials such as columns from earlier pagan temples, and the underground cistern was built using columns they didn't use for Hagia Sofia. It was very odd to see these beautiful, ornately carved, marble columns that were covered with water for hundreds of years for a purely functional purpose. 

The Cistern

The Medusa Column

We then headed to another, less crowded mosque that was not under construction. Afterwards, we sat at a rooftop cafe, sipping tea while the call to prayer started. There are many mosques in the city, and each do their own call to prayer which starts when the sun reaches a certain point. It was as if we were listening to a chorus - it started with one call, then the next joined, and the next, and so on, until we were surrounded by an echoing symphony. 

We walked through Istanbul's famous bazaars and spice market, which are truly overwhelming in the people and smells, but also very beautiful in the colors and textures. We bought some Turkish delights, which I had never seen in the "log" form before. They are much fresher and tastier than the cube version. My favorite was a rose flavored one covered in rose petals and pistachios. 

Istanbul Bazaar

Spice Market

We finished the day by taking a ferry to the Asian side of Istanbul. The city is split between two continents, Europe and Asia.

Shoreline of Istanbul

Of course while in Turkey, I had to try Turkish coffee. It is very thickly brewed and strong with cardamon, and served in a small cup. The first time I had coffee with cardamon, I wasn't a fan, but it's grown on me tremendously. 

Turkish coffee with a Turkish delight

Istanbul street at night

I'm very glad we stopped in Istanbul and saw as much as we did in such a short time, but I'd definitely love to come back and see more of the city and more of Turkey.