Oh my goodness. I have been trying to write this post for the last two hours, because I expect it to be another long one, but I keep getting distracted, because I am staying in a hostel, and people, and I keep getting emails about hostel sales elsewhere, and phew. I am in the hostel bar and I am going to produce something!
I may as well start with the hostel people, who are wonderful. The people who work here anyway. The people staying are... interesting. There are a few young, fun groups I haven't really tried to tap into because I'm too busy sightseeing, but all weirdos keep talking to me. Not the scary weirdos, before you get worried, but I'll give you examples. So I mentioned the Iraqi artist in my last post, and... okay, maybe he's a little worrisome, but I put him in his place the first time he tried to tell me how pretty I was when I came out of the shower with my hair wet and he hasn't spoken a word to me sense, so... problem solved. Anyway, I don't think he ever leaves the dorm? I have yet to come back to drop something off or use the bathroom without him being there at all hours of the day, usually sitting in his bed on his tablet.
The Iranian guy I haven't talked to is similar in that he always seems to be around. In general though, there are a lot more Middle Eastern people than I'm used to in hostels, including an Egyptian man and woman who haven't realized I speak Arabic yet. It might have something to do with Turkey being about the only major tourist destination a lot of Arabs can get visas for... or just because it's cheaper to get here from the Arab world. But there weren't near as many traveling Arabs in Egyptian hostels, or even Jordanian ones. Maybe they're just less likely to have family to stay with in Turkey? I don't know, I'm speculating.
Regardless, in addition to the Arabs, there's an older man from Manchester who keeps sitting down to chat about the strangest things. He's actually harmless, here with his Georgian girlfriend who's trying to get a visa and clearly religious based on how much he talks about the Orthodox Church. But when she goes... wherever she goes that isn't the hostel, he likes to talk at me about scripture and footballers and religious influence on the EU Charter and industrial momentum in Sheffield and... you get the picture. I imagine other travelers haven't been as patient, but he has interesting things to say even if a lot of it is nonsense.
There was also a cat fight in the dorm last night as I was getting ready for bed, which was... intense. Apparently someone left their bag in a locker without padlocking it because there weren't any valuables and someone checked in, needed a locker, and took the bag out to lock up their own stuff. The girl who came back to find her bag next to the lockers instead of in one was furious. I kept out of it but... well, girls get nasty.
I may as well start with the hostel people, who are wonderful. The people who work here anyway. The people staying are... interesting. There are a few young, fun groups I haven't really tried to tap into because I'm too busy sightseeing, but all weirdos keep talking to me. Not the scary weirdos, before you get worried, but I'll give you examples. So I mentioned the Iraqi artist in my last post, and... okay, maybe he's a little worrisome, but I put him in his place the first time he tried to tell me how pretty I was when I came out of the shower with my hair wet and he hasn't spoken a word to me sense, so... problem solved. Anyway, I don't think he ever leaves the dorm? I have yet to come back to drop something off or use the bathroom without him being there at all hours of the day, usually sitting in his bed on his tablet.
The Iranian guy I haven't talked to is similar in that he always seems to be around. In general though, there are a lot more Middle Eastern people than I'm used to in hostels, including an Egyptian man and woman who haven't realized I speak Arabic yet. It might have something to do with Turkey being about the only major tourist destination a lot of Arabs can get visas for... or just because it's cheaper to get here from the Arab world. But there weren't near as many traveling Arabs in Egyptian hostels, or even Jordanian ones. Maybe they're just less likely to have family to stay with in Turkey? I don't know, I'm speculating.
Regardless, in addition to the Arabs, there's an older man from Manchester who keeps sitting down to chat about the strangest things. He's actually harmless, here with his Georgian girlfriend who's trying to get a visa and clearly religious based on how much he talks about the Orthodox Church. But when she goes... wherever she goes that isn't the hostel, he likes to talk at me about scripture and footballers and religious influence on the EU Charter and industrial momentum in Sheffield and... you get the picture. I imagine other travelers haven't been as patient, but he has interesting things to say even if a lot of it is nonsense.
There was also a cat fight in the dorm last night as I was getting ready for bed, which was... intense. Apparently someone left their bag in a locker without padlocking it because there weren't any valuables and someone checked in, needed a locker, and took the bag out to lock up their own stuff. The girl who came back to find her bag next to the lockers instead of in one was furious. I kept out of it but... well, girls get nasty.
Okay, enough of people, let's move on to what I've been up to, because Istanbul has managed to redeem itself a bit in the last two days. So I woke up Tuesday determined to make the most of the day, especially after getting in late Monday, and I definitely made up for lost time. After a delicious complimentary breakfast of yogurt and granola on the hostel roof overlooking the Bosphorus I headed straight for the big ticket items. The Hagia Sophia was up first, and though it was as spectacular as you would imagine, it was also over flowing with people as soon as it opened. And they were all loud and irreverent and just... ugh. I've noticed this thing about most tourists: they are at the same time the most oblivious and observant people you will ever meet. They will step right in front of someone looking at an exhibit or reading an info panel to look at or read the same panel without even noticing, and yet if one person stops to take a picture of something, everyone in the immediate vicinity stops to take the exact same picture like clockwork causing massive gridlock every single time. It's hilarious to watch once you've accepted the inevitability, if inconvenient and a bit annoying.
Anyway, the Hagia Sophia was beautiful. Parts were under renovation, which seems par for the course in the lead up to the tourist season, but there was a lovely exhibit on Arabic calligraphy that I particularly enjoyed. I didn't get many pictures, because crowds, but the ones I have aren't uploading anyway. Sorry. =/
After the main Hagia Sophia museum, I popped around the corner to see the Hagia Sophia tombs, which is mostly the graves of a bunch of Sultans and their families. They were nice, but more importantly free. Not that that's been a huge issue. I purchased an Istanbul Museum pass for 85TL ($40 or so), and with the way attraction prices have inflated it has more than paid for itself already. The Hagia Sophia costs 30 TL alone. So far, it's covered everything but Kayrie Museum, but I'm getting ahead of myself. So.
After the Hagia Sophia I crossed the main square to the Palace Mosaic Museum, home of the most beautiful mosaics I have ever seen. That was followed by a visit to Sultanahmet Mosque, better known in the West as the Blue Mosque for it's blue motif tile designs. I was a bit bothered by the irreverence of the tourists there as well. They were hardly careful about keeping their heads covered, and I even saw a woman pretending to pray on her knees for a picture which was... offensive. And I'm not even Muslim.
Due to the crowds, of which I was not a fan, I finished most of these places quickly and decided to buy a pastry from a street vendor and go see the History of Islamic Science Museum which was across the street in Gulhane Park. I decided, but that does not mean they let me. Apparently, like the palace next door, it is closed on Tuesdays. No matter though. The park was pretty and I was still hungry. But I didn't want to stop, so I bought a simit from another vendor and headed to the metro. This was about the time that Istanbul started to redeem itself.
It turns out that as soon as you get out of the chokehold of the tourist district, Istanbul is actually very nice. I took the metro North to Topkapi, literally "Ball Gate" in English. It didn't occur to me that there would be an actual gate, but I got off the metro and boom. Castle. Castle! Okay, it wasn't really a castle, but it looked like it. In actuality, it was the old wall of the city, and no one had bothered to tell me it was there. Not even guidebooks or the internet. It was gorgeous though, and free to climb all over, of which I took full advantage. And so began my love affair with outer Istanbul.
It wasn't just the gates though, of which there were multiple spanning several miles. The whole reason I'd gone out to that part of the city was to see Kariye Museum in Chora Church. It was also being renovated, so I couldn't go inside the church itself, but just walking in the door to the atrium was an experience. The mosaics! They were everywhere and inlaid with sparkling stones that glistened in the sunlight through the windows and only full instead of crowded because it was so far from everything else.
I loved the church so much I actually considered eating at the tourist cafe outside. It was cheaper than other tourist cafes too. I was not, however, sure when the sun would go down, and I didn't want to make the trek back to the hostel in the dark, so I elected to walk along the city wall back to the main metro line instead of taking the offshoot line I'd ridden. The Istanbul Metro doesn't have an interchange, so you have to pay for each line you take, and I was being cheap. It was a nice walk, except for the Turkish guy who came up and wanted to 'make friends' and then tried to hold my hand. I yelled at him. He went away. Men. Ugh. Istanbul is turning out to be much too much like Egypt for my liking.
Anyway, I got back to the city center and had Chinese food for dinner, because why not, then tried to retire for an early night. That was when I met Paul though, the chatty guy from Manchester, so it didn't turn out to be as early as I would have liked. Still, I got a decent night's sleep and woke up this morning exhausted from all of yesterday's walking. I considered moving up my Bosphorus cruise to today to rest from all the walking, but when I struck out after breakfast, I just couldn't resist the draw of the palace. Part of me wishes I had.
Perhaps because it was closed yesterday, or perhaps just because it's a palace, it was by far the most crowded place I'd been yet. Topkapi Palace was the home of the seat of the Ottoman Empire through most of it's history. So of course it's grand and fancy and intimidating, full of lush gardens and stunning architecture and fancy jewels and thrones and what have you. My favorite part was actually the Hagia Irene outside the gates. It was an old run down church, but at least it was empty. Because the Sultan was also the Caliph, the palace also houses a lot of Islamic relics, including a bunch of fragments of the Prophet Muhammad's beard, his mantle, and supposedly his footprint. That meant in addition to the usual tourists, there were and abundance of pilgrims, crowding the relic room and praying and crying and it was touching, but it was also a bit of culture shock for the people who were just there to see pretty, old things. It was a stark dichotomy, and really interesting to watch. A bit of a flashback to a lot of my time in the Arab world really. And it was all highlighted when I came down from the second floor of an exhibit on Islam in general to be asked by an 83 year old Turkish woman if there was anything up there worth climbing the stairs for. I told her it was just a bunch of manuscripts, nothing especially noteworthy or different from the first floor, and she launched into an entirely unsolicited monologue about how she was a Muslim, but she loved Christians and we all believed in the same God anyway. It was actually very sweet.
Anyway, the lines at Topkapi meant I spent the entire morning there. It took half an hour even to use the restroom, and getting into exhibits was far worse than that. I left around 2:30, finally did the History of Islamic Science Museum. It wasn't terribly impressive, and was sadly reactionary in my opinion. I would have enjoyed it if they were telling me "these are the advances Muslims have made." Instead it was all defending Muslim advances against their occidental counterparts. Nevertheless, there were some interesting points. I especially enjoyed the geography, architecture, and time keeping exhibits. Speaking of time keeping! My favorite part of Topkapi was easily the Ottoman clock collection. I think I have decided that if ever I find myself with enough money to start seriously collecting something, I will collect clocks. They're just so... brilliant and beautiful and intricate and scientific but still... I don't know. I really like clocks.
After the museum it was coming time for things to start closing, so I walked up to the Spice Bazaar, which was a lot like the Grand Bazaar except not as bad and with things I would actually consider buying. I didn't buy anything, but I have promised Lisa I will bring her some Turkish apple tea, so I might go back. Or just buy it elsewhere. Because it's everywhere, literally. The hostel staff keep offering me a glass anytime they see me sitting around reading or writing or resting or... anything. The major triumph of the Spice Bazaar, however, was finding the cheap food area on the way. Yay cheap food! It was dinner time on the way home, so I stopped a cig kofte stall and asked for their smallest portion, which was 6.50TL (a little more than $3). They proceeded to give me enough food for two or three meals. Good problem to have, right? Except my hostel doesn't have a kitchen, and therefore doesn't have a fridge for me to store leftovers in. There was a concert in the park, so I sat to listen and valiantly try to finish my food. Wasting seems like such a sad thing at this point! I ate about two-thirds and had to give up. But I packaged it up and took it back to the hostel and have since been able to finish it. I love cig kofte, probably because, as a vegetarian, it's the only kofte I can eat. It's this mushy mixture of like... bulghur wheat and tomato probably and a bunch of amazing spices. They serve it to you in oblong hunks and you wrap it in a pita with lettuce and it's crunchy and spicy and awesome.
So that brings me to now, sitting in the hostel surrounded by a bunch of people having a wonderful time, full and relaxed and having a nice cup of tea. Tomorrow I will do that Bosphorus cruise, and that will also be beautiful. The plan for Friday is laundry, Dolmabahce Palace and the bohemian parts of town, which I'm hoping will be more like the outskirts, and then Saturday it's off to London! I have to admit, I'm looking forward to seeing Lisa a ridiculous amount, as well as my friends in Scotland. I got in touch with Laura today, and she has volunteered to find me room she doesn't have at her place, so that's a few more nights of free accommodation! I have the best friends. So, until next time!
Anyway, the Hagia Sophia was beautiful. Parts were under renovation, which seems par for the course in the lead up to the tourist season, but there was a lovely exhibit on Arabic calligraphy that I particularly enjoyed. I didn't get many pictures, because crowds, but the ones I have aren't uploading anyway. Sorry. =/
After the main Hagia Sophia museum, I popped around the corner to see the Hagia Sophia tombs, which is mostly the graves of a bunch of Sultans and their families. They were nice, but more importantly free. Not that that's been a huge issue. I purchased an Istanbul Museum pass for 85TL ($40 or so), and with the way attraction prices have inflated it has more than paid for itself already. The Hagia Sophia costs 30 TL alone. So far, it's covered everything but Kayrie Museum, but I'm getting ahead of myself. So.
After the Hagia Sophia I crossed the main square to the Palace Mosaic Museum, home of the most beautiful mosaics I have ever seen. That was followed by a visit to Sultanahmet Mosque, better known in the West as the Blue Mosque for it's blue motif tile designs. I was a bit bothered by the irreverence of the tourists there as well. They were hardly careful about keeping their heads covered, and I even saw a woman pretending to pray on her knees for a picture which was... offensive. And I'm not even Muslim.
Due to the crowds, of which I was not a fan, I finished most of these places quickly and decided to buy a pastry from a street vendor and go see the History of Islamic Science Museum which was across the street in Gulhane Park. I decided, but that does not mean they let me. Apparently, like the palace next door, it is closed on Tuesdays. No matter though. The park was pretty and I was still hungry. But I didn't want to stop, so I bought a simit from another vendor and headed to the metro. This was about the time that Istanbul started to redeem itself.
It turns out that as soon as you get out of the chokehold of the tourist district, Istanbul is actually very nice. I took the metro North to Topkapi, literally "Ball Gate" in English. It didn't occur to me that there would be an actual gate, but I got off the metro and boom. Castle. Castle! Okay, it wasn't really a castle, but it looked like it. In actuality, it was the old wall of the city, and no one had bothered to tell me it was there. Not even guidebooks or the internet. It was gorgeous though, and free to climb all over, of which I took full advantage. And so began my love affair with outer Istanbul.
It wasn't just the gates though, of which there were multiple spanning several miles. The whole reason I'd gone out to that part of the city was to see Kariye Museum in Chora Church. It was also being renovated, so I couldn't go inside the church itself, but just walking in the door to the atrium was an experience. The mosaics! They were everywhere and inlaid with sparkling stones that glistened in the sunlight through the windows and only full instead of crowded because it was so far from everything else.
I loved the church so much I actually considered eating at the tourist cafe outside. It was cheaper than other tourist cafes too. I was not, however, sure when the sun would go down, and I didn't want to make the trek back to the hostel in the dark, so I elected to walk along the city wall back to the main metro line instead of taking the offshoot line I'd ridden. The Istanbul Metro doesn't have an interchange, so you have to pay for each line you take, and I was being cheap. It was a nice walk, except for the Turkish guy who came up and wanted to 'make friends' and then tried to hold my hand. I yelled at him. He went away. Men. Ugh. Istanbul is turning out to be much too much like Egypt for my liking.
Anyway, I got back to the city center and had Chinese food for dinner, because why not, then tried to retire for an early night. That was when I met Paul though, the chatty guy from Manchester, so it didn't turn out to be as early as I would have liked. Still, I got a decent night's sleep and woke up this morning exhausted from all of yesterday's walking. I considered moving up my Bosphorus cruise to today to rest from all the walking, but when I struck out after breakfast, I just couldn't resist the draw of the palace. Part of me wishes I had.
Perhaps because it was closed yesterday, or perhaps just because it's a palace, it was by far the most crowded place I'd been yet. Topkapi Palace was the home of the seat of the Ottoman Empire through most of it's history. So of course it's grand and fancy and intimidating, full of lush gardens and stunning architecture and fancy jewels and thrones and what have you. My favorite part was actually the Hagia Irene outside the gates. It was an old run down church, but at least it was empty. Because the Sultan was also the Caliph, the palace also houses a lot of Islamic relics, including a bunch of fragments of the Prophet Muhammad's beard, his mantle, and supposedly his footprint. That meant in addition to the usual tourists, there were and abundance of pilgrims, crowding the relic room and praying and crying and it was touching, but it was also a bit of culture shock for the people who were just there to see pretty, old things. It was a stark dichotomy, and really interesting to watch. A bit of a flashback to a lot of my time in the Arab world really. And it was all highlighted when I came down from the second floor of an exhibit on Islam in general to be asked by an 83 year old Turkish woman if there was anything up there worth climbing the stairs for. I told her it was just a bunch of manuscripts, nothing especially noteworthy or different from the first floor, and she launched into an entirely unsolicited monologue about how she was a Muslim, but she loved Christians and we all believed in the same God anyway. It was actually very sweet.
Anyway, the lines at Topkapi meant I spent the entire morning there. It took half an hour even to use the restroom, and getting into exhibits was far worse than that. I left around 2:30, finally did the History of Islamic Science Museum. It wasn't terribly impressive, and was sadly reactionary in my opinion. I would have enjoyed it if they were telling me "these are the advances Muslims have made." Instead it was all defending Muslim advances against their occidental counterparts. Nevertheless, there were some interesting points. I especially enjoyed the geography, architecture, and time keeping exhibits. Speaking of time keeping! My favorite part of Topkapi was easily the Ottoman clock collection. I think I have decided that if ever I find myself with enough money to start seriously collecting something, I will collect clocks. They're just so... brilliant and beautiful and intricate and scientific but still... I don't know. I really like clocks.
After the museum it was coming time for things to start closing, so I walked up to the Spice Bazaar, which was a lot like the Grand Bazaar except not as bad and with things I would actually consider buying. I didn't buy anything, but I have promised Lisa I will bring her some Turkish apple tea, so I might go back. Or just buy it elsewhere. Because it's everywhere, literally. The hostel staff keep offering me a glass anytime they see me sitting around reading or writing or resting or... anything. The major triumph of the Spice Bazaar, however, was finding the cheap food area on the way. Yay cheap food! It was dinner time on the way home, so I stopped a cig kofte stall and asked for their smallest portion, which was 6.50TL (a little more than $3). They proceeded to give me enough food for two or three meals. Good problem to have, right? Except my hostel doesn't have a kitchen, and therefore doesn't have a fridge for me to store leftovers in. There was a concert in the park, so I sat to listen and valiantly try to finish my food. Wasting seems like such a sad thing at this point! I ate about two-thirds and had to give up. But I packaged it up and took it back to the hostel and have since been able to finish it. I love cig kofte, probably because, as a vegetarian, it's the only kofte I can eat. It's this mushy mixture of like... bulghur wheat and tomato probably and a bunch of amazing spices. They serve it to you in oblong hunks and you wrap it in a pita with lettuce and it's crunchy and spicy and awesome.
So that brings me to now, sitting in the hostel surrounded by a bunch of people having a wonderful time, full and relaxed and having a nice cup of tea. Tomorrow I will do that Bosphorus cruise, and that will also be beautiful. The plan for Friday is laundry, Dolmabahce Palace and the bohemian parts of town, which I'm hoping will be more like the outskirts, and then Saturday it's off to London! I have to admit, I'm looking forward to seeing Lisa a ridiculous amount, as well as my friends in Scotland. I got in touch with Laura today, and she has volunteered to find me room she doesn't have at her place, so that's a few more nights of free accommodation! I have the best friends. So, until next time!
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