Dear Friends and Family,
Another day of sightseeing in Istanbul, Monday was a mix of sights located in a curved arc through the core and back street of old town. Guidebooks recommend doing Topkapi Palace with Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque. And, they lump in the Mosque of Suleyman with the Spice Market and the Grand Bazaar. Frankly, that’s two really compressed days of getting up early and going non-stop all day. Instead, we broke it up into three days of more leisurely activity.
What We Did
We started off the day with a quick ride on the funicular and the tram to Topkapi Palace. Built by Sultan Mehmet II between 1459 and 1465, the palace served as the administrative center of the Empire as well as his personal residence. Topkapi Palace is broken up into two tours. For 10 YTL, you get access to the four courtyards which contain several exhibits (e.g. treasury, kitchens, the sultan’s clothes); and for 10 YTL more, you get access to the harem.
Contrary to popular belief, the harem is not a crazy place of wild debauchery. It is the portion of the palace dedicated to personal use. The largest (and most lavish) rooms belonged to the sultan and his mother. There’re rooms for the princes including a school for them. There’s the Imperial Hall, which is essentially a great room for the entire family to hang out in together. And, there are multiple courtyards for the family to enjoy. After the harem tour, we did a quick spin through the courtyards and the treasury. The jewels in the treasury are fantastic, but I was eager to get to the Mosque and the Spice Market.
We got a little lost en route to the Mosque and ended up on some very local roads. There were several houses torn down and several that looked abandoned. But, there were also kids playing on the streets and women chatting in courtyards nearby. The Mosque was built between 1550 and 1557 by Suleyman. The graveyard includes several tombs including the tomb of Suleyman and the tomb of Roxelana, his wife. Personally, I liked this mosque more than the Blue Mosque. There’s a simplicity to its design and an elegance to its palette that calms you when you enter.
The funniest thing happened while we were in the mosque. I picked a quiet spot in the mosque to sit down and take it all in. There were multiple people doing the same thing in various areas of the mosque. Well, a Muslim woman sits right in front of me and begins her daily prayers. I was like, uh, okay. Then, another enters and sits right to my left and begins her daily prayers. Then, another to her left. Then, another right behind me. Then, another. Then, another. And before you know it, I’m sitting in the middle of a gaggle of women. I wasn’t sure if I should stay or if I should move. Finally, I decided to get up and find Mr. mouse. He got a good laugh out of the whole thing. He saw it all play out and got a few pictures.
Last, but not least, the Spice Market, our warm up for the Grand Bazaar. We walked the el-shaped market to get a lay of the land. Then, we went back for a second pass through. We bought a combination of stuff from the market: pistachios, Turkish delight, candy, apple tea, mint tea, pepper flakes, and saffron. They vacuum pack everything which is a nice touch.
We took a quick dip in the pool followed by some lounging in the Turkish Baths before heading out for dinner. Mr. mouse read about a little neighborhood called Ortaköy. We walked a couple of blocks to get a feel for the place before choosing one of the nicer restaurants for dinner. We got a table on the terrace and had a leisurely dinner. Afterwards, we did some more people watching before splitting an ice cream cone for dessert. We did the goofiest (and perhaps cruelest) thing on our way home. Mr. mouse wanted to ride in a Renault cab so we waved by 13 Fiats and Hyundais before flagging down a Renault for the ride home. The drivers of the other cabs looked so confused, clearly we were waiting for a cab, but we shook our heads and kept waiting. It wasn’t a long wait, maybe a light or two, so I was okay letting Mr. mouse follow his whim.
What We Ate
For breakfast, we noshed on the last of our pretzels and cured meats supplemented by the fresh fruit the hotel has been providing. We ate an early lunch by the hotel because lunch in the tourist areas tends to be pricier. We both got a dürüm for lunch. Mine was adana (minced lamb shaped onto a skewer) and Mr. mouse’s was chicken. A dürüm is a sandwich made with a large pita bread (almost the size of a large flour tortilla) with the meat and some vegetables in the center. They roll the whole thing together (like a burrito except the form factor is completely different – it’s long and thin – 1” by 9”, not short and fat) and serve wrapped in a sheet of paper to facilitate eating. Like everything else we’ve had in Turkey, it was delicious. And, at 3 YTL ($2.60) it’s a steal.
For dinner, we went to a seafood restaurant. It was located on the water front with a view of the mosque and the bridge and all of the people enjoying the evening. And, the music from a nearby club provided background ambience for our evening meal. We split a tomato salad for an appetizer. It was diced tomatoes with cucumbers, parsley and hot peppers in a light olive oil dressing. Mr. mouse ordered the sea bass and I got the horse mackerel for main dishes. The fish is lightly coated and then sautéed. Horse mackerel are about three inches long and remind me of the smelt I had in Geneva. Dinner was relaxing and refreshing.
What I Learned
This will give you a good laugh. While we were at Topkapi Palace, walking through the treasury, there was a display. It was a box about 8” long by 6” deep by 6” tall. It was carved from a single piece of rock crystal and studded with jewels. Inside the box were loose emeralds of all shapes and sizes. Essentially like a button box, the jeweler kept it on hand for when the sultan commissioned new pieces. All I could think was, “well, that gives a totally new meaning to the term, box of rocks.”
Also, while we at Topkapi Palace, we were walking through a courtyard when a tour group came up along beside us. And, the guide was explaining (we were in front of the Circumcision Pavilion), “It’s like a Bar Mitzvah…” Well, it ain’t like any Bar Mitzvah I’ve been to.
Cheers!
mouse
Another day of sightseeing in Istanbul, Monday was a mix of sights located in a curved arc through the core and back street of old town. Guidebooks recommend doing Topkapi Palace with Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque. And, they lump in the Mosque of Suleyman with the Spice Market and the Grand Bazaar. Frankly, that’s two really compressed days of getting up early and going non-stop all day. Instead, we broke it up into three days of more leisurely activity.
What We Did
We started off the day with a quick ride on the funicular and the tram to Topkapi Palace. Built by Sultan Mehmet II between 1459 and 1465, the palace served as the administrative center of the Empire as well as his personal residence. Topkapi Palace is broken up into two tours. For 10 YTL, you get access to the four courtyards which contain several exhibits (e.g. treasury, kitchens, the sultan’s clothes); and for 10 YTL more, you get access to the harem.
Contrary to popular belief, the harem is not a crazy place of wild debauchery. It is the portion of the palace dedicated to personal use. The largest (and most lavish) rooms belonged to the sultan and his mother. There’re rooms for the princes including a school for them. There’s the Imperial Hall, which is essentially a great room for the entire family to hang out in together. And, there are multiple courtyards for the family to enjoy. After the harem tour, we did a quick spin through the courtyards and the treasury. The jewels in the treasury are fantastic, but I was eager to get to the Mosque and the Spice Market.
We got a little lost en route to the Mosque and ended up on some very local roads. There were several houses torn down and several that looked abandoned. But, there were also kids playing on the streets and women chatting in courtyards nearby. The Mosque was built between 1550 and 1557 by Suleyman. The graveyard includes several tombs including the tomb of Suleyman and the tomb of Roxelana, his wife. Personally, I liked this mosque more than the Blue Mosque. There’s a simplicity to its design and an elegance to its palette that calms you when you enter.
The funniest thing happened while we were in the mosque. I picked a quiet spot in the mosque to sit down and take it all in. There were multiple people doing the same thing in various areas of the mosque. Well, a Muslim woman sits right in front of me and begins her daily prayers. I was like, uh, okay. Then, another enters and sits right to my left and begins her daily prayers. Then, another to her left. Then, another right behind me. Then, another. Then, another. And before you know it, I’m sitting in the middle of a gaggle of women. I wasn’t sure if I should stay or if I should move. Finally, I decided to get up and find Mr. mouse. He got a good laugh out of the whole thing. He saw it all play out and got a few pictures.
Last, but not least, the Spice Market, our warm up for the Grand Bazaar. We walked the el-shaped market to get a lay of the land. Then, we went back for a second pass through. We bought a combination of stuff from the market: pistachios, Turkish delight, candy, apple tea, mint tea, pepper flakes, and saffron. They vacuum pack everything which is a nice touch.
We took a quick dip in the pool followed by some lounging in the Turkish Baths before heading out for dinner. Mr. mouse read about a little neighborhood called Ortaköy. We walked a couple of blocks to get a feel for the place before choosing one of the nicer restaurants for dinner. We got a table on the terrace and had a leisurely dinner. Afterwards, we did some more people watching before splitting an ice cream cone for dessert. We did the goofiest (and perhaps cruelest) thing on our way home. Mr. mouse wanted to ride in a Renault cab so we waved by 13 Fiats and Hyundais before flagging down a Renault for the ride home. The drivers of the other cabs looked so confused, clearly we were waiting for a cab, but we shook our heads and kept waiting. It wasn’t a long wait, maybe a light or two, so I was okay letting Mr. mouse follow his whim.
What We Ate
For breakfast, we noshed on the last of our pretzels and cured meats supplemented by the fresh fruit the hotel has been providing. We ate an early lunch by the hotel because lunch in the tourist areas tends to be pricier. We both got a dürüm for lunch. Mine was adana (minced lamb shaped onto a skewer) and Mr. mouse’s was chicken. A dürüm is a sandwich made with a large pita bread (almost the size of a large flour tortilla) with the meat and some vegetables in the center. They roll the whole thing together (like a burrito except the form factor is completely different – it’s long and thin – 1” by 9”, not short and fat) and serve wrapped in a sheet of paper to facilitate eating. Like everything else we’ve had in Turkey, it was delicious. And, at 3 YTL ($2.60) it’s a steal.
For dinner, we went to a seafood restaurant. It was located on the water front with a view of the mosque and the bridge and all of the people enjoying the evening. And, the music from a nearby club provided background ambience for our evening meal. We split a tomato salad for an appetizer. It was diced tomatoes with cucumbers, parsley and hot peppers in a light olive oil dressing. Mr. mouse ordered the sea bass and I got the horse mackerel for main dishes. The fish is lightly coated and then sautéed. Horse mackerel are about three inches long and remind me of the smelt I had in Geneva. Dinner was relaxing and refreshing.
What I Learned
This will give you a good laugh. While we were at Topkapi Palace, walking through the treasury, there was a display. It was a box about 8” long by 6” deep by 6” tall. It was carved from a single piece of rock crystal and studded with jewels. Inside the box were loose emeralds of all shapes and sizes. Essentially like a button box, the jeweler kept it on hand for when the sultan commissioned new pieces. All I could think was, “well, that gives a totally new meaning to the term, box of rocks.”
Also, while we at Topkapi Palace, we were walking through a courtyard when a tour group came up along beside us. And, the guide was explaining (we were in front of the Circumcision Pavilion), “It’s like a Bar Mitzvah…” Well, it ain’t like any Bar Mitzvah I’ve been to.
Cheers!
mouse
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