The Cav's Travels: June 2011

He's home! Colin got home two days before Erin left - so we had a nice few days with the three of us. We were both sad to see Erin go, as was the Kleine Maus who got used to Erin holding her all the time. After Erin left, we had to go into planning mode for our next trip - Istanbul!

When we found out we were moving to Europe, Colin and I made a quick list of the places we really want to see. Istanbul was near the top, so we were really excited about this trip. The city definitely did not disappoint! There was so much to see and with the varying Muslim and Christian influences, it was so different from any other location we've been.

We stayed in the Sultanahmet, the old town, which is within 5 minutes walking distance to the major sites: the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Grand Bazaar, Spice Market and Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent. Since I'm not the type of person who has to see everything in a city, we were able to tour these sites and others at a leisurely pace.

Oh wait - just kidding... I definitely have to see everything so I can feel like we've conquered a city before we leave! I consider thorough sight-seeing my responsibility right now given our opportunity to travel. So yes, we were busy touring for 4 days. But we did have enough time to also just enjoy being back together, have drinks on the roof of our hotel while looking out on the Bosphorus Straight, and take a day cruise on the Bosphorus almost to the Black Sea.

First stop - the Blue Mosque.

Built in just 7 years from 1609-1616, the Blue Mosque represents the pinnacle of Ottoman architecture... and the empire's decline. After the treasury was wiped out from the construction, the empire eventually collapsed.

Inner Courtyard of the Blue Mosque

Pictures really do not do justice to the detailed paintings inside. Because the Islamic tradition forbids the portrayal of living beings in places of worship (as they could be a distraction from the worship of Allah as the one God), mosques are often decorated with this beautiful non-figurative art.

I was a little surprised about the feeling I had when we entered the Blue Mosque. I'd thought that in order to enter a mosque, women had to cover their knees, shoulders and heads. So, our trip to Istanbul gave me the perfect excuse to buy some maxi dresses so I'd be all covered up (so glad they are still in style). I also brought along a scarf to cover my head. But in the Blue Mosque, all people did was just take off their shoes. I think the reason for this is simply that the Mosque is so touristy that people just feel comfortable wearing whatever.

One lady I saw did not get the memo on the maxi dresses, and when she walked toward the Blue Mosque wearing Daisy Dukes and a tank top, she definitely got yelled at by a Turk. But thats not to say we saw that sort of scene with any frequency. When we visited the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent, it felt like a more authentic experience. Muslim women were praying in the corner, and everyone was very covered up.


Colin outside the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent. I wasn't trying to do this on purpose, but we also caught a pic of a Muslim woman sitting outside the Mosque (to the left of Colin's elbow).

Looking up at the dome in the Mosque of Suleyman

Each Mosque we visited had this very low circular lighting

Not looking so hot in my Mosque get-up, but enjoying the experience.

One of our favorite old town stops was the Hagia Sophia. Built around 532 A.D by Emporer Justinian I, the Hagia Sophia was the largest domed building in Europe until Brunelleschi built Florence's Duomo almost 1000 years later. The Hagia Sophia served as the Great Church of Constantinople for nearly a millennium, until the Ottomans captured Constantinople in 1453 and converted it into a mosque. They plastered over the figurative mosaics and frescoes, but some of these have since been restored and are really amazing to see.

On our way to the Hagia Sophia

The Hagia Sophia is ENORMOUS. According to Rick, you can fit Paris' Notre Dame Catheral inside, or the Statue of Liberty minus her torch!

Colin is standing in front of the Mihrab, which is placed slightly off center in the bottom middle part of the dome to indicate the direction to face during prayers (toward the holy city of Mecca, which is south of Jerusalem).


I took my turn at the Miracle Column of St. Gregory. For centuries, people believe this column "wept" holy water and could cure afflictions such as infertility. You move your thumb around 360 degrees, and sure enough it gets damp. I don't seem to have any afflictions yet, but I figured it couldn't hurt to get some holy water.

This is the Deesis Mosaic, which dates from the 13th or 14th Century, and depicts the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist asking Jesus for the salvation of souls.

My next very favorite thing was the Harem at the Topkapi Palace. The Harem wasn't my favorite because of the alarming concept of a Harem (although I did find it very interesting to walk through the living area of the sultan's wives, mother, favorites and concubines), but because I LOVE ornate tile work. The Topkapi Palace was built in the 1470s and has prime real estate overlooking the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and the Golden Horn.

View from the Topkapi Palace of the Bosphorus Bridge

Outside courtyard of the Haarem... not as impressive as the inside!

After the Topkapi Palace and the Mosques, we went to the Chora Church to view the beautiful mosaics. The church dates back to 1100, but in the early 16th century it was converted by the Ottomans into a mosque. As in the Hagia Sophia, the frescoes and mosaics were whitewashed over. The Chora Church mosaics remained hidden until the late 1940s, when they were re-discovered and restored.

With Mary and Jesus in the center, this mosaic in one of the church's domes documents Mary's ancestors - with the upper figures being the geneological ancestors of Mary and Jesus, starting with King David, and the lower figures being ancestors outside the official lineage.

Biblical stories were documented all over the ceilings.

Another Deesis Mosaic, but this time just with Mary and Christ, and Mary is asking Christ to forgive the sins of the king below her.

Biblical Lineage of Jesus - the cycle starts with Adam, continues with Noah, etc.

Next, we hit up the shopping. We'd already been approached by some very suave rug sellers ("Hey - I used to live in the US - I love your country! Do you need help finding any of the sites here?" was a popular pick up line), so we felt somewhat prepared for the heckling in the Grand Bazaar.

The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is the first mall ever built. So I thought I'd feel pretty at home walking around the shops. But 4000 shops?!? Honestly, it was SO much! I was too overwhelmed to even take photos, so I had to make up for it by taking photos of the Spice Market, which sold similar items in addition to the spices. The Grand Bazaar is just a maze of beautiful colors - plates, lamps, rugs, tiles, jewelry, etc. etc. Its not like me to wander without shopping, but after deciding I wanted a bowl, everything just started looking the same and we didn't buy a thing! Well... at least not at that point. :)

Colin in the Spice Market

We also enjoyed the nightlife in Istanbul. We did not, however, enjoy paying upwards of $30.00 for a single vodka tonic! That was a bit of a shocker, but I guess alcohol is one place they can really mark up the price for tourists like us. We went out in the beautiful Ortakoy neighborhood near the Bosphorus Bridge one night, and the next night we chose one of the trillions of bars in the streets near the main shopping drag in the new district, Istiklal Street. After deciding that alcohol was just way too crazy expensive at the bars, we made much better use of our "rooftop bar" at our little hotel. We also enjoyed just walking around the mosque area at night. Colin's favorite stop was for baklava, of which he ate A LOT.

Night out in the Ortakoy District

Our rooftop bar

Hagia Sophia - view from an Indian restaurant we ate at on our last night

Baklava

The baklava mongler

In our walking around, we also came across respective "Colin" and "Cara" stores. Colin did his favorite thing, which is to take a photo of just my head and something behind it. I was glad when we found the Colin store, and could get him back with a similar photo!

On our last day, we enjoyed Istanbul from a distance. We climbed the Galata Tower for a spectacular view of Istanbul (which just goes ON and ON and ON) and then took the day cruise up the Bosphorus. It was a nice and relaxing way to end an awesome trip.