Since I'm now 12 weeks in (one quarter of the way through!) to my RTW trip (and since it was requested), I figured it was time for more stats. If you missed part one, you can find it here.
* Ridden on a motorcycle in two countries (Athens and India)
* 1 pickpocket scare (just a scare - the guy behind me was very close behind me, shuffling with his money, and I thought he was going after mine - I checked, though, and all was good)
* 20 nights paid accommodations
* 9 countries and 6 different currencies
* I've learned how to say "go away" in one language (jao, it's Hindi and it rhymes with how)
* 2 random meetings of people I'd met in other places (1st: I ran into a guy I met at the airport in Dubai in Mumbai - a city of 20 million, how is that even possible?! 2nd: I ran into Miguel from Khaj in Agra.)
* 3 offers by strangers for me to stay with them (Do you remember all of them? The last two are recent, so you probably do.)
* 2580 pages read (4 novels, plus 45 pages or so into the 5th)
* 1 bus accident
* Met people from 29 different countries (Should I list them all?)
* 11 flights taken, who even knows how many countless trains, buses, taxis, metro, and rickshaw rides
* 8 CS hosts
* 1080 pictures taken, but probably more by the time this posts
* Longest train ride: 29 hours
* Longest bus ride: 12 hours
* 0 major itinerary changes in India, although there were a couple of places I stayed a day longer because I couldn't get the train or bus that I wanted
* Visited 8 cities in 4 different countries that weren't on my original itinerary
Showing posts with label istanbul. Show all posts
Showing posts with label istanbul. Show all posts
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
The Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia and a Turkish Bath. Oh my!
You read that like "lions and tigers and bears," right? Because you were supposed to.
I was apparently all about being a tourist and doing all tourist stuff yesterday. The Blue Mosque was amazing. For me it was about 10 times better than La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. My pictures will totally not do it justice at all, but:
That section in the front (on the floor) is where the men pray. Visitors aren't allowed to cross a certain point into the mosque. When you arrive at the visitors entrance, you take your shoes off and put them in a plastic bag. Most people carried these with them, rather than leave them unattended. Women are supposed to have their heads covered, but I was quite surprised that a full 50% of them (I'm guessing) didn't. Now, I understand that the Blue Mosque is essentially a tourist's mosque, but it's still in use by practicing Muslims. I think it's disrespectful to not follow the culture. But they were still let in, so, whatever.
Then I headed to Hagia Sofia, right across the street. The Hagia Sofia is a cathedral that was constructed sometime around 532 A.D. and converted into a mosque when the Ottoman Turks conquered Istanbul (then Constantinople) in 1453. Again, my picture doesn't do it justice, but this is my favorite shot because it gives an idea of the size. And I like all of the columns and arches.
Next up was the Turkish bath. I had tried to go to one the other day, but wouldn't you know it? I got lost. Not too lost, but by the time I got there it was less than an hour before they closed and they didn't take credit cards, so I just gave up. The bath I chose was the Çemberlitaş Hamam. It was more expensive than the other one (55 lira vs. 25 lira), but it's well known and was very easy to find so it was worth it. Also, I couldn't take pictures (for obvious reasons), so be sure to click on that link if you want to see what it looks like.
The bath was quite the experience. Women and men have their own sections. When you arrive you're shown to a locker to change and lock up your stuff. You walk (in a towel and flip flops) down to the massage room and are told to lay anywhere you can find a spot on the belly stone. (It's a hot slab of marble in the center of the room.) For someone who's never done this before, it's a bit of a shocking scene. Women everywhere are walking around naked from the waist up, wearing only underwear and flops. Wild. So you lay on the stone for awhile and it's kind of like being in a sauna. When it's your turn for a massage, you move to the edge of the stone. Cool water is poured over you and then you are soaped up and scrubbed. This lasts for about 15 minutes and then you're rinsed off and your hair is shampooed. From here, you have your choice of two pools, one at 38 C and the other 36 C. You can go back and forth from the belly stone to the pools as much as you want. When you're finished, you get a fresh towel (because you've been walking around without one all this time) and then head to your locker to change. It was strange, but you got used to the nakedness after awhile, and it really was very relaxing.
After my day of being a tourist, I met up with CSers for the Istanbul weekly meeting and rabble-rousing. I wanted it to be a late night because tonight can't be; I have to leave the house tomorrow morning at 8:30am to make my flight since I'm taking public transportation. I was successful in my mission! I stayed out until 4am or so and slept in til 11:30am. Today was SUNNY! For the first time since I got here. I went to the Spice Bazaar as that was the last thing I really wanted to see before I left.
Since it was so nice and sunny out, I had lunch in a square outside a mosque and wrote postcards while I watched stray cats beg for scraps. It was a relaxing day and a good way to say goodbye to Istanbul. And now, I'm heading out to meet up with a CSer for dinner. My next post will be from the African continent!
I was apparently all about being a tourist and doing all tourist stuff yesterday. The Blue Mosque was amazing. For me it was about 10 times better than La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. My pictures will totally not do it justice at all, but:
That section in the front (on the floor) is where the men pray. Visitors aren't allowed to cross a certain point into the mosque. When you arrive at the visitors entrance, you take your shoes off and put them in a plastic bag. Most people carried these with them, rather than leave them unattended. Women are supposed to have their heads covered, but I was quite surprised that a full 50% of them (I'm guessing) didn't. Now, I understand that the Blue Mosque is essentially a tourist's mosque, but it's still in use by practicing Muslims. I think it's disrespectful to not follow the culture. But they were still let in, so, whatever. Then I headed to Hagia Sofia, right across the street. The Hagia Sofia is a cathedral that was constructed sometime around 532 A.D. and converted into a mosque when the Ottoman Turks conquered Istanbul (then Constantinople) in 1453. Again, my picture doesn't do it justice, but this is my favorite shot because it gives an idea of the size. And I like all of the columns and arches.
Next up was the Turkish bath. I had tried to go to one the other day, but wouldn't you know it? I got lost. Not too lost, but by the time I got there it was less than an hour before they closed and they didn't take credit cards, so I just gave up. The bath I chose was the Çemberlitaş Hamam. It was more expensive than the other one (55 lira vs. 25 lira), but it's well known and was very easy to find so it was worth it. Also, I couldn't take pictures (for obvious reasons), so be sure to click on that link if you want to see what it looks like. The bath was quite the experience. Women and men have their own sections. When you arrive you're shown to a locker to change and lock up your stuff. You walk (in a towel and flip flops) down to the massage room and are told to lay anywhere you can find a spot on the belly stone. (It's a hot slab of marble in the center of the room.) For someone who's never done this before, it's a bit of a shocking scene. Women everywhere are walking around naked from the waist up, wearing only underwear and flops. Wild. So you lay on the stone for awhile and it's kind of like being in a sauna. When it's your turn for a massage, you move to the edge of the stone. Cool water is poured over you and then you are soaped up and scrubbed. This lasts for about 15 minutes and then you're rinsed off and your hair is shampooed. From here, you have your choice of two pools, one at 38 C and the other 36 C. You can go back and forth from the belly stone to the pools as much as you want. When you're finished, you get a fresh towel (because you've been walking around without one all this time) and then head to your locker to change. It was strange, but you got used to the nakedness after awhile, and it really was very relaxing.
After my day of being a tourist, I met up with CSers for the Istanbul weekly meeting and rabble-rousing. I wanted it to be a late night because tonight can't be; I have to leave the house tomorrow morning at 8:30am to make my flight since I'm taking public transportation. I was successful in my mission! I stayed out until 4am or so and slept in til 11:30am. Today was SUNNY! For the first time since I got here. I went to the Spice Bazaar as that was the last thing I really wanted to see before I left.
Since it was so nice and sunny out, I had lunch in a square outside a mosque and wrote postcards while I watched stray cats beg for scraps. It was a relaxing day and a good way to say goodbye to Istanbul. And now, I'm heading out to meet up with a CSer for dinner. My next post will be from the African continent!
Monday, November 2, 2009
More on Istanbul
I feel like I haven't said a whole lot about Istanbul yet. From the moment I arrived, it immediately felt more exotic here as compared to the other cities I've been to so far. The sights and smells were not exactly overwhelming, but it was a lot to take in.
Let's start with the sights. I mentioned to ToadMama that I must be shopping deprived because everywhere I looked I saw something I wanted to buy. Shops have colorful scarves, beads, and ceramics. The clothing, bags, and shoes in the shops are different from anything I've seen so far. I kept seeing things and imagining who I'd buy it for, if I were headed home from here instead of on to my next destination. I haven't bought anything for myself yet, no souvenirs or anything, so I may just treat myself and get something pretty! On the other hand, a lot of what I saw had 'Made in Thailand' tags, so I may just wait to get it there where it will probably be cheaper.
Next up, the smells. Yummy smells abound in Istanbul. It's no wonder it seems that Turkish people are always eating something - it just smells too good to ignore. You can buy things like kebab and other on-the-go items like roasted ears of corn and roasted chestnuts. But people are all about cooking at home, too, as evidenced by the markets. You can find all kinds of colorful produce, nuts, olives, and meat. One section of a market that I was in had loads of the most amazing looking silvery fish that I really wish I'd gotten a picture of. People pop into the markets or various produce stands to get a few things they want for dinner that night and then head home to cook. Speaking of home cooked meals, Mehmet has cooked a few traditional Turkish dishes for me that were delicious. One was a spinach dish that had been chopped and seasoned (but I couldn't tell you what all was in it). Another was a celery root dish that has onions, garlic, lemon, celery root (when cooked, kind of has the consistency of a cooked potato), and celery stalk. Generally both of these dishes are cooked a day ahead of time and served cold the next day. Yet another was chicken that had been chopped up in the food processor with spices and sauted. Mehmet also made a dessert that I got to help with - baked quince with clotted cream. SO good (and I'm not just saying that because I peeled the quince!). It was also suggested that I try salep, a traditional Turkish drink. The link gives the history of the drink, but what I can tell you is that it's milk based, served hot, and sprinkled with cinnamon. It's quite good, even if the consistency of it is a little offputting at first.
What else? That should fill in some of the blanks of Istanbul, but what do you want to know?
Let's start with the sights. I mentioned to ToadMama that I must be shopping deprived because everywhere I looked I saw something I wanted to buy. Shops have colorful scarves, beads, and ceramics. The clothing, bags, and shoes in the shops are different from anything I've seen so far. I kept seeing things and imagining who I'd buy it for, if I were headed home from here instead of on to my next destination. I haven't bought anything for myself yet, no souvenirs or anything, so I may just treat myself and get something pretty! On the other hand, a lot of what I saw had 'Made in Thailand' tags, so I may just wait to get it there where it will probably be cheaper.
Next up, the smells. Yummy smells abound in Istanbul. It's no wonder it seems that Turkish people are always eating something - it just smells too good to ignore. You can buy things like kebab and other on-the-go items like roasted ears of corn and roasted chestnuts. But people are all about cooking at home, too, as evidenced by the markets. You can find all kinds of colorful produce, nuts, olives, and meat. One section of a market that I was in had loads of the most amazing looking silvery fish that I really wish I'd gotten a picture of. People pop into the markets or various produce stands to get a few things they want for dinner that night and then head home to cook. Speaking of home cooked meals, Mehmet has cooked a few traditional Turkish dishes for me that were delicious. One was a spinach dish that had been chopped and seasoned (but I couldn't tell you what all was in it). Another was a celery root dish that has onions, garlic, lemon, celery root (when cooked, kind of has the consistency of a cooked potato), and celery stalk. Generally both of these dishes are cooked a day ahead of time and served cold the next day. Yet another was chicken that had been chopped up in the food processor with spices and sauted. Mehmet also made a dessert that I got to help with - baked quince with clotted cream. SO good (and I'm not just saying that because I peeled the quince!). It was also suggested that I try salep, a traditional Turkish drink. The link gives the history of the drink, but what I can tell you is that it's milk based, served hot, and sprinkled with cinnamon. It's quite good, even if the consistency of it is a little offputting at first.
What else? That should fill in some of the blanks of Istanbul, but what do you want to know?
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Catchıng up: Istanbul
So, where was I? Today ıs Sunday and I arrıved on Thursday, so I have a bıt of catchıng up to do. As I mentıoned before, I met up wıth CSers on Thursday nıght (ıncludıng Thanos, my host from Athens). On Frıday, Thanos and I dıd some sıght-seeıng on both the Asıan sıde and the European sıde. (By the way, dıd you know that Istanbul ıs the only cıty that sıts on two contınents? I actually saw a sıgn that saıd 'Welcome to Asıa' and that was really cool.) Frıday nıght I met up wıth my Istanbul host, Mehmet, and we went to a fellow CSer's house party. It was another late nıght because after we left the party at about 3am, we went to a few clubs ın Istanbul. Sleep dıdn't come untıl about 7am. :-)
Saturday proved to be very raıny, wındy, and chılly. Not a perfect day to do any sıght-seeıng. I compromısed by allowıng Mehmet to drıve me around to varıous non-tourısty parts of the cıty. :-) Mehmet ıs great because I'm learnıng a lot from hım. I get Turkısh hıstory lessons and he's tellıng me about all of the ıntrıcacıes of the language, so ıt's fun. We went to another CS party on Saturday nıght, thıs one a combınatıon bırthday/Halloween party.
Today started out not partıcularly raıny, but ıt ended up raınıng today, too. I got horrıbly lost whıch ısn't exactly fun ın the raın. I met up wıth two dıfferent groups of CS frıends, but agaın, dıdn't do a whole lot of sıght-seeıng. I aım to change that tomorrow, whether ıt's raınıng or not. I stıll have to see Hagıa Sofıa, the Blue Mosque, the Spıce Bazaar, and the Grand Bazaar before I leave.
All pıctures have been uploaded for your vıewıng pleasure.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Quick update
I will try to post more later, but just wanted to let everyone know that I made it safely to Istanbul. For now, I'm waiting for my room at the hostel to be cleaned so that I can take a much needed shower. Then I will be off on a search for food because I haven't eaten since last night. That shouldn't be a problem, though, because the food at all the stands I walked by on my way here smelled delicious!
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