Later Today

Alright...I forgot to add some stuff to the last post...so I'm going to add it in now. So, in the Hagia Sophia and basically everywhere you go there are stray cats. And they are so cute! 

That one was just chilling in the the Hagia Sophia. 

And that one was just on the sidewalk in the middle of the city. There are also stray dogs and one of the dogs had a stand off with one of the cats...

The cat was quicker. But the poor doggy just wanted to play. Also, I forgot to mention that the "not a tour guide but will give you a tour" carpet guy asked how old I was. When I told him 18, he looked at me and said "you look no older than 15!" All I'm gonna say is, I was not impressed. I do not look 15. But I guess he thought that if he told me I look younger than it would flatter me. Unacceptable. Haha. And we found the pomegranate guy again! This time, I took a picture! 

Sooo good. Anyways, so we headed out from our hotel and went to Palatium cafe to have some more Turkish coffee and baklava. The cafe kept playing Spanish music. 

Then we planned on walking to the Grand Bazaar to go shopping. Well, by the time we got there it was closing. So we decided to head back to the hotel. On our way back we stopped at 3 shops to get Lokum (Turkish Delight). Then dad decided to use the local bathroom and this is what it looked like. 

He said that it looks just like the ones in Africa. Or at least how they used to look. So we spent some time looking around, talking to different vendors. Using that "we'll come back tomorrow" line. Then we entered some bazaar that's name started with an A but I can't remember. And that's where we struck gold. We walked around and then entered a spice shop. We were trying to find saffron, but all the other spice shops were selling Turkish saffron which had no taste or smell and didn't even look like saffron. We go into this shop and the guy working there approaches us. He asks us where we are from and we say Texas. Then he says that he used to live in the states for 6 years. Dad asks him where he is originally from and he says Egypt and then the real conversation starts. He and dad start talking about all the places and where they've been. Then he asks us what we are looking for and we say saffron. He tells us the Turkish saffron is shit (his words) and that he sells Iranian saffron. He gives some to dad to test out and it's amazing. Probably the best quality we would be able to find. It's got the right smell and taste and the color was so vibrant. 

The top is the Iranian and the orange is the "shit". Before we purchase the saffron he asks us if we are looking for anything else. We were looking for some heads scarves and so he brings us to his friend across the street who sells linens. This guy also sells fake watches and so dad spends forever looking at the watches. It was a really cool store. After we were done there, we went back to the spice shop to finish our purchase. We ask about the Turkish delight they are selling and because this Egyptian and dad have been getting along so well he gives us 10 lira off the price per kilo and advises which to get and which not to get. Then he and dad start talking politics and about the Kuwaitis and the British. They offer us tea while the pack everything and he and dad just keep on talking. At one point, when describing the Kuwaitis the Egyptian says "there is a phrase in Turkish that describes them perfectly. They look at the sun with their ass!" Haha. When all the purchasing was done, the guys says his name is...Hamid. Just like my dad! And dad says "an Egyptian selling Iranian saffron in Turkey. Who would have thought." 

After all that we decided to go get some dinner. We went to the cafe right beside the hotel called Defne. I ordered apricot juice (they didn't have my pomegranate) with this dish called güvec. It was a lamb stew. And we had pita bread with humus. I normally don't like humus but this was so good. Ahhhh, the food here is just perfect. And cheap! 

For some reason they always serve fries. And the fries are not very good. But the waiters every where are wonderful. RICO! If you're reading this, I want you to know...I FOUND YOUR SUPER SIZED ME! This guy reminded me so much of you, except he was shorter and a bit fatter. But he is the Rico of Sultanahmet! Except he doesn't run the city, he is just a waiter. But still, he was your twin. 

While sitting on the street I got to hear Turkish rap. It's pretty hardcore. And they played Shania Twain. So much English! 

All the people here are so nice and wonderful. They are just happy. Which makes me happy! I could totally live here. There is so much culture and just a good vibe from everyone. Oh my goodness, the men all look so metro. It's that European fashion. And even the women with burkas look beautiful. People here are just pretty. 

Anashaya - the guy who sold me my head scarves looked like a younger version of babba. It was so weird! 

That's a picture of some of the Turkish Delight we bought from. Ha, I also took a picture of the Burger King here. 

And a view of the sea from the street. 

While we were having dinner a Turkish version of Mariachi came by. I took a video and I don't know if it will load. Ugh. It won't post the video. But it was pretty cool! And here are some pictures of the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque at night. 

So gorgeous. Anyways, it's about 4:50 am. Time for bed! I used the bidet...it was actually nice. Hopefully I didn't forget anything this time. But my memory sucks, so who knows! 

Istanbul Part 2

Hey hey! Okay so I'll probably do another post later today. But we have already done so much today I thought it would be good to post now since my memory sucks. So yesterday I forgot to add that while at Taksim Square, we saw some woman and her child being arrested. I think it was for stealing. Either way, Turkey is not a place to be stealing. Or breaking any laws for that matter. Also, dad wanted me to clarify that you should never get a shuttle services unless you have a father that is willing to pay for it. 😝 And I made a mistake yesterday. The picture of the "Hagia Sophia" was actually the Blue Mosque. Hehe. Whoops. 

*Random Disclaimer* I am NOT a photographer, nor do I even claim to have an ounce of understanding when it comes to photography. I also hate taking photos and so I am going to apologize in advance if I forget to take pictures or if I am not taking enough. 

Today we started out having breakfast on the roof of the hotel. 

They had a whole buffet of fresh fruits, dried fruit, olives (which are my fav. I got 2 of each kind), cheeses and other jelly pudding stuff. I had the pomegranate juice, which is my new favorite juice. And coffee. We had an awesome view of the sea and the rest of Sultanahmet (which is the area we are in in Istanbul). I decided to represent Disney today and wore my hipster Ariel shirt 😏. One thing I learned about hotels here is that you always leave your key at reception. It's pretty cool. That way you don't have to worry about losing it. After breakfast we decided to head straight to the Hagia Sophia. And thank god we did because when we left this was the line.

Which wasn't even near the entrance! The ticket to get in for both dad and I was 50 lira. Which is $25 USD. When we finally got in, I was amazed at how beautiful it was. The entire place is utterly breathtaking. I remember learning about it in AP World History with Mrs. Brooks, but seeing it in real life was a much better learning experience. Give me that AP test again and I'll get a 5, no problem! 

That's the ceiling. Well, one tiny part of it. 

That's not even half of the interior. 

This is a view from the second story and it shows the fully renovated area of the interior. They are still in the process of renovating. 

There is an original mosaic from the Byzantine Empire of Jesus Christ. They don't allow flash photography in the mosaic area because it can damage them. That wasn't a problem though because the windows were huge and there was no end to them. Dad and I (being lazy American tourists) tried to find an elevator. 

We found one, but for some strange reason, it never came...hahaha. 

There's a picture of the outside. It was such an amazing place. And I feel so lucky to even be near it. It's amazing how they are able to keep it up and that it has lasted this long. If any of y'all ever go to Istanbul, you have to visit the Hagia Sophia or the AyaSofya as they call it. 

After visiting the Hagia Sophia, we went to the Blue Mosque. It was free because it is still a functioning mosque. Right away, as we walked in some guy came up to us and started talking. He wasn't a tour guide and we didn't have to pay him but he showed us around. We went in and I had to cover my head with a scarf. Thankfully I wasn't wearing shorts so I didn't have to put on a long skirt. We took off our shoes and went in. They guy told us all about where to go and where not to go. When he found out we were Muslim he got super excited, asking us where we were from and what we were doing. Then, he took my dad into the restricted area (where only Muslims are allowed) and showed my dad a hand painted picture of Mecca from 100 years ago. 

There's dad, walking with the guy. I wasn't allowed in because it was the side for men. 

That's a page from the Qur'an.the scripture is absolutely beautiful. When the guy showed us out of the Blue Mosque he took us to his business. (I knew there was a catch). His family sells rugs and jewelry so they tried to sell us some of the rugs. They were beautiful but I don't think we are going to get any. They were hand made and cost from $800-2,000 USD. The one dad like was (of course) the most expensive silk one. Dad told them we will come back tomorrow which means, we are never going back. After we left, we went and got some Turkish Coffee. 

Served with pistachio Turkish delight. But I forgot, before we went for coffee, we went and saw the Basilica Cistern which is the underground water reserve. Water was dripping from the ceiling but it was so cool. It cost 10 lira, so $5 bucks each for a ticket. We went in and just looked around. 

Where the woman is putting her hand, on that pillar, people would stick their thumb in and do a full circle. I think it's for good luck. Either way, I did it too. In another area there were two Medusa heads. One on its side and one upside down. The sign said that no one know where they came from or why they aren't right side up. 

Ha, it was so creepy just seeing them. 

That's just one part of the cistern. 

After the cistern and the Turkish coffee at Lokum Cafe, we took the Metro down to the fish market for some fish sandwiches. (We finally figured out how to work the Metro, haha). Here's me waiting for the train.

As we were walking along all the restaurants, looking for the right one, I started to hear something familiar. All of a sudden I realized that the cafe we were walking by was playing Lady Gaga's Applause. Hahahaha. Anyways, we finally stopped at a restaurant called Sirena. We ordered the fish sandwich, mussels and fried anchovies. 

They also gave us crushed olives with oil and bread. 

All of the food was so fresh and yummy. It was the best sea food I've had so far. 

I took a picture of the salt and pepper shakers because they are the opposite of the ones in America. The salt shaker has three holes and the pepper shaker has one. 

There's dad looking like the Godfather. We had a view of the sea and the two continents of Asia and Europe. 

The Asian continent was on the left and the European was on the right. We are on the European side. After lunch we walked around for a bit. Everywhere you go there are people specifically coming up to you to try and get you into their shop or their restaurant. You get used to it after a while. I've also gotten used to all the different languages and smells. It's not just Turkish and English that is spoken here. Arabic, French, German, a lot of European languages. I've heard a lot of Russian, too. The smells are definitely interesting. Lots of smoke and shisha, as well as just smells from the market and the ocean. 

Now we are back at the hotel and dad is taking a nap. We are probably going to go shopping tonight. I'll post more, like I said before, later today! Since, it's almost 8 in the morning back home haha. 

Istanbul Part 1

Y'all. I've made it...well halfway. We landed into Istanbul around 8am y'all's time (Texas) and 4pm local time. The flight was 12 hours long and I didn't puke once! HA! We got our visas ($20 US) and went through customs no problem. It was the quickest process I've ever experienced traveling. We tried to find the shuttle the hotel sent but dad got impatient and so instead we just got some shuttle service that was wayyyyy over priced. Note to all, NEVER hire a shuttle. Always do a taxi. They are super cool and much cheaper. Anyways, we got to the hotel and its super cute. I'll take some pictures later (as in tomorrow). Or I might not...hehe. So we got everything settled and then decided to go around the area and explore a little before we headed over to Taksim Square. 

We are literally five minutes away, walking, from the Blue Mosque. Tomorrow we are going to take a tour, but I wanted to take a picture of the outside just to show y'all. When we were walking all around, there were a gazillion little food carts. Selling fruit, fresh juice, roasted corn...etc. One of Dad's favorite things is roasted corn, so we got some. 

It was delicious! And then, while trying to figure out how to work the Metro. (We gave up and decided on a taxi). We got some fresh squeezed pomegranate juice. 

The picture is crap. And I forgot to take a photo of the guy squeezing it. But it was super good. And I may or may not have stained Dad's shirt...(he doesn't know. I only told him that I just noticed it...😏). It was bitter and sweet at the same time. Then after getting the juice and looking at all the Turkish Delight, we decided to hail a cab for Taksim Square. The first cabbie was going to the airport but gave us advice on what to ask price wise. The second cabbie was crazy. He stopped. We told him we wanted to go to Taksim Square. And gave him the price we would pay. He waved. And then drove off. Finally, the third cabbie agreed and drove us. Ha, the driving here isn't as insane as Egypt or Nairobi...but it's about as crazy as Mexico. People here don't honk because they are pissed. They honk to let you know they are coming in your lane or turning. The taxi driver used his blinker once. But he was nice. We got to Taksim Square and decided to get dinner. We stopped at this restaurant called Sütis Kebap Dünyasi. The food was delish! Again, I didn't take a picture of the main course. But we had eggplant hummus, I ordered the flat meat with rice and Dad had the kebabs. We got pistachio baclava for dessert with complimentary Turkish tea. 

They use actual sugar cubes! And they call the tea "chai". Not "chai tea latte". Hahaha. While eating I started to feel the effects of jet lag. I got super tired and felt like I was still in the air. After we left the restaurant, we walked around a bit. All the stores are designer and high end. Taksim Square is in modern Istanbul so the women are dressed less conservative. We finally ended up at the famous monument marking all the protests. 

Hehe, I wore a Darth Vader shirt. Here is a picture of the Main Street. 

It reminded me of downtown Playa. Or 6th Street. There were clubs and restaurants. Mosque had just ended so the streets were packed! Ah! I forgot. I cannot tell you how many times people came up to me asking if I spoke Arabic. The funny part was, I knew what they were asking but I couldn't respond. I could say some religious prayers to them. But that's about it. Well, I think that's about all that happened today. Oh. The toilet has a bidet. Ha. I'm scared to use it. Anyways. I'm about to pass out. I'll probably have even more pictures and stories for tomorrow. Until then, goodnight!