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.