Turkey Part I - Basking in the Warmth of Istanbul

We had only 3 days to embrace the ancient city of Istanbul. Despite this fact, and Chana’s mandate that we walk absolutely everywhere, we managed to take in a healthy number of sights. The Hagia Sophia won the blue ribbon for impressiveness with its massive domed interior, juxtaposition of Byzantine construction and Muslim adornments, well-preserved mosaics, and view of the Blue Mosque.

The Blue Mosque rivaled Hagia Sophia in size, but offered a very different environment. The experience started at the doorway, where doormen draped Chana with blue sheets to cover her hair and legs. The plush rug and blue mosaic walls were immaculate and provided a serene atmosphere for worshipers.

The most anticipated sight was the Kariye Museum. The museum
is a Byzantine church which holds spectacularly preserved mosaics; the type you “go to Istanbul to see” according to my art history teacher. For us, the anticipation was amplified by the fact that we were foiled on our first attempt at a visit. After walking 6 km to the mosque (thanks, Chana) we arrived to find the museum closing early at 4:30 pm (enter the grumpiest Jerel of the trip). Fortunately, a dose of Starbucks coffee at bustling Taksim square and some spectacular views from the Galata Tower provided an antidote.

As we covered the sights, we were struck by the mix of the religious and the secular and the pace of modernization. We saw multi-generational families in which the women’s dress code correlated dramatically with age: from the 70 year-old woman fully covered and wearing a traditional shawl, to the 18 year-old wearing a tank top and shorts. We noticed that the architecture recapitulates the modernization: moving north along the Bosphorus, you are met first with the old city, filled with ancient buildings; then with aging buildings housing Starbucks and Zara, and ultimately with the steel and glass skyscrapers of the incipient business centers.

Our biggest takeaway from Istanbul was the warmth of the Turkish people. We noticed this in their greetings - based on the number of hugs and kisses one family exchanged at a bus stop, one would think they had been separated for decades. As tourists, we were welcomed at every turn. We dreaded the persistent barrage of restaurant solicitations, but once we sat down for dinner we were treated like family. The staff at the hotel’s front desk were perhaps the best exemplars of Turkish hospitality. A mere query from Chana incited a flurry of activity involving half of the hotel staff, who cheerfully created a make-shift travel agency and booked the next leg of our trip.

For more photos, please click here.