Day One - New York, NY --> Istanbul, Turkey
We departed NYC at about 4 pm and embarked on a 10 hour trip to the city of Istanbul in Northwestern Turkey. Add in a ten hour time change and our arrival was roughly 11 am the following morning. Neither mom nor I slept very much on the plane but we had pretty comfy business class seats and kept ourselves occupied with books and scrabble. Once we arrived, we cleared customs and found a person with our names on a sign... he was about 15, talked continuously on two cell phones, and refused to talk to us other than to tell us to "wait, and stay put." 45 minutes later we were ushered out into the streets to meet our driver and sped off towards the Blue House Hotel. And oh what a hotel it was. Two tiny twin beds were squished into a yellow room in one of the most charmless hotels I've ever stayed in - and I've stayed in many a seedy hostel. The room's crowning glory was the bathroom... It's a good thing neither mom or I is overweight because we would have been relieving ourselves out the window otherwise. After turning on the shower and drenching myself and the entire bathroom because of a faulty door, I then became stuck inside the shower and had to crawl out, soaking wet, through a 6 inch opening. It was a delight. Think Psycho meets a wet seal.
Semi-clean, we met our guide Huliya for a quick lunch at a local cafe and headed to the grand bazaar and spice market. Both were long, meandering, and colorful - and chalk full of people hawking their wares to locals and tourists alike. We then walked to the Süleymaniye Mosque where I sat outside in wonder at hearing my first "call to prayer." With several mosques in the vicinity, the whole city seemed to vibrate with the sad echo of the call - definitely the right way to start a trip. The day ended with dinner at a mediocre Kebap house with Huliya, it had an incredible view of the old city but honestly, we were too tired to really notice.
Day Two - Istanbul, Turkey
We met Huliya at 9:30 and immidiately set out walking. We began with a tour of the Topkapi Palace which used to hold the Ottoman sultanate. It had gorgeous architecture and stunning gardens topped off with an incredible view of the whole city (which by the way is HUGE, who knew??). Next we hit the Hagia Sophia mosque which is the largest in the area and dominates the old city landscape. A trip to the cistern sheltered us from the unseasonable rain and we took an afternoon break at a famous meatball house which was pretty delicious. Later in the afternoon we jumped on an hour long ferry ride down the Bosphorous for lunch at a local seafood restaurant. I had to test drive all the dishes because no one seemed to know which ones contained crab and lobster and I really didn't feel like putting up with a sick mother for the next few days. Mystery fish aside, the restaurant was pleasant, nothing crazy special, but nice. My only hang up was that Huliya absolutely refused to let me order any of my own food and several times didn't even let me see a menu! Sheesh, I just wanted to know what I was eating!! We crashed at the Blue House Hotel after an hour long van ride home (I slept the whole way, surprise).
Day Three - Istanbul, Turkey
We met Huliya at 10 much to my chagrin and walked the short distance to the Blue Mosque by our hotel. The mosque is aptly named because it is entirely filled with gorgeous blue tile work that I'm dying to install in my future home. We then made the correct decision to relocate to a different part of town (and a different hotel!) so that we could see a new part of the city. The Palazzo Donizetti proved much more charming than the Blue House, if a little outdated, and the Beygolu neighborhood was infinitely livelier than the touristy old city.
We jumped on a fairy to Asia (casual) where we had a super delicious lunch at Ciya - Turkey is divided between Europe and Asia so this isn't actually as cool as it sounds but still... I was excited. A meal stuffed artichokes, beef meatballs with sour cherries, yogurt with smashed grilled eggplant, and preserved green walnuts and figs provided the first "Oh My God" food moment of the trip. After wandering through the food markets on the Asian side for a couple of hours, we headed back to Europe and bid Huliya goodbye. We had a little quiet time at our new improved hotel and then mingled with the locals on one of the busiest streets I've ever encountered - Istiklal. Dinner, which only consisted of an enormous cheese plate because we were still stuffed, was had at a swanky modern restaurant called Leb-i-Derya with a nice view of the city. We made our first Turkish friend (and a possible future employee) in the host, and finished the night with the three of us taking a shot of almond flavored vodka - trust me, it's better than it sounds.
Day Four - Istanbul, Turkey
With a day all to ourselves, mom and I slept in, relaxed, and wandered the Istiklal area - doing plenty of damage in the local shops. We had lunch along the way at a place called Hala Manti, where two women were busily making tiny manti in the window. The food was OK, but watching them work was worth the trip. Our easy day ended at Mikla restaurant which sits on the top floor of a fancy hotel and has easily the most incredible view I have ever experienced. We toughed out the windy rooftop bar for an hour and then moved inside for dinner. The entire restaurant was spectacular and definitely a highlight of the trip!
We're onto Israel now and I'll update in a day or so! Love love love!
