(Part 6) Traversing Turkey: Istanbul's Royal Old Town

- Dec. 28, 2019, Saturday.

- Before anything else, let me get things straight: Istanbul is not the capital of Turkey, and it has been this way since 1923!! Many people think that Istanbul is the country's capital because it is currently the main transportation and tourism hub of Turkey, and not to mention that it was the capital since the Byzantine Era (when it was named "Constantinople") up until the Ottoman Era that overthrew the Byzantines. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkish commander turned statesman who dethroned the Ottoman monarchy, moved the capital from Istanbul to Ankara when he became president in 1923 since Ankara was closer to the center of the country, making it easier to reach other provinces more easily as compared to Istanbul in the far northwest. Despite not being the country's capital, it still holds the title of being the only city in the world that is located in two continents: Asia and Europe.

- From our hotel in Bolu, we took a 3-hour drive to the old downtown of Isanbul called Sultanahmet. Being in downtown Istanbul reminded me of Manila: the traffic was horrible. Fortunately, transportation within Istanbul is efficient, such as the tram or metro lines, making it easier to go around the city within minutes. Also, when talking about Sultanahmet, most of the historical sites are within walking distance from each other.

- We first visited the Blue Mosque, also known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque. It was built in the 1600s by Sultan Ahmet I as a reminder of Ottoman power despite his losses in wars. It was a controversial mosque as it used the funds of the state, and was built across another royal mosque, the Hagia Sophia. It is called "Blue" Mosque because of the blue tiles that line the mosque's interiors.

The Blue Mosque.

We couldn't see the whole done because of renovations. We noticed plenty of renovations going around the city when we were in Istanbul.

Although most of the tiles were blue, there were also other multi-colored tiles that lined the walls and domes of the mosque.

Mosque interior.

The Blue Mosque from outside its walls.

- After lunch we visited the Topkapi Palace ("top-ka-puh," the -u sounds like it does in words like "drug" or "hut"), the first palace built after the Ottomans took over Constantinople in the 1200s, and named the city "Istanbul." Our tour group was not able to go around the palace that much as it had several courtyards and plenty of halls to visit. However, in one of the exhibition galleries that we visited, we saw some sacred relics that may be deemed as some of the holiest. These artifacts include the staff of Moses when he parted the Red Sea, the sword of David, the footprint and beard of the Prophet Muhammad, the keys to the Kaaba in Mecca, and so on. (No photography inside, unfortunately.) I will post more things about the Topkapi Palace as my family visited it a second time on another day to explore its endless halls.

The throne room.

The Mecidiye Kiosk, the last kiosk built in the palace. This building, as you can see, is European inspired.

View of the Bosphorus Strait from the palace. This is the strait that separates the European side and Asian side of Istanbul. (The buildings and mountains in the photo are on the Asian side, while I was standing on the European side.)

One of the inner courtyards of the palace. The building to the right is the palace harem.

- Just beside the Topkapi Palace is the Hagia Sophia, also known as Ayasofya. This building, to me, is one of the most interesting buildings of the city. It was initially built as a church by the Byzantines and functioned as such until the 1400s, a century after the Ottomans took over the Byzantine Empire. Since the Ottomans were Muslims, they converted the church to a mosque in the 1400s, and added four minarets or towers around the mosque. Several centuries later, in 1930s, it was decided that this mosque will function as a museum, and it still does today. However, the current president of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan is thinking of turning it back to a mosque.

Hagia Sophia.

Entrance to the main hall.

It was quite difficult to take a photo in the main hall since half of it was being renovated.

At the second floor - which is actually like the 6th floor as it was so high up.

Byzantine Christian wall paintings.

- Finally, we had some time to shop in Istanbul, and one of the best places to do that is the Grand Bazaar. We rode a tram from Sultanahmet Station just behind the Hagia Sophia, and got off at Bayezit Station which was two stops away. Our tour guide told us that had we used our tour bus to reach the bazaar, it would take us around an hour even though it was close due to traffic, as compared to using the tram which got us to the bazaar in 3 minutes. Roads in Turkey tend to be narrow just like in Europe, as these cities were built in the ancient days when wider roads were not yet necessary.

One of the many many MANY entrances of the bazaar.

- The Grand Bazaar was built in the 1400s as an indoor market, and remains as such today. Do note that this place is mainly catered to tourists so prices of things may be too high, and bargaining is expected. I once bought a necklace originally priced at 150 lira, but got it for 50 - only to find out that necklaces like that cost a mere 20 lira outside the bazaar. So do bargain A LOT. If time is a luxury, I suggest looking at the stores right OUTSIDE the bazaar as they may be priced way lower.

The main corridor.

The smaller corridors were more decorated.

- Aside from shopping, there are also photo studios around the bazaar where you can wear a royal Ottoman costume and have your photo taken. I'm usually a sucker for these since I'm a costume enthusiast, and since I don't usually get to buy really elaborate costumes unless I'm sure I can wear them on a regular basis. These photoshoots cost at least 40 lira (which isn't bad compared to other some countries) for one printed photo, and prices will increase depending on the additional service customers wish to avail (ex. a printed CD of all the photos during the shoot, photo placed on a scroll, additional prints, etc.) It was definitely worth it!!

Your Ottoman highnessss.

- Although Istanbul was the last leg of our tour, I felt that my "real" adventures in Turkey were just starting. As I was to spend more days in Istanbul, I was more than excited to explore this city between continents!!

- Don't forget to read about my other adventures in Turkey:

Part 1, Troy and the Trojan Horse: here

Part 2, Virgin Mary's House and Ephesus: here

Part 3, Laodicea on the Lycus and the Alien Travertines: here

Part 4, Konya: here

Part 5, Cappadocia: here

Part 7, Istanbul Between Continents: here

Part 8, Istanbul's Secrets: here

Part 9, Istanbul on New Year's Eve: here