City Two Revealed
Settling into our hotel in Istanbul for the night!
The flight from Amsterdam was uneventful, though unfortunately it didn't have tv screens, so I didn't get to finish watch Casablanca. It probably worked out for the best, as I got to sleep about two hours on the three hour flight, while the remainder was consumed by consumption of lunch, comprised of tortellini and some really delicious vanilla mousse with little éclairs. Sorry I always talk about plane food, but I find it interesting...
Upon arrival in Turkey, the passport controls took a few minutes before I grabbed my bag and headed out to the arrivals area. Waiting for me there were the parents of my very good friend Hilary (who I know from GHP and have mentioned many times in this blog), who are on sabbatical teaching and doing research at the Technical University in Istanbul. They've been here four months and were kind enough to meet me at the airport and offer their guidance throughout the trip.
After a traffic-y cab ride from Istanbul Ataturk Airport to the hotel (I had planned to take the Metro, but they said a cab would be faster and more scenic), I got settled in before a good friend of mine from Tulane, Tim, showed up. Traveling in Budapest, he had flown into the city's other airport, Sabiha Gökçen, located on the Asian side of the city to join me for the trip. After he settled in, the four of us struck out for the evening, hoping to find a good meal and see a few sites. We weren't disappointed.
We started off walking over to the Sultanahmet area (the heart of the historic, site-filled area of the city), passing by obelisks dating from the first, fourth and tenth centuries.
We walked through the marble forecourt of the Blue Mosque, but it was closed to visitors for the evening. We admired the spectacular building from the courtyard and will return later.
We then went to dinner at Suntanahmet Koftecisi, which has been open since 1920. A three story traditional restaurant, we enjoyed izgara köfte (meatballs), piyaz (bean salad), and çorba (lentil soup). From dinner, we walked down to a colorful fountain, where we had views of the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque, lit at night.
It was still very early, not even 7:00, so we decided to catch a tram to a popular nightlife area. The trip took us across the Galata Bridge, lined with hundreds of people fishing along the railings. We got off the tram at Beyoĝlu to catch the funicular, opened in 1875 and known as the tünel, to Karaköy. Once at Karaköy we walked İstiklal Avenue, one of the main streets of Istanbul and now a pedestrian mall. To say the street was mobbed is an understatement and the energy of tens of thousands of people out shopping, eating and simply wandering, carried us almost a mile along the street as it wended its way through the district.
The chaos of the street was compounded by an old tram running down the middle of the road (all the way to Taksim Square) and cars crossing through the pedestrian. Along the walk we saw two churches, including St. Andrew's Cathedral - the largest Catholic cathedral in Istanbul - where the Pope had visited. We went inside the courtyard and the church itself; both were gorgeous.
Other sites along the road included may grand embassies and the imposing Galatasaray High School. Near Taksim, we stopped into the Institut Francais, a gorgeous old building with massive courtyard complete with café, and had dessert and a chai, which was good, and enjoyed conversation, company and the atmosphere.
Once back out into the craziness of the street, we continued up to Taksim Square, where the protests of 2013 took place. We split up at the rail station, with Tim and I catching the funicular to Kabataş and then the tram back to our hotel.
All organized for tomorrow's explorations, I would deem today a really big success.
The flight from Amsterdam was uneventful, though unfortunately it didn't have tv screens, so I didn't get to finish watch Casablanca. It probably worked out for the best, as I got to sleep about two hours on the three hour flight, while the remainder was consumed by consumption of lunch, comprised of tortellini and some really delicious vanilla mousse with little éclairs. Sorry I always talk about plane food, but I find it interesting...
Upon arrival in Turkey, the passport controls took a few minutes before I grabbed my bag and headed out to the arrivals area. Waiting for me there were the parents of my very good friend Hilary (who I know from GHP and have mentioned many times in this blog), who are on sabbatical teaching and doing research at the Technical University in Istanbul. They've been here four months and were kind enough to meet me at the airport and offer their guidance throughout the trip.
After a traffic-y cab ride from Istanbul Ataturk Airport to the hotel (I had planned to take the Metro, but they said a cab would be faster and more scenic), I got settled in before a good friend of mine from Tulane, Tim, showed up. Traveling in Budapest, he had flown into the city's other airport, Sabiha Gökçen, located on the Asian side of the city to join me for the trip. After he settled in, the four of us struck out for the evening, hoping to find a good meal and see a few sites. We weren't disappointed.
We started off walking over to the Sultanahmet area (the heart of the historic, site-filled area of the city), passing by obelisks dating from the first, fourth and tenth centuries.
We walked through the marble forecourt of the Blue Mosque, but it was closed to visitors for the evening. We admired the spectacular building from the courtyard and will return later.
We then went to dinner at Suntanahmet Koftecisi, which has been open since 1920. A three story traditional restaurant, we enjoyed izgara köfte (meatballs), piyaz (bean salad), and çorba (lentil soup). From dinner, we walked down to a colorful fountain, where we had views of the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque, lit at night.
It was still very early, not even 7:00, so we decided to catch a tram to a popular nightlife area. The trip took us across the Galata Bridge, lined with hundreds of people fishing along the railings. We got off the tram at Beyoĝlu to catch the funicular, opened in 1875 and known as the tünel, to Karaköy. Once at Karaköy we walked İstiklal Avenue, one of the main streets of Istanbul and now a pedestrian mall. To say the street was mobbed is an understatement and the energy of tens of thousands of people out shopping, eating and simply wandering, carried us almost a mile along the street as it wended its way through the district.
The chaos of the street was compounded by an old tram running down the middle of the road (all the way to Taksim Square) and cars crossing through the pedestrian. Along the walk we saw two churches, including St. Andrew's Cathedral - the largest Catholic cathedral in Istanbul - where the Pope had visited. We went inside the courtyard and the church itself; both were gorgeous.
Other sites along the road included may grand embassies and the imposing Galatasaray High School. Near Taksim, we stopped into the Institut Francais, a gorgeous old building with massive courtyard complete with café, and had dessert and a chai, which was good, and enjoyed conversation, company and the atmosphere.
Once back out into the craziness of the street, we continued up to Taksim Square, where the protests of 2013 took place. We split up at the rail station, with Tim and I catching the funicular to Kabataş and then the tram back to our hotel.
All organized for tomorrow's explorations, I would deem today a really big success.
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