We were greeted by the Istanbul smell the second we left the international terminal (kind of a good thing, kind of not--like spices and sewage). Istanbul is an incredible city. And it's huge. We spent our time in Istanbul thoroughly lost--the city is 13 million strong, comprised of a maze of streets and alleys with names that were incomprehensible to me. But oh my. The spicy scent of roasted chestnuts, the call to prayer reverberating through the early mornings and heavy afternoons, the endless fruit stands and pudding shops, and always, always a crowd of Turkish vendors hawking a tour or rugs or socks or you name it. Unforgettable. Istanbul has the exotic feel of Morocco and Cairo, but it is much cleaner, the food is tastier, and it is a much easier travel experience overall.
As Istanbul was our homebase for this trip (the flights from SLC to Istanbul were comparatively cheap), we sandwiched Croatia in between two stops through the city. During the first, we stayed at the Hotel Amira, which was awesome. The Hotel Amira is a small boutique hotel located in a quiet corner of Sultanahmet (the city's old town). We had arranged for our hotel's shuttle to come pick us up (and I'm glad we did, as I found Istanbul a little bit overwhelming to navigate, especially in my jetlagged state). Our room had about 10 windows, hardwood floors, a lovely balcony, and a view of the sea. I could have camped out long-term on the rooftop lounge. When we checked in, the receptionist sat down with us and spent 15 minutes explaining the basics of the city over glasses of fresh-squeezed orange juice.
During our second stop through Istanbul, we stayed at the White House Hotel. I didn't like it as much--it was too small, and the staff was almost overeager (trying a bit too hard to garner Tripadvisor ratings, as they expressly made clear when we checked out). It was clean and perfectly located, though, and we enjoyed breakfasts on the rooftop in the mornings.
In terms of activities, we spent most of our time bouncing through the Istanbul basics. Which were incredible. My favorites were touring Hagia Sophia and wandering through a lesser-known mosque at night. Cal and I were hesitant to enter the mosque, but a kindly gentleman gestured for us to come in, and I'm so glad we did. I also recommend taking a boat tour of the Bosphorous. And our first glimpse of the Blue Mosque was breathtaking. More than anything, we enjoyed meandering through the shops and the parks.
Istanbul's food was simply delicious. Kebabs (whether on the street, in a fancy restaurant, or in a casual cafe served with a dozen different side dishes), fresh-squeezed pomegranate and orange juice, pudding shops, and baklava stands (and I didn't even think I liked baklava) are all awesome. No specific restaurant recommendations--Cal and I got lost trying to find all specific restaurants we affirmatively tried to find, but honestly, we did not have a bad meal (or even a mediocre meal) while we were in Turkey.
First glimpse of the Blue Mosque--we hiked up the stairs to a restaurant's rooftop terrace, and there it was. Whoa.
Hagia Sophia. Just as light-filled and awesome as I had hoped. Initially constructed around 600 A.D., Hagia Sophia was initially a cathedral, then a mosque, and is now a museum. Fascinating history, perfect space.
Basilica Cistern--cool (in both senses of the word) and creepy. There is a statue of upside down Medusa heads worth checking out at the back.
View of Sultanahmet from the Beyoglu side. I highly recommend spending some time on the other side of the Galata Bridge--the food is better, the shopkeepers less aggressive, and the tour groups sparse.
Reading my book and listening to the call to prayer from my balcony at the lovely Hotel Amira during our first afternoon in Istanbul
Fresh-squeezed pomegranate juice on many street corners is probably what will ensure my return to Turkey . . .
. . . while the kebabs will ensure Cal's return.
Scenes from the Grand Bazaar
Our favorite mosque
Bosphorous cruise. We would have preferred to take the full-day cruise in order to enjoy some of the sights further upriver, but it was too rainy. Maybe next time.
Last shots of some of Istanbul's iconic scenes
