The West and the East. Istanbul

a furry friend we met along the way.

They say ignorance is bliss. In a world of travel and exploration, where every part of you is yearning for knowledge of the culture into which you are becoming submerged, I would beg the opposite. However, in an effort to inform myself as much as possible before traveling to Istanbul, I stumbled upon an article. This article told the story of three young American sailors in Istbanbul, just days before we were set to arrive. While wandering a busy city street, the three men had paint dumped over their heads while hearing screams of “Go home, yanks!” While the Turkish government condemned the actions of a hateful few, this anti-American sentiment seeped into my brain and enveloped our visit to Turkey. 

fishermen on this bumpin bridge where we took our ferry

As unfortunate as the feeling was, we were able to enjoy some truly remarkable sights in Turkey. Our first night we arrived around 11pm, worried everything would be closed and we wouldn’t be able to find anything to eat after a long travel day. However, our street was brightly lit with decorative colored lights and full of music and people. Shops and restaurants were packed too, not just clubs and bars. And the pedestrian walking street was full of people as though it were rush hour. It was bright and bubbly and beautiful. The downside was that the streets were also full of lone homeless children, something we soon learned was painfully common. We started and ended each day on this street, as it led from our apartment all the way down to the water. 

our host met us here at 11pm, despite us being an hour late!

One of the coolest things we did in our area of Istanbul was take a ferry tour along the Bosphorous strait between Asia and Europe. Before this visit I did not realize Turkey sat on both continents! The coolest part for me was passing under the intercontinental bridge. This side: Europe. This side: Asia. Sailing through, looking at two continents at once was a strangely exciting experience. We couldn't understand the descriptions of what we were hearing over the loud speaker, so we tried to look things up on our own, and took to making up historical facts about the beautiful buildings surrounding us. 

the bridge. shall we cross continents today?

Not everyone in Turkey was anti-American. In fact, salesmen made it very clear that they wanted to talk to us once we were in sight of their shops. Street shopping was very big in Istanbul, but the coolest, most overwhelming part was the Grand Bazaar. The Bazaar had over 4,000 shops, slammed into a labyrinth of narrow corridors. On your left, a fifteen-foot-high wall of rainbow colored scarves, on your right, a precariously perched array of beautifully hand painted dishes. There was jewelry and ornaments and lamps and instruments and even a few cafes. Passing through the shouting men I felt like Jasmine when walking through the market in Aladdin (sugar dates? Sugar dates and figs?! Sugar dates and pistaaaacccios).  We spent about three hours in that Bazaar and left with our arms full and our pockets light.

just outside the bazaar: more shops!

One dreary day we walked to The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, or The Blue Mosque, a famously beautiful Muslim house of worship. We arrived just in time for the call to prayer, meaning the mosque was closed to visitors. At first we were disappointed in our poor planning skills, but then a man handed us a flyer for a free presentation at the information center beside the mosque. As it was raining and the center boasted free refreshments, we thought what the hell? Gotta kill time before we can see inside, anyway. Yes, the dry air and hot tea was most welcome, but I was pleasantly surprised by the succinct, well-delivered presentation. In thirty minutes, we learned basic points on a world of topics, including The Blue Mosque, Islam and its similarities and differences to other religions, Muslim prayer rituals, and different practices around the world. 

rainy day reflections

When we finally entered the mosque we felt as though we’d taken a semester long course on the place, recognizing the art and script on the walls, and pointing out other facts we’d just learned as we walked around. As in many Catholic churches we’d visited, there was a dress code to enter, for which I, like always, was too scantily clad. I was given a cloth to cover my legs, and both Chris and I removed our shoes to walk inside. My words nor our photos can properly describe the interior of the Blue Mosque. You’ll just have to go see it for yourself. But it was remarkable. This day of beauty, knowledge, exploring religion and the conversations with my husband over gluhwein afterwards was one of my favorites of our months of travel thus far.

in the visitor's section 

So, perhaps sometimes ignorance is bliss. Had I not read the anti-American article days before arriving in Istanbul, maybe I wouldn’t have felt as though I stood out as the only blonde-ish person at the airport in a sea of staring eyes. Maybe I wouldn’t have dyed my hair dark on our first night. Maybe I would’ve enjoyed outbursts of friendly laughter in the street instead of worrying over a rowdy crowd. While my perception of Turkey was dimmed by my mindset going in, it still resides on my list of places to which I’d like to return. As my friend Kent said (in a message with an alarming number of typos for a teacher. Get it together, Canada), “it really is where east meets west, physically and culturally.” I like to learn about everywhere we visit, and maybe it was because we finally got out of the rain, but I felt like I definitely learned a lot here, and that I have so much further to go.

 lovefromkatie