Where East Meets West: Istanbul

Istanbul has always been a "bucket list" city for me so I was really excited when we got the opportunity to travel there at the end of May.  Istanbul is located on both sides of the Bosphorus, the narrow straight between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea, which makes it the only major metropolitan area in the world to span two continents (Europe and Asia).  Istanbul's population is close to 14 million making it one of the largest cities in the world by population.  In comparison, New York City has a population of around 8 million.

Istanbul is one of three cities in the final bidding for the 2020 Summer Olympics along with Madrid and Tokyo.  The country seemed to lack the infrastructure to host an Olympics so it should be interesting to see whether they are selected.  There seemed to be constant traffic jams on all of the roads and the public transportation was limited and very crowded.  I wonder if the protests and violence currently occurring in Turkey will affect this bid in any way.  I feel very fortunate that we left a few days before this turmoil began.

One thing that surprised me is how much the Turkish LOVE children.  Colin was pretty much a celebrity there.  It was everyone too, not just women.  It was really unusual to see men in their twenties come up to Colin and rub his head and ask how old he was and try to chat with him.  Another plus of this love of children is that we got to skip a lot of lines at tourist sites.

It's hard to describe some of the amazing sites we saw.  Pictures are best.

Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya) - One of Istanbul's most iconic landmarks.  Built in the mid-6th century, Hagia Sophia has been a church, a mosque, and is now a museum.

Inside Hagia Sophia

Inside Hagia Sophia

Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii) - The vast majority of Turkey's population is Muslim so there are some amazing mosques in Istanbul.  Blue Mosque is probably the most famous.

Blue Mosque got its name from the amazing blue tile work inside.  Unfortunately, it is difficult to capture the scale and beauty with a camera.

Inside Blue Mosque

After dealing with months of terrible weather in London, it was great to finally get out the summer dresses.  This picture is taken on Galata Bridge.  In the background is Suleymaniye Mosque.

I loved the inside of Suleymaniye Mosque  Once again, the camera could not do it justice.

Wearing mosque appropriate apparel - no shoes, no legs showing for men or women, no hair showing for women.  The man to my left apparently did not do his research on this and had to wear a mosque provided skirt to cover his bare legs.

A Buckley family trip would not be complete without a boat ride.   Bosphorus Cruise between Europe and Asia.

Grand Bazaar - A covered market with over 4,000 shops.  A bit overwhelming and touristy so we didn't buy much here.

Egyptian Spice Market - I loved all the stalls selling different spices, teas, dried fruits, and nuts.  We tried some Turkish Delight (a jelly like candy covered with powdered sugar and sometimes filled with fruits and nuts) as well as some Baklava (layers of phyllo pastry filled with chopped nuts and honey).  The Turkish Delight was far from delightful, but I loved the Baklava in small doses.  The Turkish certainly seem to have a sweet tooth.

Topkapi Palace - the primary residence of Ottoman Sultans for over 400 years.    The palace was home to about 4,000 people including the sultan, his many wives and concubines, and slaves.

Topkapi Palace had the most gorgeous tile work.

Colin's favorite part of the trip was this fountain in Sultanahmet Park.

Next up on our travel plans is a trip back to the US for me and Colin.  Poor David is stuck staying in London and working.  I have realized that three months is about the maximum I can go before I really start missing my family and the US so can't wait to get back.  Plus, our stock of American food is getting low so I need to replenish it :)