We arrived late last night and came directly to our hotel. Although we didn't get much sleep (and that's 2 nights in a row now) I wanted to get an early start on our day. Our hotel offers a free Continental breakfast - which I assumed was of the bread, jam and juice/coffee variety. Brad and I were both shocked to see a huge spread of food, obviously catering to people visiting from all over the world. You could have chosen from scrambled eggs, toast and OJ or olives, honeycomb and strong tea. It was a delight.
After breakfast we hit the streets, which are narrow, cobblestone and FILLED with men trying to sell you leather bags, shoes, pastries, lanterns, tea and coffee. It is such a delight to the (shoppers) eye that I was unable to walk without holding on to Brad. Our first stop was The Grand Bazaar. We wandered and wandered through the streets/halls of the Bazaar. It went on and on with no end in sight. I can't imagine how long it would take to see it all, and we assessed that we probably only saw about 10%. Next we walked to Hagia Sophia which was absolutely incredible. It was first built in 537 and reminded me of the cathedrals I've seen on a previous trip to Europe; however, the Islamic twist adds a whole new spin on the wonder of it all. It was incredible. We then walked just a few minutes to The Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet) where thousands pray every day. We were outside for the noon call to prayer, which was incredibly beautiful and mezmorizing - nothing like I've ever witnessed before. We visited The Blue Mosque in the afternoon and had some mixed emotions. All visitors must remove their shoes and their knees must be covered. Additionally, all women must cover their heads (scarves are provided) for those women who pray here are not allowed to pray in the same section as the men. All in all it is a beautiful place to visit, and a place that really made me remember how far away from home I am.
The next place we visited was Topkapi Palace . I've been to a fair number of palaces in Europe, but this topped them all. I'm not sure, but it could be because of the Harem. Wow. Those sultan's had a lot of nerve (one of them had 300 ladies!). Also held at Topkapi is the skull and arm of John the Baptist (or John the Prophet, as he's called here), a foot print of The Prophet, and (The Prophet) Moses' staff. Brad and I weren't sure if these things were real, but we decided that either they are real, or those folks have convinced hundred's of thousands of people they're real; either option impressive. I would add that the baths in this palace were pretty cool. Apparently they were very concerned with hygene in the 1400's. Good for them.
At this point I was getting very hungry and tired, so we had dinner and then found a barber for Brad - who was intent on getting his hair cut here. I sat quitely while he enjoyed a haircut and a shave. Well done! Then we enjoyed a coffee - yes, Brad, too! I have settled in for the night and Brad is heading to Europe (the Europe side of Istanbul) to see our friends (Steve Albini and his band) play at a rock club over there. I am exhausted and am looking foward to a good night's sleep.
Maybe this is too much detail, but for a number of reasons I wanted to share our time here. For one, I don't want to forget. We will see and do a lot over the course of our days here and I want to make sure it doesn't leave my head. I also don't know if I'll regularly get a chance to sit and write this way, so when I get my chance I plan to use it. This said, I'm struggling to stay awake. It is nearly 10pm here (which means it is noon in Boise). I do hope that Grandma and Kate are enjoying a lovely lunch just prior to a long nap. We do miss our Kater Tot!
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