I try to travel somewhere every year for my birthday. My birthday is in the spring and it’s a great time to travel to most parts of the world. For my 35th birthday, the original plan was to go to Paris with my best friend, Lexa, and her mom, Vivica (we all have April birthdays). Over dinner, Lexa and I decided since we’ve all been to Paris we should go somewhere we’ve never been to before. We settled on Dubrovnik, Croatia. We researched flights and most had a layover in Istanbul. I don’t know who suggested it first but we both thought “why not Istanbul?”
Why not Istanbul? If you love history, culture, food, and scenery then Istanbul has it all. We were in Istanbul for 10 days; with 7 of them in the Sultanahmet District and 2 on the Prince’s Islands. The Sultanahmet district is a bustling part of the city that has the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace (a little jaunt away) and, many museums and historical sites. I could write an entire book on everything I saw in Istanbul.
Istanbul is featured in many movies, but for book lovers, most people will know of the sites from Dan Brown’s book Inferno which follows the hero, Robert Langdon to Istanbul in an attempt to stop bioterrorism. The book and subsequent movie take us through the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, underground cisterns (with statues of medusa!) For me, Istanbul reminds me of the story of Agrabah from Aladdin. No, there were no monkeys (disappointing!) but there are large markets, palaces on the water, and beautiful architecture.
Istanbul is a bustling city with a culture clash. It’s modern yet ancient. You have those who are conservative Muslims from Saudi Arabia wearing full burkas and Turkish women walking with no headscarf on at all. All women must cover their heads and everyone must remove their shoes when entering the mosques. You must also dress conservatively. No short shorts, low cut shirts, or midriff’s showing or you will not be allowed to enter (this is the rule for most churches and mosques throughout Europe).
Istanbul is a great city for beginning travelers or seasoned travelers. There is something for everyone here. For history buffs, the entire city is like walking back in time. I would recommend taking a trip down the Bosphorus on a boat towards the Black Sea. Along the way, there are old Roman forts from the time of Constantinople you can hike to. There are also palaces the Turkish Royalty and now government use along the straight you can tour. Oh, and did I mention there are dolphins in the Bosphorus strait as well?
For those who are religious Turkey has the Hagia Sophia, which was originally built as a Byzantine Christian cathedral in 534. Since then it has always been a house of worship for people of Christian and Muslim faiths. It is now a museum where renovations continue to teach historians about how layered and rich the history of Istanbul and the cathedral is. There are ancient Christian paintings underneath the Muslim decor that is still being discovered. The Blue Mosque is a short walk from Hagia Sophia in The Blue Mosque is still used as a place of worship. The call to prayer is heard through loudspeakers 6 times a day beginning at sunrise and ending at sunset. Turkey is also home to the mystic Suvi’s and Whirling Dervish. I cannot find the words to describe the Whirling Dervish other than peaceful.
Aside from the history and gorgeous skyline the shopping and the food set Istanbul apart from other large cities in Europe. Istanbul has an entire district for shopping – anything from high-end shops to one of the oldest shopping bazaars in the world The Grand Bazaar. The Grand Bazaar is one of the most visited tourist destinations in the world – and for good reason. It is a shopper’s paradise! The Grand Bazaar has everything from spices, clothing, food, souvenirs to high-value rugs, and cashmere. You can spend all day in the bazaar and still not see everything. I did not have a bad meal in Istanbul. I can write an entire blog about the food, but will spare you other than to say the spicy tomato sauce served with pita at almost every cafe/restaurant I went to was amazing and no restaurant in the states has been able to replicate. Also, Turkish coffee is terrible. One of the servers at a cafe told us they always know the tourists because they order Turkish coffee. Also -side note – the city does not wake up until around 9 am. If you’re an early riser, like me, there is no cafe or coffee shop open early in the morning. Fortunately, our hotel had a beautiful rooftop terrace and the morning desk clerk would bring me coffee every morning while I sat up there listening to the call of prayer and watching the city wake up.
No trip to Turkey is complete without visiting a Turkish bath. The women and men are separated. Women from all around the world as well as locals gossip in the baths, get a complete scrub down, hair washing, and steam. You can add other spa services like massages and facials. You cannot visit Istanbul without going to a Turkish Bath. You will not regret it.
