Our first taste of Istanbul
Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey
May 31, 2013
As always, we were late leaving for the airport due to eleventh hour work issues that had to be to resolved and last minute packing. We gave Maya, Suu Kyi hugs and kisses and shouted "goodbye" to Ella who was hiding under the bed.
We abandonded the subway at Old Mills station as it was taking too long. We were stopping for lengthy periods of time at some stations. The cab ride was $40 to the airport from there.
Turkish Airlines does not offer electronic check intact the airport, so the lines were very long. I have not had to wait this long since we lived in Calgary and the kiosks at the gates were strictly for passengers without bags and of course I always had bags! There are many extended families travelling with kids and seniors in wheel chairs to Istanbul
Story!
. Already we can observe that we stand out. We are travelling without children or parents, we are the fairest couple, and I have the most skin showing with my long pants, bare shoulders and uncovered hair. Bill is predicting that we will not depart on time, I think he is going to be right.
The call to Turkish Airline's BDM paid off, we have not been upgraded because another flight was canceled, but we are going to be in the exit seats with extra legroom. Bill is high maintenance, so he had to confirm that we could recline our seats and that we will have video screens. The lady did not seem impressed, but after Bill "name dropped", she became very pleasant and helpful.
After going through security our food choices and time were limited. We grabbed a quick bit to eat at True Burger, a cheeseburger and a classic burger, and a beer for Bill of course. The meal was very expensive, but pretty good. I quickly inhaled mine and instantly had a stomach ache as a result!
As it turns out, we did not have to worry about rushing, there was a long line to board. Bill was right, we were 30 min late departing. (It does happen from time to time!)
Bill was asleep before we taxied. On our flight there was wifi & live TV! We found out later that it is 12€ for the wifi. We did not pay for wifi since we had both slept on and off for 7 or 8 hours of the flight. I donned my eye mask and was asleep before we took off. I opened my eyes for a few minutes when dinner was served. Bill had an unappealing baked pasta dish and my chicken was bland and rubbery. I am glad we had the burgers!
Bill had to wake me up for breakfast. I bet that you think that you can not screw up eggs, but you would be wrong. We both had cheese and buns for breakfast. My tea was not bad... We landed a half an hour late and are ready to go exploring now, so I will write more later!
We forgot to bring cash for our Visa, but we were able to pay with credit card. It was $120 for both of us. The trek through customs was no problem.
Erhan met us after we collected our bags. Bill found an ATM and withdrew some Turkish liras. Our guide was very helpful during the 20 minute ride to our hotel. He explained that traffic is busy in Istanbul because 17 million people live here. Good news about that is that there is a really good transit system. He explained how to use the trams and where we need to go to get to the Flower Passage area later this evening.
We were given a very warm welcome by the sales manager of the hotel upon arrival
. our junior suite is very spacious and clean. They have provided us with many lovely treats. We tried some of the sweet treats and Bill had a huge bite of the chocolate covered coconut! I attached the evil eye key chains to the camera and my purse for the rest of the trip.
We freshened up and headed to the tram stop near our hotel. We went to Sultanahmet Camii (the Blue Mosque) and took some photos but we could not go in during prayer. We walked around the back and had our first glimpse of the Sea of Marmara.
We walked around the outside of Ayasofya, also known as, Hagia Sophia. We entered the park below Topkapi Sarayi (Palace). We wondered why there were large statues of squirrels in the park. We decided that squirrels must be sacred here, like cows for Hindus!
Bill navigated us through the park past two tram stations to the far side of the park by the tracks so we walked back along a busy street and the Bosporus River, Bill tells me that it is very famous
. Bill has already lost the right to navigate while we are in Istanbul.
We hopped on the very crowded tram, headed to the Flower Passage. At the end of the tram we took the funicular as directed by our guide. When we arrived at Taksim Square we were not allowed up by transit security. Some people started covering their mouths with clothing or tissues. Bill wondered if it was a gas leak. Another passenger told us that there was a protest and it was unsafe, so we headed back to Sultanahmet Camii to find something to eat.
On the tram ride back we saw a couple that had participated in the protest. Their eyes were very red, they must have been using tear gas. There was a distinct odour in the air and I had a bit of a tickle in my throat like when you inhale something like cayenne pepper. We later found out that the protestors are trying to save the green space that was being planned to be developed - building a mall
.
It was 9:00 when we stopped for something to eat near the Sultanahmet Camii. We selected a nice spot on the patio at The Cozy Garden. Bill ordered a beer, Efes Pilsen, and I ordered a vodka and soda. We shared some appetizers: calamari stuffed with fish, shrimp, octopus, cheese and garlic, a meze plate with haydari, antep salad, saksuka, aubergine salad, Russian salad, stuffed grape leaves and feta, and halloumi cheese on skewers. Abdullah our server was amazing and he is a funny guy!! He gave us a free apertif that tastes like banana. Who doesn't like bananas!? Turkish tea tastes like black tea!
Everything was very good and we enjoyed the local music and listening to the host charm people into the restaurant for dinner.
Thank you very much sounds like tea sugar ederim or something like that! I need Rosetta Stone for the Turkish language.
So far we love Istanbul, the people, the sights, the sounds, the colours, but not the smells (lack of deodorant on the extremely croded trams)!