My Thoughts and Travels: ISTANBUL,TURKEY

TURKEY:

Turkey is a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage. Turkey has become increasingly integrated with the West through membership in various European organisations .Their application for joining the European Union is pending since 1995.

Mustafa Kemal was the republic's first President and introduced many radical reforms with the aim of transforming old Ottoman-Turkish state into a new secular republic. In 1934, the Turkish Parliament bestowed upon Mustafa Kemal the honorific surname "Atatürk" (Father of the Turks).He adopted the Roman script for Turkish language, abolished the Fez cap and compulsory wearing of burkha.

Turkey has openly supported Pakistan's stance on the Kashmir conflict and maintained political and military support during its wars with India. It has trained Pakistan pilots for using the F16s given by the USA. Interestingly, Ex-President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharaf grew up here and had extensive military training.

However Indians are welcome here and we saw quite a few groups of Indians.

We landed in Istanbul around 10.30 am. Since the check-in time at the hotel was 2.00 pm we decided to have a look at the Grand Bazaar. After check-in and lunch we visited the Hagia Sofia.

Next morning, we visited Topkapi Palace, Sultan Ahmet Camii (the Blue Mosque) and the Hippodrome. After lunch, we went on a great cruise in the Bosphorus.

Late in the evening, we went to SULTANA’S. It is a restaurant which presents a night of Turkish entertainment with the most delicious mezes and dishes, the most talented belly dancers and folk dancers as well as a HAREM SHOW depicting life in a harem. The belly dancer was DIDEM said to be one of the best in the world with a huge following on face book/you tube. It was a spectacular experience.

The most important point I observed was the discipline of the traffic. People wait patiently for the traffic to clear. Everyone sticks to his lane. No honking whatsoever, even where roads are really narrow. The whole city is clean, no trash cans, plastic,or tetra packs anywhere. Even inside the Grand bazaar, where there are chaotic crowds, no one pushes. People are patient. Roads are excellent. There are trams, Trolley buses (run on pneumatic tires but draw power from overhead lines), and ordinary buses covering all parts of the city. Fares are quite low.

Generally, there does not seem to be any criminal activity. However hotels suggest we leave valuables and documents in their vaults.

Being a Muslim majority country, it is quite difficult to get vegetarian food. You get only pizza, burger and salads. Breakfast at the hotels is generally good, with a variety of breads, cereals and fruits. Eggplant (brinjal) is a very popular vegetable and is used extensively.

Great variety of dry fruits are available everywhere and are quite cheap compared to India. The most famous sweets are the Baklava and Turkish Delight, made from corn flour, sugar, honey and dry fruits. Simit is a circular bread with sesame seeds and is a common breakfast item in Turkey.

This was probably the best season to visit Turkey and Greece. The day temperatures were around 20 deg C going down to 10 deg C in the nights. Days are long, giving sufficient time for the visits.

About Istanbul

Istanbul is the commercial and cultural capital of turkey. The political capital is Ankara.

Istanbul:

Once known as the capital of capital cities, Istanbul has many unique features. It is the only city in the world to straddle two continents, and the only one to have been a capital during two consecutive empires - Christian and Islamic. Once the capital of the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul still remains the commercial, historical and cultural pulse of Turkey, and its beauty lies in its ability to embrace its contradictions. Ancient and modern, religious and secular, Asia and Europe all co-exist here.

Its variety is one of Istanbul’s greatest attractions: The ancient mosques, palaces, museums and bazaars reflect its diverse history. The thriving shopping area of Taksim buzzes with life and entertainment. And the serene beauty of the Bosphorus, Princes Islands and parks bring a touch of peace to the otherwise chaotic metropolis.

It’s a peninsula bounded by bodies of water to north, east and south (the Golden Horn, Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara, respectively) and by the old city walls to west, this part of the city is essentially what used to be called Constantinople, as the rest of what is today Istanbul was part of independent cities, towns, villages, fields or even complete wilderness later absorbed by the city. This process is still going on as Istanbul grows with increasing speed.

Istanbul, or Byzantium as it was called then, was first settled by Greek colonists from Megara in Greek mainland in 667 BC. However, recent discoveries in a metro construction site in Yenikapı (on the southern coast of the peninsula) dates the very first date of Istanbul's settlement back to about 8000 years ago, which makes the city one of the oldest still-inhabited spots of the world. This peninsula was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985.

The most important places in Istanbul are Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sofia, Sultan Ahmet Camii (the Blue Mosque), the Hippodrome, Kapali Carsi (Covered Market/Grand Bazaar)) and the Museum of Islamic Art.

SULTANAHMET SQUARE

Hagia Sophia :

Dating from the sixth century, it was originally a basilica constructed in 537 for the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I. A masterwork of Roman engineering, the huge 30 m diameter dome covers what was for over 1000 years the largest enclosed space in the world. It is considered as a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture The church was looted by the fourth Crusaders in 1204, and was converted into a mosque in 1453 by Sultan Mehmet II when the Ottomans conquered the city. It was converted into a museum in 1935 by Kemal Ataturk. There are excellent mosaics in the gallery, reached by a stone ramp to the left of the entrance.

Topkapı Palace

This was the imperial enclave of the Ottoman emperors for four centuries. Lavishly decorated, with four courts of increasing grandeur. In the second court are the Harem, the State Treasury housing a weaponry display. The third court has the Imperial Treasury. Both Islamic and Christian relics, rugs, porcelain are exhibited. The views from the Fourth Court over the Bosphorus are spectacular. You can also see here some of Prophet Mohammed's belongings.

Sultanahmet Mosque( Blue Mosque)

Unique with its six minarets and sweeping architecture the Sultanahmet or 'Blue' Mosque impresses from the outside. Unlike Haghia Sophia, this is still a working mosque. The last great imperial mosque of the classical period, its name comes from 20.000 marvellous blue-toned Iznik tiles decorating the interior walls. It looks more grayish than blue.

Hippodrom

The Hippodrome of Constantinople was a circus that was the sporting and social centre of Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire. This is where chariot and horse races were held. Constantine’s major undertaking was the renovation of the Hippodrome. It is estimated that the Hippodrome of Constantine was about 450 m long and 130 m wide. Its stands were capable of holding 100,000 spectators. The race-track at the Hippodrome was U-shaped.

This is adjacent to the Basilica Cistern, Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia.. The building no longer stands, but the obelisks and sculptures that have been collected here since Theodosius' time in the fourth century remain. It is said the four bronze horses in the facade of St. Marco in Venice used to be on top of the Emperor's box in the Hippodrome and they were looted by the crusaders in 1204.

Next to the hippodrome is the German Fountain a neo-Byzantine style fountain. It was a gift

sent by German Kaiser Wilhelm II to the Ottoman Sultan.

OBELISK

PANEL ON OBELISK

SNAKE COLUMN

WALLED OBELISK

Grand Bazaar

Istanbul's grand old bazaar has an estimated 4400 shops lined along covered walkways. It is said to be the world's oldest shopping mall, covers several blocks and features a labyrinth of side streets to keep you lost for the better part of a day. The shops are organized around their wares, e.g. the jewelers are clustered together, the carpet shops are clustered elsewhere and the shoe shops are bunched together somewhere else. The Bazaar now serves as an attraction for tourists (it seems that most locals don't shop there) and you're likely to pay a little more for your purchase than elsewhere but with the vast selection you'll find what you're looking for and it's one of Istanbul's great attractions.

Bosphorus Cruise:

The Bosphorus strait connects the sea of Marmara to the Black Sea and separates Europe and Asia, making Istanbul one of the most beautiful cities in the world and the only one built astride two continents; this romantic cruise along the Bosphorus allows you to admire the Dolmabahce Palace(Kemal Ataturk breathed his last here and later converted into a museum ), the Beylerbeyi Palace, the Ciragan Palace ( coverted into Kempinski Hotel)and the Rumeli Fortress, ancient wooden villas, the Bosphorus and other bridges and all the wonderful and unique maritime landscapes.