Take Me Back to Constantinople

Apologies for the delay in posting. As you will soon see, this entry took a long time to compose.

Now, without further ado:

The first of many blog entries chronicling the crazy Christmas/New Years' adventure of 2012-2013.

Trip plan:

Vinnytsia--> Kyiv--> Istanbul--> Kayseri/Goreme--> Istanbul--> Kyiv--> L'viv--> Vinnytsia.

I got up at 5:45 on the 22nd to catch my train, which left shortly after 7 am. To do that, I had to drag my suitcase through the snow that had fallen overnight, all the way to the tram stop-- then I took the tram to the train station. While I was waiting, I met a Polish girl who was getting on the same train as I. It's a good thing I started to talk to her, because I would have missed the train if it weren't for her-- they changed the tracks, and by the time we found the correct one the train was already pulling out! Fortunately the engineer saw me running and asked if I needed to get on... and they held the train for me! Only in Ukraine would they do that. I was running looking for the right car, and everyone alongside the train kept yelling at me to get on. I tried to explain to them I needed the correct car, and eventually realized that they were telling me to get on because I could walk between the cars after I had gotten on! Some guy eventually grabbed my bag and basically threw me on the train, haha. I was out of breath and exhausted already and the adventure had barely begun.

After the four-hour train ride to Kyiv (the "express" trains in Ukraine do not typically live up to the name), I got a shuttle from the train station to the airport, where I boarded the flight to Istanbul with Vanessa and Talia.

Turkish customs were exactly as easy to negotiate as everyone had told me they were. Basically, they charged us 15 Euro and gave us a stamp without even looking at our passports. We rode to out apartment in Sultanahmet and ate dinner at a great place with some great Engrish on the menu.

Mostly, we were just reveling in the pronounced differences between Eastern Europe and Istanbul. For one thing, the temperature, while chilly, was well above freezing and there was no snow on the ground at all. Everywhere you could get fresh fruit juice squeezed right in front of you (I became rather partial to the pomegranate juice... soooo good). The call to prayer echoed through the city five times a day. That first night, we were walking through the dark and misty city, and we walked around a corner... and there was the Blue Mosque.

We looked at one another and said, "Guys... we're in ISTANBUL."

What a breathtaking sight. The mammoth proportions of this building, the seagulls wheeling around its sky-high minarets, just can't be captured in a picture.

That first night we visited Cemberlitas Hamami, a Turkish bath. Because it was late on a Saturday, we were the only people there and had the whole place to ourselves.

Something about the Hamami made me feel like I'd been there before...

..in another life. XD

So much of what I saw in Istanbul reminded me of Prince of Persia. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a whole entry devoted to comparing my photos with Prince of Persia screenshots. XD I apologize in advance for all my nerdy jokes to come.

After the Hamam, we wandered around the city a little bit. First thing to notice-- SO MANY CATS in Istanbul.This little fella was just napping on a seat in an outdoor cafe.

D'AWWWW

And this little guy was helping to sell jewelry.

Then we went to a hookah bar for tea. The owner made friends with us... his name was Captain Murat. He wanted to show us his garden, which fortunately wasn't a euphemism for anything.

The view from Captain Murat's garden

Day two: The power was out when we woke up, so my hair is a disaster in all the photos from this day. After breakfast in a cafe, we visited the Hagia Sofia. This building has been, at turns, both a cathedral and a mosque. Its dual nature is quite visible in its decoration.

Disclaimer for all the photos taken in Turkey: the pictures posted here are just a small fraction of my actual collection. Ask me if you want to see all the others!

St. Sofia's in Kyiv was modeled after this building. You can see the influence in the series of multi-height domes.

The inside was coated with beautiful paintings.

Talia, Vanessa, Emily, and the ceiling of the Hagia Sofia

Having been the seat of both the Byzantine and Ottoman empires, pretty cool stuff happened here.

More pictures inside this beautiful old mosque/church:

The pictures just can't capture how mammothly huge this place is.

  
The view from the windows was also spectacular.

After the Hagia Sofia, we visited Topkapi Palace Museum. This was the residence of Ottoman sultans.

When we say "palace," we mean "palace".

The prettiest part of the palace was the harem, where there were all kinds of beautiful tiled walls.

These mother-of-pearl-inlaid doors were everywhere.

Ooops. That's Prince of Persia again.

The tiled patterns were breathtaking.

 

Many of the rooms also had gorgeous stained-glass windows, as though the intricate tile, extravagant cushions, mother-of-pearl and carved wood weren't enough.

I'm pretty sure this exact courtyard appears in Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones

I considered stopping by this fountain to replenish my HP.

After working up an appetite with all our exploring, we met up with Russell, another Fulbrighter in Ukraine, for dinner and a dervish show.

Now THAT's a dinner! Even the five of us couldn't finish it. I have never eaten so much lamb in my life.

After dinner, we stopped to buy salep from a street vendor.

I became totally addicted to Salep in Turkey. It's a hot yogurt drink flavored with orchid root, topped with cinnamon, and it has the texture of eggnog. Mmmmm... best winter beverage.

Then we took a tram and got dessert at one of the restaurants under the bridge.

I had halva, a sesame-seed cake. Mmm.

And that was just the first day!