Ottoman style

Salam Aleikum! I am currently in Amman, Jordan! Lets recap the last week or so....

I arrived in Thessalonki in the evening and checked into a cheap hotel in the city centre. I decided to go explore downtown and I quickly discovered Aristotelous street/square which is the main cafe/restaurant drag connecting the downtown to the waterfront.

The next morning I headed out to buy my bus ticket to Istanbul from Crazy Holidays travel agency. Then it was time to properly explore the city. I wandered around the many shopping streets until I arrived at the White Tower, an old strategic lookout tower perched on the waterfront. Historically it was part of the fortified ramparts than surrounded the city, but today only a section of the walls remain as well as this tower. The tower is an excellent museum that presents the history of Thessaloniki on 5 floors and the 6th floor is the lookout rooftop. The history of the city includes Byzantine, Ottoman Turks, as well as a significant Jewish story. The Jewish quarter used to be a large part of the city however the holocaust destroyed most of Jewish life here.

Just up from the White Tower is the International Fair tower and 2 museums. I wanted to visit the museums but for some strange reason they close at 3pm everyday and it was 3.30 when I arrived. So instead I continued deeper into the city until I arrived at the Arch of Galerios, a Roman creation built to celebrate the victory over the Persians. For some reason the area around the arch seems to be the hippy suburb with lots of funky alternative stores and cafes. Heading back towards my hotel I passed two more impressive areas. The first, on the edge of the hippy zone and just up from the Arch, lies the Rotonda - a idolotorous temple / church / mosque build over 1600 years ago. The second impressive area I passed is the Roman Agora which is an ancient Roman marketplace. At the east end lies an impressive intact ampitheatre.

That evening I jumped on the bus that would take me to Istanbul. I thought I would sleep for most of the ride however this did not work out! I got woken up plenty of times, including when we had to get out at the border to go through immagration and duty free! As the bus arrived in Istanbul I was impressed by the size of the city and the beautiful minarets popping out across the hills. The bus pulled into the Otagar bus station, a massive complex with endless buses on multiple levels. I was told that there are free transfer buses to different locations around the city however when I walked over to the bus transfer point I could not figure out which bus I needed to catch! Luckily I managed to find one guy who could speak english and he helped me figure out where I needed to go. I had to catch a bus to Aksaray and then transfer to the tram which would take me to Sultanahmet, the old city where I was planning on staying.

Getting off the tram (which was packed!!) I was quickly greeted by the two most iconic symbols of Istanbul - the Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque. These two architectural wonders sit 400 metres opposite each other and are truly awe inspiring. I was lucky to find a good hostel 2 minutes away from the Aya Sofia - right in the heart of the old city.

After getting some rest I decided to go explore Sultanahmet. I started by visiting the Blue Mosque but was not allowed in at that time because prayer services had just begun. The mosque is huge and has many ellaborate domes and minerets. I entered the courtyard which houses the ablutions fountain and watched the worshippers washing their feet as they prepared to pray. After that I made my way down to the ferry terminal south of the Golden Horn (an inlet that runs off the Bosphorous between the continents and heads west) near the Galatta bridge. From here I caught the tram over the bridge all the way to the end of the line. From there I transferred to the underground Funicular that goes up to Taksim square.

Taksim square is the top of the shopping and nightlife district that runs down Istikil road. I arrived here after dark and was impressed with how the whole area is lit up with colourful street lights, fashion stores, american fast food joints and bars.

I had been warned before I arrived in Istanbul that single guys like myself are often targets of money scams. It works like this: Somone young Turk will approach you and start speaking to you in Turkish. Of course you say "sorry I do not speak Turkish". Then the guy will say "apologies, you look Turkish". After this he will attempt to befriend you and ask you if you want to join him for a drink. He will then take you to some dodgy place and then introduce you to his female "friends" (most likely prostitutes) and then you buy some drinks for everyone and you have a good time. At the end of the night, when it is time to pay you ask for the bill and discover that it is like 500 euro or something crazy. You ask to see the menu - he shows you a fake menu with crazy prices. You say you that you don't have the money, so they force you to withdraw from an ATM - often at knifepoint. Crazy huh!? Well thank G-d I was aware of this because I was approached 3 times in this manner. Each time I politely told them to piss off!

Anyways .... that evening I headed out to the local Couch Surfing meetup. It was a nice evening, however there were not many travellers who showed up but like 50ish locals. It was fun though meeting local Turks and enjoying the local brew Efes.

The next day I headed out to visit the Aya Sofia (also known as the Hagia Sofia). This impressive multi-dome complex was originally built as a cathedral in 360CE and has been added to and modified over the centuries, most notably in 1453 when the Ottamans converted it into a mosque. There are two levels inside, including an upper gallery. It is quite fascinating to see the blend of Christian and Muslim design elements throughout the layout of the building. Upstairs are some impressive examples of early Christian mosiacs as well as an excellent view of the main dome.

I returned to the Blue Mosque, this time I succeded in going inside. I was given a plastic bag to carry my shoes as one must remove their footwear on entering a mosque. Although outside the mosque is truly massive and ornate, the inside is mysteriously small and simple. The design work includes basic geometrical patterns on tiles as well as paintwork on the ceiling.

Side note... I found it interesting to see on different advertisments around the city the turkish months of "Nisan" and "Tammuz" which appear to coincide with the hebrew months by the same names.

Just past the Aya Sofia is the Topkapi palace, a grand royal construct built for the Sultans of the early Ottoman empire. The palace is quite stunning and houses many different rooms including lounges for the sultans to chillax in, ceremonial rooms such as the circumsicion complex, as well as a treasury and harem. The treasury contains a collection of priceless jewels, gifts, glassware that was owned by the sultans throughout their reign. The most interesting part of the treasury was the relic room that contained a fascinating collection of Muslim relics. These included the footprint of Muhammed, keys to the Kabbah in Mecca and Moses' staff. It appears that Muslims believe these to be genuine and hold them in high regard.

The most stunning part of the palace had to be the Harem. In the old times the Sultans would keep a collection of beautiful women to admire, be entertained and bear children with. They would have a sub collection of favourites who had special priveleges and whose children gained higher status. The rooms of the harem are beautifully decorated and contain low sofas. The harem was looked after typically by black eunichs.

That afternoon I visted the Grand Bazzar, Istanbul's equivalent of a Souk / Shuk. Although it houses 4000+ shops, an antique market and stretches for miles it was really quite a let down. The bazzar is completely under roof and does not have the charm of other souks that I have visited. It felt more like a shopping mall.... I got myself lost in the heart of the market and spent a total of 15 minutes inside as I did not plan on buying anything.

That evening I went out to a funky Nargileh / tea bar with an Aussie dude and 2 british chiks who were staying in my dorm. It was such a cool place, perched on the edge of a steep street, lit up by candles and with lots of cushions to plonk yourself on.

The Aussie dude, Nick, and the British girls from the night before joined me as I explored Istanbul the next morning. First stop - the spice market. This cute little market felt a bit more genuine with loud vendors shouting at you when you walk past, powerful aromas of fresh spices and cheap kebaps! Next to the market is another impressive mosque which we popped into briefly to have a look (one of many that we visited that day).

We walked across the Galatta bridge and explored the backstreets of the area north of the Golden Horn until we arrived at the Galatta tower (we passed a couple of synagogues on the way as this area is a large and historical Jewish area). We went up the lift to the top of the tower and were blown away by the impressive panorama of the city. The city appears to stretch for miles in all directions and is dotted with minarets and their accompanying mosques. You can also see across the bosphorous to the Asian side of Istanbul. For those who don't know - Istanbul is the only city in the world that is on two continents - Europe and Asia. It is seperated by the Bosphorous straight and is connected by two super-huge suspension bridges. The Galatta tower is an old lookout/lighthouse and today houses a restaurant and nightclub.

We walked a lot that day! We continued along Istikal road to Taksim square then down to the waterfront palace of Dolmabache (I visited this properly later), then all the way back to Sultanahmet (popping into a few mosques along the way). We took a quick break in a funky coffee shop for some genuine Turkish coffee and apple tea.

The next day I had planned to do a Gallipoli tour.... however the bus did not show up :( !! So instead I transferred the money to another tour which included exploring Istanbul. The first part of the tour was a cruise along the Bosphorous for about 1.5 hours. The tour guide pointed out areas of interest along the way including some palaces, mosques, impressive mansions, trendy parts of the city, old castles and the massive cross-continental bridges.

The next part of the tour took us to the top of the Pier Lotti hill (named after a French author) for a quick tea stop. The view from the hill is beautiful (and it was a beautiful day) as you can see right across the Golden Horn. We took the cable car down and then we were taken to the Dolmabache palace.

The palace was also built for the Sultans, however it is significantly newer with only 4 sultans being in residence during the Ottoman period. Designed by French architects, it was an attempt to appear European to the Western world. The reality of course was different, as it still contained a Harem just like in the old days. To enter the palace you have to put plastic bags on your feet to aovid damage (I guess) to the wooden floors. As you enter your jaw drops, and stays that way from room to room. Everything in the palace is stunning beyond belief. The 4+ tonne chandeliers, the exquisite sofas, pianos, rugs, panelwork, staircases, frescoes, decorations....... You knew that you were in the heart of royalty! We only got to see a selection of the rooms including the official meeting rooms for ambasadors, the harem and the Sultan throneroom. Truly stunning!

The final part of the tour took us across the Bosphorous suspension bridge to the Asian side. We stopped at a cafe with an awesome view looking back across to Europe. The asian side is more residential, and also contains some of the more trendy and wealthier parts of the city. It is weird to think that I visited Asia for 30 minutes!

Returning from my tour I knew that there was only 1 thing left to do in Turkey before I left - experience a Turkish Hammam (bath). I joined up with Nick (the aussie dude) and we went looking for a Hammam. We came across one, but decided against it as it was pricey and touristy - more like a day spa. So we returned to our hostel to book through them. It was a good decision as it turned out cheaper, was much more genuine and we got a free taxi ride there.

The Hammam was in some random, non touristy part of town and felt a bit historical. We were greeted by 2 fat old men who told us to change and wrap a towel around us waist. First stop - the sauna. After sweating it out for 10 minutes it was time for a scrub and soap massage. This was undertaken by the fat men! They didnt speak any english, and were a little bit eccentric with one guy making cat noises and the other guy tickling my feet! The scrub was really good - I dont think I have ever been cleaned that good! Next was the soap massage. We lay down on a large warm stone and was massaged with a creamy soap from head to toe. The men were pretty rough and clicked every part of my body! Finally you are rinsed off, your arms and torso are stretched and then back to the sauna before being dried. It was definately a cultural experience that I will never forget!

Finally that evening Nick and I accompanied by a couple of Austrian chiks went to smoke Nargileh and drink some beers over a game of never never! Always fun to play with randoms!

I really wanted to have a nice Shabbat experience in Istanbul however the shules are very difficult to get into due to security issues and the Chabad is temporarily closed because they had a baby! My advice is to contact the Jewish community at least 2 weeks before visiting if you want to visit a synagogue. There are quite a few shules around town including an Ashkenazi synagogue. On the tour our guide actually pointed out one of the historical Jewish areas but I do not know much of the history.

On Sunday I was off to my next location.... Amman, Jordan. The Istanbul airport is crazy - packed full of people trying to get through immagration. I have never had to queue so long in any airport! Even on the runway a strange thing occured. Due to some backlog there were plenty of planes waiting to take off. Looking out the window I could see a line of about 10 planes standing nose to tail waiting for their turn to enter the runway .... so weird!

Anyways... I have arrived now in Amman. I am safe and loving life!! But you will have to wait until the next update to hear all about my Jordanian adventures! B'Shalom!