İstanbul mosques + churches

While I'm not very religious, I always appreciate hearing the call to prayer (adhan) in Islamic countries.

It's something that echos through the streets 5 times a day and is a reminder to take a moment for things other than rushing through day to day life.

It's also a good way of telling approximately what time it is, although the first call of the morning shortly before sunrise never fails to wake me a bit too early for my liking.

Since Istanbul has so much history as a cross roads city of civilization, seeing places like the Hagia Sophia are really incredible experiences.

In the Hagia Sophia there were small details, like the well worn doorways and steps inside the museum that gave me reason to pause and think about just how old it is (it was first dedicated in 360!).

Over time so many people traversed through and fought over this very place in the name of religion, which ironically is now a secular museum that unites all faiths. 

Many of the beautiful details of the Hagia Sophia were covered when the Ottoman's over took Constantinople and turned it into a mosque in the 1400's, so some mosaics are damaged, others are being restored, and still there are hidden treasures beneath the layers of history.

The Deësis Mosaic is particularly striking, because it has such a sense of realism. I'm so curious what artisan had the patience and dedication to intricately place those tiny tiles.

Other mosaics, like the Comnenus mosaic feature the Byzantine blue. 

The lack of iconography in the mosques is also quite interesting and the subtle glow from the windows and lights is very beautiful. I like the use of light and color without relying on imagery. 

Some of the mosques we visited smelled like feet since the tourists don't go through ablution before entering.

Also, be prepared if you want to visit the mosques to have a head covering and conservative clothing. 

There's also St. Anthony of Padua Church in Beyoğlu tucked away on İstiklal Avenue. 

I had no idea there was such a strong Italian presence, but it does make sense considering both Rome and Istanbul were such great powerhouses for religion and trading.

merhaba, İstanbul

During the Easter holiday we went to Istanbul. It's fascinating to see a metropolitan area of Turkey, because there is a sizable population of Turks here in Munich from the Gastarbeiter days. It was nice to experience such an historically rich area with incredible hospitality and to better understand why Turkish pride shines through here. The people were so kind and seemed genuinely happy. I'd be happy to live near the water and have delicious food, too.
(As a side note: I love exploring the grocery stores and shops around the Hauptbahnhof area here in Munich. I affectionately call it 'Little Istanbul' around Landwehrstraße. There are always incredible products and it is hands down the best place to get some really great baklava.)

Karaköy Güllüoğlu

Here are some of the places and things we saw during our visit...

Istanbul panorama

Hacı Bekir turkish delight

protection from the evil eye

Hafız Mustafa

balık ekmek at the Galata Bridge

Sunday at the Bosphorus

Iznik tiles

Meze by Lemon Tree

Crossing two continents

Colors of the Golden Horn

Galata tackle shop

Galata catch

Simit Sesame Rings + Salgam drink

Istanbul Street Foods

Grand Bazaar Lights

Egyptian Spice Market + Pul Biber

Asmalimescit

Galata Tower view

Basilica Cistern

şiş kebap + Turkish coffee

Taksim Tünel

Orient Express Train Station

Topkapı Palace

Turkish Delight

If you are planning a trip, these links may be helpful:
Spotted by Locals
The Guide Istanbul
Hacı Bekir
Karaköy Güllüoğlu
Hafız Mustafa
Istanbul Eats
Meze by Lemon Tree
Faros

(If you're an American you'll also need a visa upon arrival, which costs $20. I only had £ in my wallet, so I attempted to pay the 15£, but that was declined, although the window said it was accepted. We had to go to a nearby ATM that dispensed dollars, euros, and turkish lira so I could pay. As I returned to pay with dollars the man behind the window was counting money including £, so you probably want to bring the cash that is associated with your country to avoid that hassle.)

On our next visit to Turkey I'd like to visit:
Cappadocia
The Şakirin Mosque
Ephesus
Pamakkale

The next post will be about Mosques + Churches of Istanbul.

The World Without Us

Right now I am reading the New York Time's best seller + Time Magazine's #1 Nonfiction book of 2007, ‘The World Without Us’ by Alan Weisman. It contains all of the things that fascinate me: people and their reactions to the world, nature and how hard humanity must fight to maintain what they have created, architecture, history, and the environment - all tied together. I'm really loving it and don't want it to end.

The book takes into consideration what the world may be like if humans ceased to exist due to a virus outbreak or some other unforeseen catastrophe. While it may sound like a doomsday type of book, it's really more of a reality check and an interesting look at how nature rules the world.

I love that the author is creative and well researched. He writes with both scientific and investigative styles, but it's never dull. He intertwines some interesting things that are my favorites: Gaudi, Varosha - the dilapidated and deserted resort in Cyprus, building things to last, and subway systems... and that's only the beginning of the book.

I'm amazed with his theory that despite nature taking over, bronze statues would still remain for over 10 million years. That would definitely make people from the bronze age and artists that continue using this old medium to feel as though the contributed to the memory of mankind.

Another interesting point according to Turkish civil engineer, Mete Sözen, who now works at Purdue University in Indiana, is that Istanbul will experience a major earthquake in the next 30 years. That prediction was made in 2005, so I should say 27 years. Since the city grew so fast and wasn't built well it would suffer immense devastation.

I majored in Art History and am very interested in places like this and of course Hagia Sophia, the Byzantine sanctuary and museum. It's one of the few structures that is predicted to remain, in part because Mimar Sinan's architectural skills. I really want to see it before any natural disasters occur. I've been telling Stefan we need to make it to Istanbul and now I know it's more pressing.

Lately I really fear with oil coming to an end that technology may have to regress since it's necessary in making current machines function. When I think about the things that were achieved without tons of technology, but sheer man power, like the Egyptian pyramids and the Great Wall of China, I am just amazed. It will be interesting to see in my life time how humans are forced to cope with things.