I'll start with a rant. This afternoon we returned from the cruise terminal to our hotel, a distance that would normally be 1.7 km and take 7 minutes. This ahould have cost around TL5-8 ($NZ4-5). We should have known better - not only did the driver not know the address, but the taxi windscreen was shattered with a star burst in front of the driver and he drove through busy traffic with his head down typing the adress into his cell phone. After several near misses and a roundabout route he dropped us off at the back of the Blue Mosque 1.3km from the hotel with a meter reading TL40. He then tried to say that the TL20 notes we had were "old money"and not acceptable and tried to give us a TL50 note with some vague suggestion that we should give him TL100 and go shopping to get "real money".
On the other hand his driving was no worse than the norm here with our tour driver this morning taking a route through a busy petrol station to improve his position by 3 places in the traffic. There seems to no requirement to avoid cell phones or pay attention to the traffic and the norm is to change lanes without signalling or waiting for a suitable space.
Rant over.
On Tuesday night we dined at a restaurant (Lekker) ,a block from the hotel after a talk with the hustler. He claimed that after only 8 months in usiness thay were #36 in Istanbul on Tripadvisor. When we checked they were #78 which is still good given that is out of over 1200 listed.. The food was a mix of Turish/Ottoman, Italian, French and seafood. I opted for a Testi Kebab which is cooked in a ceramic pot with a aluminium foil cap and delivered to the table over a flaming base. To serve aluminium foil is drawn tight, the pot is inverted and the side of the pot is tapped leading to the bottom of the pot blowing off with a burst of steam. Very spectacular and the dish was really nice. I could not understand how the vegetables were still fresh tasting and crisp while they appeared to have been cooked with the lamb which was tender. I assume the meat was precooked and the mixture was heated rapidly not too long before serving.
Wednesday we visited the Hagia Sophia, a cathedral originally built in roman time and added to over the years. The style is very different to the European model with an almost square shape. The nave is covered by an immense dome supported by 4 half domes that cover the aisles and sanctuary areas (if it was a church). However after the Ottoman conquest it was converted into a mosque and remained that until Attaturk declared it a museum in the 20s. Surprisingly much of the Bysantine christian decorations were still there, though covered over and there are a lot of christian mosaics. Even with a lot of the interior covered by scaffolding for renovations it is still impressive.
After a relaxing bus tour around the Golden Horn (an estuary that separates the old town from the more moder city centre to the north) we headed for the Blue Mosque expecting to spend some time there being wowed. After crossing a large courtyard and being supervised to take off shoes, cover hair, etc, we walked in and found little keep us there long. The building is large with a huge dome and entirely covered inside with mosaic tiles, mostly blue, but once seen there is nothing to do other than listen to the quaran being read in a high voice and watch the faithful coming and going. We left after 15 minutes and as it was still early afternoon decided to visit the Topkapi Palace which turned out to further away and larger than we expected leaving us tired by the time we finished. The palace grounds cover a large area, originally the whole end of the old town peninsular, and the palace itself was built in 3 courtyards with progressively les public access. For many years this was the seat of government for the Ottoman empire which seems to have been less than democratic. Some of the private rooms for the sultan and his women are opulent, but the general feeling is quite modest. We did not get to see the reputedly spartan and unheated rooms of the court concubines as there were many renovations in progress.
Dinner was at a seafood restaurant rated at #30 by Tripadvisor which again was close to the hotel. The reataurant is small with the ceiling covered in hanging glass lamps of differing style and colour. The menu was not extensive and the food was good but not outstanding. (Gillian has decided that we will go back to Lekker so she can try the Testi Kebab)
Thursday we took a tour around the city including a boat trip up the Bosphorus, narrow strait connecting Marmara Seaa with the Black Sea that is the border between Europe and Asia. The first thing apparent to me was that there is obviously no tides here as the roads and piers are all constructed low to the water, the second the huge number of day trip boats tied up along the piers with very few apparently in use. The boat we were on had around 40 onboard against a capacity of around 700. The hotel we're in has 2 - 3 rooms in use per night and it is obvious that tourist numbers are well down on normal, probably due to the bombings.
We have just returned from dinner at Lekker and are preparing to head for Gallipoli early tomorrow. Hope to blog our impressions of the battlefield tomorrow.
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