Istanbul - Capital city full of Mosques and Culture

Leigh and Jo by ANZAC cove
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Wednesday 20^th June – Antalya – Istanbul

After the really nice hostel tried to rip us off, we caught a 20min taxi to Anatalya airport. Again being up at 6am was not the best for Jo, but the morning sunshine is just so bright you feel like it is middayish. We realised that we had booked to go to Istanbul Airport on the Asia side and wanted to go to the European side, so after a bit of discussions with the ticket counter and check in desk they swapped our flights for free and we were able to catch an earlier flight!! Great start to the day!! We arrived in Istanbul airport around 8.30am and jumped on a light railway train to Sultanhamet (central old town Istanbul). We decided to negotiate with every hostel on the main drag and eventually got a lovely ensuite room for around 27 Euros including breakfast. Our next task was to organise a Gallipoli tour, which we did with a bit of haggling to get a reasonable price. We then set out to explore Istanbul starting at the Topkapi Palace. We managed to get in for free (don't ask)... and in the scorching heat that completely drained us, we explored the Palace and grounds for a couple of hours. It was absolutely amazing with stunning harbour views and immaculate interior design, along with tremendously exquisite jewelry and antiques. Had a couple of corn on a cobs and pretzels from side street vendors on the way to the blue mosque. This was another awe inspiring site, however is closed during praying hours which is when we went. So we headed off to the Basilica Sistine- a very glamorus underground Sistine built in the 6^th century during the reign of emperor Justinianus in beautiful marble columns. There is also the story of the Medusa – that she could turn you into stone and there are two Medusa heads in the Sistine, strangely one on the bottom of a marble pillar upside down the other on its side. After an icecream we found a shaded patch on the beautiful gardens infront on the blue mosque and accidentally fell asleep for an hour or so... I tell you this heat makes you so tired! Tried our luck at the blue mosque but it was again closed for praying so we had a bite to eat at a small cafe and went to the Grand Bazaar. I think we were both expecting something like Egypt with its chaos, great prices and lots of people chasing you down the street. However it was like going to the Jville or Bromley Mall as it was so tidy and not what we expected.... however there was haggling going on so we found out a few prices on apple tea sets etc.. We then decided to chill out at our hostel in the evening as we have an early start tomorrow.

Outside the Blue Mosque
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Thursday 21^st June – Gallipoli Day Trip

Another early start – 6am, Jo's form not too bad, two 6am's in a row! Got some fresh bread from the baker for next to nothing and waited for our shuttle to take us to the Otogar. Had a chat with our Turkish friend who has a strong Aussie accent, strangely, as he has never been to Australia. He owns a hostel here and has been really nice to us. Finally get on board the bus for a 5 hour journey to Eceabat (close to the Gallipoli battlefields). Met TJ (our highly recommended tour guide, who looks a bit like Mel Meninga) who handed us a massive sandwich for lunch. Took the short 10 minute journey and went to the following sites:

Jo in a bunker
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• Kabatepe War Museum

• Beach Cemetery (John Simpson's Grave)

  

  In between Asia and Turkey
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• ANZAC Cove

• Ari Burnu (First ANZAC landing place)

  

  Leigh in circumcision room - Topaki Palace
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• Lone Pine Cemetery (Australian memorial)

• Johnston's Jolly (Walk in the ANZAC trenches)

  

  NZ Memorial Site
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• View Shrapnel Valley

• Turkish Memorial

• The Nek and Walker's Ridge

• Chunuk Bair (Main New Zealand memorial)

It was a very moving experience, a completely different site to that of Normandy where the beaches were flat and long, the Gallipoli battlefields were coves and surrounded by hills. We now have a completely new perspective on what ANZAC day really means. TJ was a great tour guide and provided lots of stories throughout the journey. He also said at the end of the tour if we want anyone looked up just to let him know... he is very passionate about it and spends his life researching the stories of soldiers and experiences with their families. The return back to Istanbul was well timed and we arrived back at 10.30pm but was told we would have to wait 30 minutes for the transfer back to Sultanhamet so decided to jump on the metro, which is always more challenging! As a result we ended up viewing the Blue Mosque at night time which was spectacular.

Friday 22^nd June – Istanbul

Believe it or not, another stifling hot day! Only around 38 degress, so slightly cooler! After a bit of a lie we went to visit the Blue Mosque for the 3^rd time, however again it was closed for praying time. So we headed off and took more pictures of the Hagia Sophia before trying our bargaining skills in the Grand Bazar. Well, you win some you lose some and we'll leave it at that i.e. We got ripped off in a couple of our purchases, but were satisfied with the results of others. Will have an apple tea party when we get home to NZ... our new favourite drink (at least 4 cups a day!)... Jo finally likes a hot drink. Leigh's hair has grown so long so he decided to visit a lovely Turkish barber. Decided for the option of a number 1 all over and a cut throat shave. They were asking in Turkish if Leigh was joining the army (and having a joke about it!) This was a real experience for Leigh, not only was his hair washed but his face washed with the shampoo too, he was given a neck massage and lemon cologne was shoved up his nose before a lighter was used to singe away the hairs on his ears! He now looks spick and span though so full credit to the little Turkish berber (although he did miss a few stray hairs and took Leigh's side burns off). We finally got into the Blue Mosque and were both glad we were able to. It is massive inside and beautiful mosaic work. The main structure is held up by 4 massive marble pillars and is a dramatic setting to worship. Jo had to wear a skirt and cover her shoulders and looked almost the part. Then decided to explore other areas of Istanbul and came across the tomb of Sultan Ahmed II. We then had a bit of fun getting lost in the back alleyways and bustling local markets down to the harbour where the bridges seperates the Europe from the Asia continent. We crossed over into the Asia side and wandered up to Galata (an impressive tower) and then had a couple of apple teas before wandering back. Our final dinner in Istanbul and Turkey for that matter consisted of Donup kebaps which we ate sitting in the park by the Blue Mosque. A nice way to finish our trip!