Istanbul~Day 4~ The Bosphorus, Yalis, Dolmus and Simits!

All of the tourist information about Istanbul recommended a trip up the Bosphorus on one of the many ferries or boats on the water.  I picked a sunny day, with temperatures in the high 60's for a cruise to see some of the highlights along this busy waterway.   One of the most unique things about Istanbul is that the city is on two continents~ Asia and Europe.   The Bosphorus divides the city in two.  Ferries are constantly shuttling people back and forth between the two continents.  

The Bosphorus has two long suspension bridges near Istanbul.  This is the Bosphorus Bridge where Tiger Woods hit a golf ball across while we were there. 

Bosphorus Bridge

The Dolmabahçe Palace was the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1856 to 1922 and was home to six Sultans.  

As we made our way down the Bosphorus, we saw houses like this  built on the hillside.  

On the hillside directly opposite the above houses were these houses.   They were quite different than the ones on the opposite hillside. 

A seaside walkway with cafes and bustling with people

Starbucks~ There's always a Starbucks

 an unrestored Yali

The Bosphorus waterway was known for it's Yalis that were built in the 19th century.. A Yali is a house or a mansion built directly  on the waterside.  This was a secondary residence for a family.  

Anadolu Hisari is a fortress on the Asian side of the Bosphorus.  It was built between 1393 and 1394 as part of the preparations for the Second Ottoman Siege of Constantinople.

Anadolu Hisari with wooden houses in front

beautiful homes (Yalis) built directly on the water

Fishermen along the Bosphorus

Mosques were also built on the waterway

This is the Galata Tower as seen from our ferry on the Bosphorus.  It is a medieval stone tower in the Karaköy quarter of Istanbul.  It was built as the Tower of Christ in 1348. 

Galata Tower

Istanbul at sunset with the Blue Mosque in the background

By coincidence, my sister was reading the book, Istanbul Passage, the same week I was in Istanbul.  We were emailing back and forth about what I was seeing and experiencing.  In one of her emails, she asked if I had seen any Yalis, ridden in a Dolmus or eaten Simits.  I had no idea what she was talking about.  After researching, I realized that I had seen Yalis that same day, had not ridden in a Dolmus but I had seen lots of them and I had eaten a simit but I had no idea what they were called.

a Yali

  So, I leave you with a small sampling of this amazing city.   A Yali, a Dolmus and a Simit. 

a Dolmus

Simits at a food stand

Sunset and the Bosphorus Bridge 

Istanbul is a city that I won't soon forget.  The friendly people, the ancient history and the culture make it a city that will feed your soul and beg you to return.  

Istanbul~ Day 3~ A photographer's dream

 Istanbul is known as a photographer's dream so I decided it would be a great city to improve my photography skills.  After a lot of research online, I decided to book a private photography tour/lesson with a former National Geographic photographer.  I felt like I was definitely going outside my comfort zone, but at the same time, I was telling myself that this is an opportunity I would probably not have again.   So, thanks to Trip Advisor and a lot of back and forth debating with myself, I booked the tour.

Perfume seller on the street

What a fabulous day!  Kemal was a wonderful teacher and  photographer and I was able to see a side of the city that I wouldn't have experienced otherwise.  I've been trying to upgrade my photography skills since I've been in London and I wanted to get away from just shooting in auto mode and learn more about manual settings, lighting and composition.
The tour was described as a walk around the old town, with tours of the medieval caravanserais. A caravanserai was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey.  They were found along the Silk Road.  The building was a square with a walled exterior with an opening wide enough for camels and the camels stayed in the center at night while the travelers had room on the first level.  The ground level  had stalls around the square to accommodate merchants and their servants and merchandise.

a caravanarai building

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We visited a cafe where I took pictures of locals smoking water pipes and had some Turkish tea in the signature tulip glass cups.

 

  One of my assignments was to approach this man and ask him if I could take his picture.  He was very friendly (as were all of the Turkish people) and all he wanted was for me to send him the picture that I took.

I took a picture of this cemetery and worked on aperture settings and lighting.  

 As we were walking out of the cafe, Kemal noticed a mirror and had me practice taking pictures in a mirror, keeping everything in focus.  Still have some work to do on this one!

 These two men were making necklaces.

The most interesting and intriguing stop of the day was at a metal casting shop.   I was able to spend about half an hour taking all kinds of shots of these men making everything from brass finger cymbals, genie bottles, to any kind of brass trinket you could think of.  It was a fascinating process and I hope I caught some of the story of these men's work.  They were so interesting to watch.  The boss was interested in what I did for a living, how many children I had .  He was 60 years old and had been doing this for all of his adult life.  None of the men used gloves to pour the hot material into the molds.

 

a small square of a caravanarai

street scene around the Grand Bazaar

Pomengranate juice maker on the street

After we finished at the metal workers shop, we climbed some very steep stairs to the roof of one of the caravanarai.  As we climbed the last staircase,  a man came out of his shop to unlock the door to the roof and we walked along the top of the roof to this spectacular view.  Even though my lens wasn't the best for night shooting I couldn't resist these night shots. 

The Blue Mosque from the top of a caravanserai

Istanbul from the old town looking at the Galata Bridge 

It was a day I'll not soon forget.  Hopefully I'll remember all the photography tips I received photographing this ancient city.

Istanbul~ Day 2 Grand Bazaar and Spice Market

After the Blue Mosque and Haghia Sophia, the Grand Bazaar and Spice Market are big tourist attractions in Istanbul.   The Grand Bazaar is one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world. It has 60 streets and 5,000 shops!  You can find jewelry, hand-painted ceramics, carpets, embroideries, spices and antique shops.  It's been an important trading center since 1461.  

The Spice Bazaar was built with revenues from Egypt so it is sometimes called the Egyptian Bazaar.  It was completed in 1660 by the architect Mustafa.

Tom and I walked around the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Market on our second day in Istanbul.   Outside both markets are narrow streets bustling with people and more stores of any kind of merchandise you could want.  Your senses are on overload walking through these areas.  Many local people were doing their everyday shopping and it was easy to get lost on the winding, twisting old alleys.   

We went to the Spice Market first and this is what we walked through to get to the Grand Bazaar.  

one street of The Grand Bazaar 

Grand Bazaar

rug shop in the Grand Bazaar

We preferred the much smaller Spice Bazaar.  It was much easier to navigate and not get lost.  Shop keepers in all of the bazaars stand outside their store waiting for customers.   I found the Spice Market shop keepers to be much less aggressive and it was fun to walk into their shops and bargain for some souvenirs.

Turkish Delights

Turkish Delights (or Lokum)  are the sweet treat of Istanbul!  They are made of a gel of starch and sugar and good varieties have chopped dates, pistachios and hazelnuts or walnuts bound by the gel.  They are packaged and eaten in small cubes dusted with icing sugar.  They were invented in 1776  so they've been around awhile.

Spices and teas were displayed everywhere.  

Shops full of beautifully hand painted ceramic bowls, plates, cups and trivets.  

I didn't see many people buying these outfits but I guess they're popular also!















Outside the market, on the streets, were more merchants selling scarves and miscellaneous products.














 On our way home, we passed a shop exclusively selling baklava.  There were so many kinds, I had a hard time choosing which kind to buy.  I did, however, decide to buy a few different kinds, all of which were delicious.

I'm not sure I've ever tasted pomegranate juice, but I loved it and enjoyed drinking it as soon as it was made.  It was so fresh and no preservatives!

Now I know how far Babylon and Tehran are from Istanbul.  It was another incredible day discovering the treasures that this city has to offer.  Every day, Istanbul becomes more exciting and interesting.  Why is the distance to  Babylon in Roman Numerals and miles?