Istanbul II

To continue on from yesterday's post, some more notes from Istanbul:

• The Grand Bazaar, with over 4000 shops, is the epicenter of the city in many ways. You can buy anything here - from clothes to jewellery to spices to power tools - and rub elbows with locals and tourists. (Very little deodorant on sale - this would make the metro rides a little more bearable).

• Topkapi Palace is a sprawling collection of buildings that are now mostly a museum. Some incredible items here, including an 86-carat diamond, various sultans' clothing from 1000+ years ago, and other surprises, including a sudden and spectacular view of the sea that comes out of nowhere.

• Aya Sofia, the Blue Mosque, and Sultanahmet are also impressive. Depending on the conquering forces at the time, Aya Sofia, from its origins in 360(!) has been a cathedral, a mosque, and a museum (as it is today). The sense of history and of just imagining the people and events that have occurred over 1600 years is pretty awe-inspiring.

• The Princes Islands are a decent day trip, with ferry rides to any number of them leaving all parts of the city. Just be prepared for masses of people, particularly at day's end (not for you claustrophobics). They are hilly, and without cars, so getting around by foot, bike or horse-drawn cart (and get ready to jump out of the way!) are the only way to navigate.

Overall, there's not a lot of witty or insightful stuff to say about Istanbul. Glad (and fortunate) to have seen it? Absolutely. Will I hurry back? Not likely. While it's a place that easily fills up the memory card on the camera, it doesn't do the same for the heart.

Typical plates of mezes, appetizers

The ferry towards the Princes Islands

One of the bars lining the Galata Bridge

The view from Topkapi Palace

Heybeliada, one of the Princes Islands

A walk in the woods on Heybeliada

The main mode of transport on Heybeliada

One of the other Princes Islands

Well-fed young Turk

Brisk business, selling balik ekmek

Balik ekmek

Fishing off the Galata Bridge

Ahh

Istanbul

Istanbul. The name conjures up images of a warm, mysterious, alluring place with small hidden alleys and bustling harbors crowded with small boats holding spices, fish, and exotic fabrics.

It turned out to be something else, something like a padded bra - full of promise from afar, but closer inspection reveals a fairly different reality. Not necessarily disappointing, just different than expected and advertised.

It has its charms - the history and architecture, the quality of the fake brands, the seafood, the Galata Bridge (bars and restaurants on the lower deck of a bridge = a great concept), the sea views from almost everywhere, Istikal Caddesi, and the many rooftop terraces - but they are drowned out by the near-constant hustle, rip-off restaurant charges, unending masses of people crammed onto the metro, and pretty much only men, mostly idle, on the streets and in the stores.

It is a city of contrasts, which you might expect as East meets West here:

• From the many minarets around the city, you hear the Call to Prayer. It may as well be a Call to Prada, as every few steps you are asked to buy knock-off designer shoes or bags. It was annoying and repetitive - although one wiseguy did offer the best line of the week: "Excuse me, would you like to come in and buy something you don't need?"

• The friendliness of the people is apparent, but underneath it in many commercial aspects is a real sense of being ripped off, whether it's a waiter, a taxi driver, or a corner store owner. Not all, by any stretch, are scam artists - but enough that it makes you leery at all times.

• Women in tank tops and shorts walk alongside those almost completely covered.

• The scenery is jaw-dropping at times, as is the litter in the parks and water.

More tomorrow in a new post. For now, some photos...

Sunset on the Bosphorus, as enjoyed from the Galata Bridge

This stuff was on sale everywhere. Stiff competition, I suppose.

Istanbullish

Last month, we saw the classic Wordsworth in this post.

To quote a similar genius, I believe it was Pitbull who said:

Then we gonna go fo, and fo, we gon freak some mo.

Four days in Istanbul start tomorrow... the Istanbul Lonely Planet app is loaded on the iPhone, the Turkish Lira is not so dear-a, and the dolmus and the Bosphorus await us.

So no posts here for the next few days unfortunately - the next one will come Monday or Tuesday of next week. See you then.