|
We arrived at the Attaturk International Airport
in Istanbul on time, but our luggage didn't. Apparently, we were
part of a small group of passengers who made it from our AA plane
from Chicago to the British Airways plane in London on time.
I started having flashbacks to Greece where I didn't get my luggage
for 3 days. I then remembered where I was and that I could count
on the Turks to be more efficient. Yener went to the office and
filled out the paperwork. This operation was, indeed, far mor
efficient than in Greece. We headed out to pick up a cab to the
hotel. Part of me was actually grateful that I didn't have to
lug around any bags. |
| On the way to the hotel, we chatted a bit and I
got to see a bit of the city. Yener and I were both very tired,
but also very happy to be in Istanbul. In fact, Yener was almost
giddy to be back in Turkey. On the way, he was telling where
we would go once we got to the hotel. According to his itinerary,
we had a full day ahead of us! Fortunately for both of us, we
were wearing clothes that were comfortable and suitable for walking
around the city. |
|
Our Hotel: The Holiday Inn |
Our Room |
Our View:
Transportation right outside! |
|
We got cleaned up a little bit in the room and then headed
out to explore the area. Right next to the hotel is a stop for
the train that takes you in and out of the city. The red dot
on the map you see to the right shows our location.
To the left of the dot, you can see the old city walls that
surrounded and protected Istanbul. From this location, we would
be travelling to the right of the map.
This system worked just like the subways in the U.S. You buy
a token (called a Jeton) and used that to get through the turnstile
where you waited for the train. The train had its final destination
displayed on a sign. |
|
|
|
|
| From the dock area, you could see a LOT of different
buildings and such. I posted a few pics of the view below. This
was a very busy place. Street vendors were all over the place.
You could get roasted or boiled corn, sandwiches, juices, etc.
and it was all pretty inexpensive. Other folks were wandering
around trying to sign people up for a tour of the Bosphorus.
Funny thing about these private tours: the price varied wildly.
We were determined to stay on land today and walk a lot. Our
legs needed the workout after the long plane ride. |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
 |
We walked across the bridge you saw in the picture above and
on the right, towards the Galata Tower you see on the right.
On the way, we passed this museum building on the left that Yener
thought was photo-worthy. Oddly, we never went in that building,
so I can't tell you what's there. Notice the steep incline of
the street; it felt like San Francisco.
The Galata Tower is a major landmark for this area. You can
see most of Istanbul from the top of the tower. We came back
here later on in our trip to investigate the inside and go
to the top.
We passed by the tower and kept walking toward what Yener
told me was the "main drag" in Istanbul. This is the place where
people would go to shop, eat, and and just hang out outside. |
 |
|
Finally, we made it! I was getting pretty tired by this time
and my stomach was starting to growl a bit too! We wandered down
the street and looked at the restaurants available to us. This
photo to the left doesn't make it look like a very popular place,
but we were there early in the evening.
This place is like an outdoor mall. There were shops, bars,
restaurants, offices, and some residences along this street.
It was really pretty impressive how many things were located
in such a small place. |
We were both getting hungry, so we found this restaurant
that serves one of our favorite Turkish dishes. The restaurant
sells ice cream at the door and there is a window so you can
watch them bake bread and cook other things. The ice cream guy
you see there was quite the showman. He's in costume and he used
a long metal spatula to stir/soften the ice cream (Turkish style)
in small vats in front of him. This ice cream is sticky...almost
chewy. I tried some of it later in the trip, so I'll describe
it better later on.
|
|
|
Doesn't Yener look tired? We were seated in this restaurant
family-style and Yener placed an our orders with the waiter.
We were both getting Alexander's Kebob (Iskander kepap, in Turkish).
Yener ordered Ayran for us too (watered down and salted yogurt
drink). With the bread, we were served some sort of chopped tomato
appetizer that was really good with the bread.
Looking around the restaurant, we took notes of the dishes
being served to the other patrons. It smelled great here and
it only made us more hungry. |
|
|
After a short wait, our entrees arrived. I took a picture of
mine so you could see what real Turkish Alexander's Kebob looks
like. They served the yogurt on the side, rather than on top
of the bread like we do at home.
Yes...those are some french fries by the yogurt. I'm not sure
what they were doing there, but they were good. I enjoyed this
dish and it completely hit the spot after all that walking.
Stuffed, we went for a walk down the street to the main bus
stop. |
|
Here are some more pictures from our walk. To the left you
see a buffet style restaurant serving traditional dishes.
On the right you can see the street at night. This is still
a pretty slow night...probably because of the cold. Notice the
clothing: coats and long pants. Yener and I were in shorts and
t-shirts. Yeah...we didn't stand out at all! |
|
| |
|
|
