The Memory Box: Turkey (VI)

Day 8: Canakkale to Istanbul (by ferry and tour bus)

At first light we set off for the ferry pier to cross the Sea of Marmara on our way to Istanbul, after crossing the sea, we would need to continue by tour bus for another four hours before we reach Istanbul.

On the ferry boat, as expected, we had some visitors for breakfast, so whilst some were feeding the seagulls bread that they had taken that morning from the hotel, I snapped some shots. Never would I have thought seagulls are beautiful, as I used to hate them when I was young - we had so many seagulls in Vancouver and they pooped everywhere! But look at them here, they look so beautiful in flight.

After four hours, we finally arrived in Istanbul. Before crossing the Sea of Marmara we were in the Asian part of Turkey (where the land is part of Asia), and after crossing, the land we were on is part of Europe.

View outside of tour bus window:
Part of the old city walls in Istanbul

Our first stop was, of course, lunch! Although Turkey is a Muslim country, and in general Muslims do not eat seafood as they are prohibited from eating anything with shells - but Turkey is a more modern and open Muslim country, they do eat seafood and in Istanbul as it is on the coast, they have lots of seafood available.

We went to the Valentina Kartallar Restaurant in a district that is full of seafood restaurants. On the menu was a tomato fish soup, fresh salad, calamari, and grilled fish.... it was all very yummy! Everyone asked for a second bowl of soup - it was like a scene from David Copperfield - "Sir, may I have another bowl?" hehe.....

After lunch, we went to visit some of the famous sites of Istanbul - first on the list was Hagia Sofia. Before even going to Turkey, I was already looking forward to seeing this building as I had learnt about it in Art History class, however, at that time I didn't really pay much attention to it. I just knew that it had both Christian and Muslim artifacts in it.

Originally the Hagia Sofia was constructed by the Emperor Justinian and considered one of the best examples of Byzantium Architecture. Hagia means "holy" and Sofia means "wisdom", this church was constructed because the Emperor of Constantinople (now Istanbul) was Christian. However, when the Ottoman Turks invaded and took over the country, they modified this into a mosque. All the Christian mosaics inside the church were covered with plaster, and Islamic features were installed - such as the mihrab, minbar and minarets.

Even the hallway to enter into the main chamber of the church is very ornate, look at the ceiling...

There are lots of chandeliers hanging down from the high ceiling, really an awesome sight.

The Hagia Sofia's main dome is very big!
From floor to the tip of the dome is 55.6m, and the diameter of the dome is 31.24m

above left: beautiful marble walls and tiles bring in so many different patterns and colours

above left: Christian mosaic covered with plaster that was later revealed by conservationists

above right: again a beautiful example of the mix of batters and colours used during the Byzantium era

above left: a view from a window of the blue mosque (just across the square)

An Islamic Mihrab - this niche indicates the direction of Mecca

We then visited a Turkish Delight store so group members can buy some sweets to bring home.

Free time! Taking a stroll through all the different little stores around the area....

As it was getting late, we decided to save the other sights for the next day and head back to the hotel. On the way to the hotel, we passed by the Istanbul train station, this pink building in the photo below is also the train station of the Oriental Express.