Istanbul 2006

I just got back from a second trip to Istanbul. It's a city with so much history yet modern at the same time. It's also a very clean city despite the fact that it's very hard to find a trash can to dump your trash after eating a duner kebab. All six of us enjoyed the trip and claimed Istanbul one of our favorite cities of all time. This is from people who are much more traveled than me. The weather was pleasant which added another plus to the trip.

We left Tuesday night from Stara Zagora by night train. It took over 12 hours for us to get there. Last time I take a night train. It only took 8 hours to get back by bus, eventhough Bratsigovo is further from the border than Stara Zagora. Just before we left I realized I forgot my American Bank card, and since I had been to Istanbul previously, I knew my Bulgarian card wouldn't work. So I pulled as much money out of my account as I could while I was still in Bulgaria. I ended up changing this money to Turkish lira once I got to Istanbul. It wasn't enough though, so I had to ask my family back home to wire me some extra funds.

I got to see some things that I didn't see last time. Like Haghia Sofia (pronounced Aya sofia and translated St. Sofia). This Mosque was built over 1500 years ago and was originally a church. I also got to see Topkapi Palace, explore a different section of the Sultanamet district (this is the more historical and touristy district. It's also where we slept), and spend more time in the Taxim district (this is the more modern district with nice shops and the best night life). The city is huge and dense. It is growing by leaps and bounds. About 15 years ago the population was around 1 million. Now it's over 10 million. At the same time the city is very organized and I didnt feel cramped or uncomfortable.

One of my favorite parts of town is the Grand Baazar. This is where you get to see the market forces in real time. The sellars are aggressive. They shout phrases out at you as you pass by. "Yes, please", "Why don't you waste your money on something you don't need", "Looking is for free", "Would you like a water pipe, carpet, tea set, etc","Excuse me." Even outside the bazaar the sellars are aggressive. Men stand outside trying to convince passerbys to eat at their restaurant with phrases like "yummy yummy for your tummy let me help you spend your money." The worst are the parfume sellars on the street. They are relentless. You should never say a word to them. Not even "no." In fact don't even glance at them or they'll hound you. Well, once you get the system down it's not so bad. I bought lots of gifts and souveniers at the Grand Bazaar. It was a lot of fun. I've really learned how to haggle. I wanted to buy some turkish delights. The original price was 2 for 40 lira. I got 3 for 15 lira.

They have an El Torritos there, so I was able to have my first good mexican food in a long time. It was so good I almost wanted to cry. The last day I wandered around the whole city by myself and was able to see lots of interesting parts of town. The only thing I regret is not getting to see is some whirling dervishes. I would love to go back for a third time. I highly recommend Istanbul.