Last day in Istanbul

Ugo's Day at Cemberlitas Hamam

If she lived here, she would go every week. No appointment necessary. Just walk in, and you are taken care of. She loved it. Our experiences were the same, except that for the women, there is a jacuzzi to relax in after the bath.

Istanbul Grand Bazaar

The Grand Bazaar has been around since the 15th century. You can literally buy anything here, from guys selling " real fake Gucci" to exotic carpets. We hit the Bazaar today. The experience was similar to our in Morocco last year, except that the sale was more respectful.  With more than 4,000 shops, and 40 entrances, it was easy to get lost. And sure enough, we lost our way. Obi continued to amaze us with his sense of direction. All he needs is to go a place once, and he will tell you how to get out. Today, was no exception. We were lost in the bazaar, and had to ask him our way out. Sure enough, he led us back exactly the way we entered. Amazing!

Hippodrome
Built in the 3rd century, this was the Byzantine chariot racetrack capable of holding 100,000 people. It is now a park like space near the Blue Mosque and has three main objects left - the Egyptian Obelisk (1500 BC) which was placed by Emperor Constantine, the Serpentine Column from the Temple of Apollo at Delphi (476 BC), and the column of Constantine VII.

 With the Serpentine Column right behind us:

 
Yerebatan Sarnici/ Basilica Cistern
Built in the 5th century, this was  subterrenean reservoir used to maintain fresh water supply to the city in case of a siege. Constantinople started it but Justinian expanded and finished it. Supported by 336 pillars, it once held about 18 million gallons of water. It is an interesting place, but to imagine that this was conceived and executed more than 1500 years ago blows the mind. Its engineering and design is on the same league as the Roman Aqueduct which we saw in Segovia, Spain last year.

Scenes from James Bond Love from Russia was apparently shot here.

Beautiful picture of the cistern, with the reflecting pool.

There are two Medusa heads, re-used from earlier Greek structures to support some of the pillars. The one way people know they are reused is how one is: upside down:

At the end of the day, the children played at the neighborhood park. The other children were friendly, and played with ours. Wondered why we don't have basic, clean parks in Nigeria where children can go to play. Just wonder whether this is too much to ask for.

Tomorrow, we leave very early for Cappadocia, in central Anatolia. We may not be able to write until we settle in.

As we leave this city, some thoughts:

The people are genuinely nice. Very welcoming to guests.

You need good walking shoes for this city. Lot of hills. No wonder you don't see a lot of overweight people. The transportation system is great. For our one week here, we never used a car or taxi, except for the ride to and from the airport. No need to with the metro, tram and ferries. 

One needs more that a week to fully explore the city. Its history is vast. For history buffs, this place is like a kid in a candy shop. You can explore each subject ad infinitum. Whether one is interested in personalities like Atartuk, the founder of the Republic; Orhan Pamuk, the Nobel Laureate and his writings on Istanbul; Modern Turkey Republic; Ottoman Empire, or even earlier era; the architecture or inherent complexities of the city--there is no shortage of material.