When Alexandra and I began planning our trip, the first place that came to my mind was Istanbul. It seemed so distant, geographically and in terms of how little I knew about it, and I wanted to get out of my comfort zone a bit.
When we arrived, we were out of our comfort zone. Everything seemed so foreign. The people, the prayers...
But it didn't take long before we both fell in love with the city. I've never been anywhere like it. It's a place where you see breathtaking mashups of Eastern and Western influences. A land of Sultans and their immaculate palaces, elaborate architecture, bountiful spices, layers and layers of religions and rich history. So many beautiful designs, textures and styles.
The people aren't so different than anywhere else, generally quite kind and friendly, working hard to support their families. The prayers are mysteriously beautiful. Over the days that we were there, they became comforting to hear.
And the food... it was great to taste Asian flavors for the first time in a long time. The grilled meats, roasted seafood, light and airy pita bread, perfect tea. Everything was deliciously spiced, everything was so good.
I finally realized the genius of döner kebap, where meat is on a vertical rotisserie, so that the meat is always sliced against the grain. I always thought that the towers of meat were a bit odd -- I was just naive and didn't get it. Spiced grilled meats cut with cool yogurt was never on my radar of foods that I craved, but I find myself craving it a lot ever since I left Istanbul.
We want to go back. There's so much more beauty to take in, so much more history and culture to learn about and experience. Shown below are some of our favorite pictures from our first visit to Istanbul.
First up, Alexandra buying ice cream (she and I disagree on this, but I think this was the best ice cream we had on the entire trip. Yes, even better than gelato in Italy!)...
Hagia Sophia on a gorgeous day. On our first day, we took the funicular to the metro to the Grand Bizarre, then walked back across the Galata Bridge to our apartment in the Beyoğlu neighborhood.
A view across the water from the Old City. Galata Tower, well, towers over the other buildings.
Fishermen on the Galata Bridge.
The Sultan is fancy!
A typical window in the Sultan's Palace. All gold, no big deal.
Inside Hagia Sophia.
Lanterns for sale in the Grand Bizarre.
Amazing tilework inside the Blue Mosque.
Turkish Delights!
Döner Kebap!
Turkish Carpets!
A view of the Old City from Galata Tower.
And some other cool sights we saw and things we ate and drank...
