Istanbul, the old Constantinople!

When I came to Turkey, I came through Istanbul but did not have the opportunity to explore the city. Nonetheless, I was eager to visit the city and managed my time anyhow. I booked my hotel and also booked my ticket before one week to travelling to Istanbul. It was 5 AM in the morning and I started my journey through a speed train from Eskisehir. The journey was very comfortable and it took only 2 hours 30 minutes. From the train station in Izmit, I started my journey towards Istanbul main city by bus.

By crossing the Bosporus Bridge over the evergreen Bosporus, which connects the both Europe and Asia continents, I was going to Europe side from Asia side. This old city is the only city in the world which is located in two continents. Once upon a time, it was under Ottoman Empire over the centuries but the history of Istanbul started long ago when Roman Empire reigned in this region. Istanbul was given Constantinople name during its first establishment.

Bosporus view from Europe side.

Bosporus view from Europe side.

My first destination in Istanbul was the Sultan Ahmet mosque, which is popularly known among the tourists as Blue Mosque. I took the metro, transfered to another line and then I got on the tram to reach the Sultan Ahmet mosque. The mosque constructed at the beginning of the seventeenth century during the classical period and taking idea from Mimar Sinan, Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa designed the mosque. The Iznik ceramic tiles, blue paint and stained glass windows made the interior design very magnificent and elegant.

Blue Mosque front side.

The place is free for everyone to enter but has dress code since it is worship place. Don’t worry, they are going to provide you necessary stuffs in the gate to enter into the mosque. When you step into the mosque, you are going to see the following scenario. The place too majestic and classy and don’t forget to capture your photo since taking photo is allowed there.

Blue Mosque interrior view.

This Eurasian city not only beholds the historical remembrance but also attracts tourist for many reasons. One of those reasons is this city has one of the seventh wonders of medieval age, which is the Hagia Sophia mosque, among other beautiful mosques as well as Sufi-dance. The Sufi-dance with flute and Mevlana Rumi songs rhythm will take you to another world where peace seems the only thing. Most of the Sufi can dance more than thirty minutes keeping their hands up and this dance is their passion.

Hagia Sophia entrance gate.

Posing in front of Hagia Sophia.

The Hagia Sophia was originally a Christian church, later an imperial mosque and now it became a museum. After Ottoman Turks conquering the Constantinople, they converted this church into a Mosque and until the Sultan Ahmet Mosque (Blue Mosque) was built, it was the main mosque in Istanbul. Take your time to walk the whole museum. Look all those domes and ceiling, you will see some of them still have Jesus image and Greek letters. You need to buy ticket to access into the Hagia Sophia if you do not have museum card.

Bosporus has one of the oldest and most famous bazaars/markets. And I was going to visit that historical as well as overcrowded Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. My local Turkish friend warned before about the crowd. Since I am from Dhaka, I thought Chandni Chok or Gulistan in Dhaka are the most crowded places on earth. But I was wrong, which I realized when I entered into the Grand Market. I was almost lost in the market amidst the people ocean. There was not any single lane without crowd and everyone was busy for their own business. Later on I came to know the market has around 250, 000 to 500, 000 visitors every single day, since it is one of the largest markets in the world.

Turkish Ceramics in Grand Bazaar.

The grand bazaar has more than five thousands shops and you will get almost everything from Turkish carpet to clothes, furniture, foods, grocery shop, Turkish ceramics, handmade products, and ornaments and so on, in this 600 years old market. In 1455, by the order of the Sultan Mehmet II, the construction work had started and it took six years to complete the construction work. Still now, there are 58 lanes from that time. The market is famous for Turkish carpet with different design and sketches. If you search well you may find out that famous Aladdin’s carpet. Most of the tourists love to buy Turkish ceramic which shows the Turkish tradition of disigning plates, mugs and even watches. The bazar is also relevant for the big gold market in Turkey. All kind of Turkish delights, which are very renowned in Europe and Asia, are available here. And finally, it's remarkable for spices lovers, as this place is ideal for buying different spices from around the globe.

Turkish Delights in Grand Bazaar.

Different kind of teas in Grand Bazaar.

Surrounding the Grand Bazaar, there are different mosques and almost everywhere you will see pigeons and can feed them if you want. The place is also full of Turkish restaurants where you may get all Turkish traditional foods including Turkish kebab. They can prepare kebab in thousands of ways. I tried Turkish doner and fish burger for my lunch.

Photo of Turkish Cat near to Bosporus.

The Turkish cats are as friendly as Turkish people. They are not afraid of human. They will follow you if you feed them and come close to you as well or even jump over you. And Istanbul is full of cats.

In the afternoon, I went to Miniaturk. It is a kind of open air museum displaying miniatures of all the famous places in Turkey. You will come to see from Turkish parliament to Anit Kabir, Cappadocia, Nemrut, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, Hagia Sophia, Bosporus, Ulu Dag, popular old houses in Eskisehir, Pamukkale, Trabzon and so on.

Nemrut Dag photo from Miniaturk.

Photo from Miniaturk.

Finally in the evening, I sat in a café which sells Turkish tea. I was drinking tea on the bank of Bosporus and thinking about the history as well as future of the city. Perhaps, after 500 years this city will create new history.

There are hundreds of places in Istanbul to explore. I couldn’t visit everywhere but if you have time, according to my Turkish friend from Istanbul, don’t miss the following locations- the Topkapi Palace, Galata tower to watch the whole Istanbul, Chora church, Golden Horn, and a dinner on Ferry travel on the Bosphorus.

Happy Journey to Istanbul.

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