Alright so this is an edit to my previous "Istanbul in a Nutshell" post. I am now in Calcutta with more time because internet/everything is cheaper. Pictures will be added to previous posts soon!
Nık, Marıssa, and I began our month or so of travelıng together by being thrown into Istanbul. The first day Marissa and I got in (after a 10 hour bus ride), our host Tarik took us to get some Turkish hamburger that was soaked in some kind of red sauce. It was really yummy! The next morning, we also started bright and early with a day of sight seeing with Tarik, 3 Polish CSers, and Jake from New York. Since we were staying on the Asian side of Istanbul, we took the ferry and various buses to the European touristy side.
Once we were back in Europe, we started by seeing the Topkapi palace. This place was where the Sultans lived back in the day and they had it good! The place was beautiful. From the architecture to the tiled walls, guilded entrances, and elaborate gifts, I was stunned at the luxuriousness of it all. The hall that showed all the gifts from around the world to the Sultan had more rubies, emeralds, gold, jade, diamonds, and ivory than I ever thought I would see in my life! The whole time I couldn't help but hum Aladin tunes. You would too.
After the palace, we had a delicious bean lunch near the Istanbul University. Fully fueled, we then hiked back to the Blue Mosque. This was a Friday, and Fridays to Muslims are like Sundays to Catholics. They are required to go to the Mosque for noon time prayer. That being said, we waited a bit for the prayer to conclude before we could enter the building. Speaking of Islamic daily prayer, the city has such a strong Islamic influence that from any point in the city you can hear the call to prayer from some mosque. The chants play on loud speakers at the predetermined times (5am is one of them, apparently).
So we saw the Blue Mosque (Well, lots of mosques actually. They're everywhere). And then we headed back to Tarik's house for the night.
Saturday, we stared off the day with a DELICIOUS breakfast by Tarik. He made us omelets and we had bread with oil, watermelon, olives, feta cheese. And this is where the blog title comes in. Nik loves watching sugar dissolve in tea. One thing Turks love is chai tea, so Tarik served us loads of Chai tea (which I am obsessed with!) Every time we got another serving, Nik would watch the sugar and Tarik caught on and exclaims "sugar fetish!" Once that happened, I think Nik saw the whole trip flash before his eyes because Marissa and I won't let him live that one down. Anywho,
Tarik took us to one of the Prince Islands (the biggest one) where he showed us a Greek Orthodox Church at the top peak of the island. St. George's Monastery is apparently a big pilgrimage site for their church that many people walk in the summer time. People also bring little pieces of cloth to tie around the trees by the monastery to make a wish.
The Island was really cute with lots of old beach houses, but also many modern vacation homes. No cars were allowed, so there were only bikes and horse-drawn carriages. But don't think that that made walking around any easier. Those carriages will take you out if you're not careful.
That night, Tarik was nice enough to make us a fish dinner (caught by his dad) along with some pasta covered in some yogurt topping with the consistency of Parmesan cheese. It was reallllly good! Then Michaela, another CSer, arrived, and we headed to another part of town to check out the night life a bit. Very interesting. First of all, it was raining. I had no sweater and was wearing a halter dress. Therefore, all a little miserable, we decided to refuel at a Burger King (they are hard to avoid). Second, the places we went to played the strangest mix of 90s, Spanish, and Balkan music. Balkan music... not sure how to dance to that. But it was fun! Afterwards, Tarik treated us to some mussels which was a first for me, and I loved it!
Finally, on Sunday, Nik, Marissa, and I got up early to go to mass at St. Anthony of Padua Catholıc Church. The mass was very interesting. There was no choir because the priests and choir had gone to another bigger celebration for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood. So mass was quiet, but the Franciscan priest was super nice and explained a lot about how Catholic Churches are hard to find. Apparently they are restricted as to where they can be and they are mostly all off the main streets. St. Anthony's was well hidden, but the architect did a good job making it look like a Catholic Church with a nice little courtyard in the front.
Finally, we passed by the Galata Tower, buılt by Italıans to monıtor trade routes, on our way to the Grand Bazaar which is supposed to be a crazy big market place.... but SURPRISE! It's closed on Sundays. boo. So we had a chill day and went home to take a nap.
That night, we had a final meal with Tarik and his party of CSers. He made us delicious tomato rice, chicken, and meatballs. We had lots of great conversation, even seeing pictures from Tarik's family albums. We finished off the night with delicious ice cream! The ıce cream here ıs a dıfferent texture... kınd of stıcky I guess? Tarik said it is made from the syrup of Orchid seeds. The best part about gettıng ıce cream in town, though, ıs the performances the men do for you. They do all kinds of tricks it is hard to follow! Hopefully, I'll be able to post a vıdeo soon!
Nık, Marıssa, and I began our month or so of travelıng together by being thrown into Istanbul. The first day Marissa and I got in (after a 10 hour bus ride), our host Tarik took us to get some Turkish hamburger that was soaked in some kind of red sauce. It was really yummy! The next morning, we also started bright and early with a day of sight seeing with Tarik, 3 Polish CSers, and Jake from New York. Since we were staying on the Asian side of Istanbul, we took the ferry and various buses to the European touristy side.
Once we were back in Europe, we started by seeing the Topkapi palace. This place was where the Sultans lived back in the day and they had it good! The place was beautiful. From the architecture to the tiled walls, guilded entrances, and elaborate gifts, I was stunned at the luxuriousness of it all. The hall that showed all the gifts from around the world to the Sultan had more rubies, emeralds, gold, jade, diamonds, and ivory than I ever thought I would see in my life! The whole time I couldn't help but hum Aladin tunes. You would too.
After the palace, we had a delicious bean lunch near the Istanbul University. Fully fueled, we then hiked back to the Blue Mosque. This was a Friday, and Fridays to Muslims are like Sundays to Catholics. They are required to go to the Mosque for noon time prayer. That being said, we waited a bit for the prayer to conclude before we could enter the building. Speaking of Islamic daily prayer, the city has such a strong Islamic influence that from any point in the city you can hear the call to prayer from some mosque. The chants play on loud speakers at the predetermined times (5am is one of them, apparently).
So we saw the Blue Mosque (Well, lots of mosques actually. They're everywhere). And then we headed back to Tarik's house for the night.
Saturday, we stared off the day with a DELICIOUS breakfast by Tarik. He made us omelets and we had bread with oil, watermelon, olives, feta cheese. And this is where the blog title comes in. Nik loves watching sugar dissolve in tea. One thing Turks love is chai tea, so Tarik served us loads of Chai tea (which I am obsessed with!) Every time we got another serving, Nik would watch the sugar and Tarik caught on and exclaims "sugar fetish!" Once that happened, I think Nik saw the whole trip flash before his eyes because Marissa and I won't let him live that one down. Anywho,
Tarik took us to one of the Prince Islands (the biggest one) where he showed us a Greek Orthodox Church at the top peak of the island. St. George's Monastery is apparently a big pilgrimage site for their church that many people walk in the summer time. People also bring little pieces of cloth to tie around the trees by the monastery to make a wish.
The Island was really cute with lots of old beach houses, but also many modern vacation homes. No cars were allowed, so there were only bikes and horse-drawn carriages. But don't think that that made walking around any easier. Those carriages will take you out if you're not careful.
That night, Tarik was nice enough to make us a fish dinner (caught by his dad) along with some pasta covered in some yogurt topping with the consistency of Parmesan cheese. It was reallllly good! Then Michaela, another CSer, arrived, and we headed to another part of town to check out the night life a bit. Very interesting. First of all, it was raining. I had no sweater and was wearing a halter dress. Therefore, all a little miserable, we decided to refuel at a Burger King (they are hard to avoid). Second, the places we went to played the strangest mix of 90s, Spanish, and Balkan music. Balkan music... not sure how to dance to that. But it was fun! Afterwards, Tarik treated us to some mussels which was a first for me, and I loved it!
Finally, on Sunday, Nik, Marissa, and I got up early to go to mass at St. Anthony of Padua Catholıc Church. The mass was very interesting. There was no choir because the priests and choir had gone to another bigger celebration for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood. So mass was quiet, but the Franciscan priest was super nice and explained a lot about how Catholic Churches are hard to find. Apparently they are restricted as to where they can be and they are mostly all off the main streets. St. Anthony's was well hidden, but the architect did a good job making it look like a Catholic Church with a nice little courtyard in the front.
Finally, we passed by the Galata Tower, buılt by Italıans to monıtor trade routes, on our way to the Grand Bazaar which is supposed to be a crazy big market place.... but SURPRISE! It's closed on Sundays. boo. So we had a chill day and went home to take a nap.
That night, we had a final meal with Tarik and his party of CSers. He made us delicious tomato rice, chicken, and meatballs. We had lots of great conversation, even seeing pictures from Tarik's family albums. We finished off the night with delicious ice cream! The ıce cream here ıs a dıfferent texture... kınd of stıcky I guess? Tarik said it is made from the syrup of Orchid seeds. The best part about gettıng ıce cream in town, though, ıs the performances the men do for you. They do all kinds of tricks it is hard to follow! Hopefully, I'll be able to post a vıdeo soon!
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