Ok, not that I thought it was. But if after about 7 hours of hardcore tourism and 219 pictures, I was still confused, that would be pretty sad. And I am pretty proud, because only the training I have endured in the last 2.5 months could possibly have allowed me to be a tourist for such a long, concentrated time. Whew.
Istanbul's sights (done all in one day): The Aya Sofia, Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, and Topkapı palace. The Blue Mosque is called that because of the roof and the tiles on the inside. It's stunning, really. And the Muslim commitment to prayer, as it's been explained to me, is really quite beautiful, most in the respect the institution itself commands, particularly with the need to just be pure of mind and body entering the mosque. There were fountains outside where people were washing preparing for prayer, and even through the throngs of tourists, I felt that this gorgeous and exceptionally grand mosque was really a majestic place.
The number one tourist spot in Turkey, the Aya Sofia, however, was not. I don't know - people seem to say it matters which one of the two you see first, but the Aya Sofia, while bigger, was dark and not as pretty. I suppose it has more history, but it's not great. The Basilica Cistern was a humongous cistern. It was cool. There were fish. And Medusa sculptures. And they charged 10 YTL ($9 or so), the same as all other places. Not really worth it, but ah well.
The Palace defined opulence. I mean, if you think of "sultan" as opposed to "emperor", you think of Islam and opulence, right? Well, there was a mosque, so that's covered. And then three rooms of collected treasures, including a suit of mail studded with gems and gold, an 86 carat diamond surrounded by 49 other diamonds used as a turban ornament, and a canteen of gold and gemstones instead of, well, leather. Cuz that's how the sultan rolls. There were hundreds of other things, as well as a harem, the kitchens/kitchenware, Mohammed's robe, and great views. It was pretty damn impressive, but quite tiring. And after hour seven of tourism, I collapsed.
Turns out I have traveler's sickness, so I wasn't just tired, but it's a mild case, and I'm fighting through it. The rest of Istanbul is basically a very nice hub for nightlife. Istiklal Cadessa is the crazy crazy main street, and as the guidebook says, just turned on any side street for a raki-soaked (or beer in my case) night on the town. The national beer, Efes, is actually not bad. We went to a bar full of wanna-be Rastafarians and it was pretty funny, actually, until the stomach cramps got the better of me. I'll probably meet the German guys I was with in Berlin so that can show me around some, so that's another plus for the night.
Since I exhausted the tourism the first day, the next we caught a ferry to the Asian side of Istanbul. It looked a lot like the European, but woo, we were in Asia! And drinking beer at 2 PM. And we ate fish sandwiches plucked out of the strait and grilled. And that was day two in a nutshell.
I definitely felt there was a great energy in Istanbul, especially in the nightlife area, and I could likely live there. Except for the disappointing lack of egg breakfasts anywhere outside of McDonald's - that would drive me nuts. I'll likely return someday - it seems the rest of Turkey, especially the Aegean coast, would be a cool place to vacation. Though I am definitely relieved not to have to deal with the morning call to prayer (4:30 AM wake-up call) in Muslim countries any more. Now I'm in Krakow, at a rival for the coolest hostel yet. More stories to come!
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