Since vacationing in Turkey and Greece in 2013, Alex and I have been looking forward to returning to this part of the world; unfortunately, our re-entry into Istanbul was a little rough.
We left South Africa gearing up for nearly 20 hours of travel time before reaching Istanbul via a brief layover in Dubai. As our flight neared the Dubai airport over an hour past its scheduled arrival time (perhaps because our flight path completely bypassed Saudi Arabia?), we realized we were probably going to miss our connecting flight. “No problem,” I reassured Alex as we knew there were many direct flights from Dubai to Istanbul and it was the airline’s fault we had missed the flight. Turns out booking an around-the-world ticket via Star Alliance and adding connections via other airlines makes for a very complicated rebooking process. It took multiple agents from Emirates, Luftansa and Turkish Air to rebook our flight to Istanbul – for the following morning.
Spending an extra 24 hours in Dubai was not part of our original itinerary, but the setup at the Emirates section of the Le Meridian airport hotel (yes, the airline has their own hotel for situations just like ours) was pretty nice. Emirates covered the cost of our stay plus three meals at any of the 15 restaurants on the massive property so Alex and I spent the day nursing our jetlag and taking advantage of the fitness center and excellent WiFi.
Upon arrival at the Dubai airport the next morning, Alex and I quickly realized we were not yet in the clear; getting on our flight required the assistance of various agents, phone calls between all three airlines and a final sprint across the massive terminal that left me breathless as we walked across the gate. Arriving in Istanbul was no small feat!
Alex and I powered through on arrival though and headed straight to lunch near our hotel before venturing to the Grand Bazaar to scope out the shops and hone our bargaining skills. Since we remembered the hot summer weather we’d experienced in August, we were surprised to find Istanbul so chilly and wet – I needed to buy another sweater! After an early dinner at a nearby restaurant and some trip planning – we are currently rethinking our upcoming European itinerary because the Greek islands don’t seem quite as appealing in the cold, wind and rain – we raced home in the pouring rain to rest up for a day of sightseeing.
Tuesday morning we headed into the historic Sultanahmet District to revisit some of our favorite sights.
Even on a cold, cloudy day, the Blue Mosque is pretty impressive.
Looking up at the beautiful archways inside the Blue Mosque.
After a while, my neck seriously started to hurt from looking up!
We had planned to visit Hagia Sophia next but quickly remembered why we had not done so two years ago - the crazy long line! We instead walked to Topkapi Palace and spent some time exploring the beautiful gardens there.
It looks like spring but I actually couldn't feel my feet when Alex took this picture.
The gardens within Gulhane Park were full of Tulips, which Istanbul is well-known for during springtime, as well as Muscari, which looked like little purple grapes.
Colorful sign near the park entrance.
After feeling a few raindrops we grabbed a quick lunch nearby to warm up and prepare our strategy for a final session at the Grand Bazaar. Alex was a patient and expert negotiator and I left with the bag I had been eyeing. We dropped off our purchases at the hotel and walked to our evening activity: a Turkish cooking class.
Compared to the classes we took in Japan and Thailand, which were more hands-on and individualized, this class fell a little short of our expectations. We were also appalled at the amount of oil used in every dish but we still had a great time making and eating some Turkish food!
Alex is an excellent onion chopper but I steered clear of the chopping "sword!"
We woke up early this morning and were delighted to see blue skies and sunshine! Enjoying the clearer weather – though not warmer temperatures - we headed back to the Hagia Sophia, relieved to find a much short line at the entrance. We spent a solid hour just wandering through the massive church-turned mosque and learning a bit more about the building’s interesting past.
A little less crowded in front of Hagia Sophia today!
We had a hard time getting a shot of the full interior!
Checking out the imposing chandeliers overhead.
We actually had to wait in a queue to take a photo of the Blue Mosque from a small window in Hagia Sophia...worth it!
Back at the Blue Mosque, but blue skies today!
First time we needed our shades while in Istanbul!
For lunch, Alex and I headed to Orkatoy, a neighborhood on the water that our Turkish friends had recommended to us the last time we visited. We immediately recognized The House Café as the restaurant we had enjoyed two years earlier so we stopped there again and had a great non-Turkish meal. Afterward, we strolled along the water and briefly checked out the Orkatoy Mosque.
View of the Orkatoy Mosque and Bosphorus Bridge connecting the European and Asian sides of Istanbul
View of the Bosphorus.
We hailed a taxi to Taksim and meandered through the streets, doing a little shopping along the way, before walking back over the Galata Bridge toward our hotel.
We stopped to watch the many ferries pass beneath us.
Looking back at the Galata Tower.
We watched from our hotel rooftop as the sun set over Istanbul and finished the night with a traditional Turkish dinner – complete with Raki and a fiery clay pot entrée. Tomorrow we have an early flight to Izmir; we are sad we didn’t get more time in Istanbul but excited to explore a different part of Turkey!
Not a bad rooftop view for our last night.