Istanbul - Topkapi

The Topkapi was interesting, but a little disappointing. I think I was spoiled by seeing the Alhambra first and expecting more for the complex that was the seat of the great Ottoman Empire for over four centuries.But, it would be hard for anything to outshine the Alhambra and Generaliffe and so others do pale a little by comparison.

The Topkapi is now the Turkish Treasury and a museum. What I did find startling was the value of some of the items on display.


They were reputedly genuine and originals; security was tight but not overwhelming. There was one particular diamond that was breath-taking. It made the fictitious Pink Panther look like a small gem by comparison, but no pictures were allowed for many of the more valuable items. When you consider what was allowed, that gives some idea of the values.

These are some examples of models in pure gold and silver given to various Sultans by visiting ambassadors.


These were the most fearsome warriors of their day.


The gardens were beautiful, with a gorgeous mid-May flower display.


The Topkapi is more a complex of buildings, like a walled small town, than a castle. The buildings spread over a fairly large area and are mostly only one or two storeys.


Not all were highly decorated, but those that were were ornate and highly detailed.

Istanbul - Aya Sofia

"The Church of Divine Wisdom". Aya Sofia, Hagia Sophia, however you spell it, it is an amazing building with a long history.



Built in the sixth century as a Christian church, by the time it was conquered by the Turks in 1453 it was the greatest church in the Christian world. After centuries as a Mosque and a centre of learning it became a museum in 1935.

It is simply enormous. I hope the photos give some idea of the scale.


Unfortunately, the signs of age and decay are everywhere, but so are the signs of renovation and preservation. I hope they succeed. Many of the golden mosaics are in very good condition when you look closely, considering their age. It's hard to believe that the gold wasn't all stolen over the millennia.

Istanbul - Basilica Cistern

This was unexpected. I was ignorant of the Roman Basilica Cistern, as are many visitors to Istanbul. We came across the entrance while wandering around the district and decided to have a look.

The Basilica Cistern was built in the 6th Century during the reign of Justinianus. It is 143m(470') long and 65m(215') wide, with 336 marble columns each 9m(30') high arranged in 12 rows of 28 columns. It is surrounded by a 4m(13') thick firebrick wall with a special mortar for insulation against water loss. The water was supplied from the Belgrade Woods, 19km distant, by aqueducts. Some repairs were made in 1968 and a full restoration was completed in 1985; wooden walkways over the water were provided for visitors and it was re-opened for public display in 1987.

The presence of this ancient cistern under the bustle and traffic of the roads of Sultanahment is astonishing. Just the fact that it has continued to exist over the 1500 years since the Romans built it, despite all of the conquerors and invasions during that time, despite natural disasters and the ravages of modern "progress", is a wonder in itself.

Unfortunately my photos don't do it justice as I was still learning some low-light techniques - but hopefully you will get a sense of the place.

The story of the heads of Medusa is on the text photo above; interesting.

Istanbul Wandering

Travel Dates 5th - 8th May 2006

It's funny how the best laid plans of mice and men can go awry - and then result in better outcomes.


When I first planned the trip it became clear that my best option was one of the "One World Alliance" packages, in this case "Global Explorer". Initially my plans were to fly Singapore-Dubai-Cairo-Frankfurt, to ensure all daylight short flights for Lorraine's comfort. But that depended on a flight by Swiss Air. Just before I booked the ticket, Lufthansa took over Swiss and they ceased their association with One World and became a Star Alliance airline. So, I had to find another route. Eventually, I worked out the final route via Istanbul. Serendipity - what a fortunate accident, and what a fascinating and historic city.

I spent a lot of time reading reports from TripAdvisor, Venere, and other hotel booking information sites and eventually booked at the Zeynep Sultan for €64 per night via Venere. We weren't impressed at the first room they put us in, but that was fixed the following morning. The free shuttle from the airport was good (although it wasn't free for return but it was a reasonable price), the staff were friendly and the bed comfortable in the small rooms. The hotel was in a wonderful location in an alley near to everything. In fact, if they hadn't had such good sound-proofing it would have been far too close to the muezzins at 5:30 am. Many rock groups would kill to have amplifiers that loud - I'm sure some must have their own power stations.


The first picture is the view of the Aya Sofia from the front door of the hotel. The view with the pink building on the right is the wall of the Topkapi from the hotel breakfast roof terrace.


The mosque minaret is beside the breakfast terrace - with loudspeakers suitable for a football final in a 200,000 seat stadium.

I'll post separate reports on the Aya Sofia, an incredible building with a fascinating history of it's own, the Topkapi, and the Basilica Cisterns later.

We did our usual thing - wandering, riding on trams, eating at cheap diners and occasionally excellent restaurants, and generally relaxing. At one stage we got lost in the guest worker quarter. In chatting to them in sign language and occasional English most appeared to be from the horn of Africa - Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea - all seemed friendly and cheerful. At no stage did we ever feel threatened in the back streets of Istanbul. or any of the streets, except from some of the drivers of trams and cabs.

These tea-sellers with their back-pack samovars (?) were plying their trade near the Blue Mosque. Some of the architecture - and building standards - was of the "interesting but I wouldn't want to live there" variety.

Have you ever bought a genuine Turkish/Persian carpet and wondered how it got that wonderful "aged" appearance? Have a look at this guy. We were strolling down the street past the horde of spruikers offering wonderful deals and saw this rug on the road with the owner kneeling on it . We were about to tell the truck driver to stop - but couldn't get his attention, but the owner jumped up and let the truck drive over the rug. Then, after the truck passed out came the shop owner with his safety razor and continued to shave the newness of the pile off the top of the rug, which I'd guess was probably mass-produced somewhere in China.


We enjoyed an afternoon at the Bazaar, but were a little disappointed at the range of goods after the pre-trip reading. However, we found better goods, more variety - and less scrupulous operators - on the alleys outside the "official" Bazaar buildings. Less scrupulous in that I was passed a 250000 lira note as 20 new liras change; I didn't look closely enough, to my cost. The taxi driver did though when I mistakenly gave it to him later. One new lira is a million old lira.


We took a tram over the bridge to the north to a wonderful fresh fish market; well, I thought it was wonderful, Lorraine just thought it was smelly. Istanbul's incredible population of feral cats all thought it was wonderful too. I kept thinking of old TC cartoons. One of the more pleasant moments was a drink at a cafe on the underside of the bridge, over the water (testing the ability of the Fuji F10 to take timer shots here).