Investigating Istanbul, Turkey

Three days in Istanbul means acting like a Whirling Dervish, an apt description having now seen these twirling masters. So much to see and do, while competing with so many people. During our visit there are four mega cruise ships here. Fellow travelers tell us the city has changed greatly over the last 20-years due to the huge tourist influx.

Even so, due to our guide’s planning and ticketing skills we saw much: the Sultan’s rose garden, Hagia Sophia (now only Muslims allowed in the ground prayer hall), Basilica Cistern, Grand Bazaar, Rustem Pasha Mosque, Hippodrome and Roman ruins, Yalidz (Star) Palace, Turkish rug tutorial and the Spice Bazaar. We also saw the outside of the Blue Mosque, but being a Friday (Moslem prayer day), the public opening hours were limited and a three-hour queue for them!!
Delicious meals at small local restaurants, including a fresh fish meal on the lower level of Bosphorus Bridge while watching the busy ferry service.
So much to see, smell, hear and feel – a colourful cacophony of humanity and their many four-legged friends.

Istanbul’s sensory overload alleviated by a visit to the hammam (our traditional Turkish bathhouse opened in 1584). Here the women in black took charge; first leaving me to relax/cook on a marble slap in the domed thermal room, then sluicing, soaping and scrubbing me all over. I now appreciate how our kitchen sink feels when vigorously scrubbed with steel-wool. Once the large, black crones deemed me clean enough, they passed me, swathed in warm towels, to the masseuse. She whipped away all wrappings and proceeded to knead and roll me like pastry. A final shower to rinse away the oil and a new person emerged. Phew – while it reads a torturous experience it really was enjoyable.
After his bath John went a step further; with a Turkish barber cutting his head, nostril, ear and eyebrow hair.Read more