Istanbul where the East meets West.
I have been wanting to visit Istanbul ever since I read it on my history book back in college time and I know I will love this city. It is really worth 17 hours flying from home to Istanbul with few hours transit in Abu Dhabi, I was flying with Etihad. Well another great experience to flew with UAE airlines. I was sitting next to a guy from Jeddah, he is pretty cute :), he was flying from Brisbane. We had a conversation through the journey and I found it fascinating to know about how the people in Saudi Arabia lives. I had 5 hours transit in Abu Dhabi where I met a girl from Hongkong and a Thai lady who married to a Greek guy, a Turkish guy who is working in South Korea and thinks I am from Korea - trying to talk to me in Korean :). I flew with Turkish Airlines from Abu Dhabi to Istanbul, which was one of the worst airlines I ever experience, the plane was steaming hot and the seat was very cramped. I dont like the stewardess as well. So after 5 hours steamed on the plane and sitting next to two bitches who didn't let me take my toilet break, I reached Istanbul. The weather was perfect and the hotel sent someone to picked me up :)
I was enchanted by the city, with the road, train and bus system. The city is clean and pretty! It took about 30 minutes to reach Sultanahmet, the heart of Old City in Istanbul, where the hotel located. I really can't wait to explore the city, to see all the amazing buildings here. Istanbul is full with a lot of Byzantium and Ottoman architecture from the Palace to the mosques.
A lot of people warned me about Istanbul especially about the Turkish guys and about the Muslim culture there. Well it is not as bad as I think, the Turkish guys yes - they are not dangerous species but they are very flirty, whenever you are walking on the street they try to get you to buy something from them, some of them are very polite and didn't force you to buy tho.
Me and my bf (ehm..) we stayed at Grand Peninsula hotel, right at the heart of old city - Sultanahmet, it is walking distance to everywhere and also a lot of cool hang out place and restaurant to eat. The hotel is nice, the staff are friendly and helpful. The receptionist gave us a lot of good recommendation for places to eat and hammam. One of the recommended place to it is Tria Elegance Restaurant, all the food here is delicious and their Meze is the best as well the Hummus.
You will not leave Turkey without having a hammam - the Turkish Bath. Me and bf went for Suleymain Bath which is one of the oldest bath in the city and was used by the Sultans. It is one of a good experience. I love it!
Aya Sofia was my first stop. It was a church during Byzantine empire and later it was used as Mosque when Ottoman Empire conquered Istanbul, now it functions as museum. I was amazed by the building and the architecture. The entrance fee for Aya Sofia is 25 TL.
Blue mosque, this is one of the signature buildings in Istanbul where major movie setting like James Bond Skyfall and Taken 2 was shot here. Blue Mosque is not really blue at all, I dont know why the called it Blue Mosque. The mosque is open till late and closes during the prayer. I like the interior of the mosque better than Aya Sofia, to adore the detailing of the painted dome, the mosaic art on the windows, it is just amazing.
Topkapi Palace is the home of Ottoman Sultan. This whole complex was converted to museums. Admission fees is 25TL. It is really worth to check it out, there are plenty of things from ancient era from beautifully crafted swords, armor, cloths, clocks!
Grand Bazaar and Spice bazaar is the place to find Turkish souvenirs, you can bargain and they will happily give you the best price. Try the Turksih delight, it is something like mochi with fruity flavour and pistachio nuts.
Taksim! is the major shopping areas where people hang out and chill, there are plenty restaurants and shops selling local hand made products, accessories, etc. I like to walk around the small alleys, pass through the restaurant. Kim showed me a tea place, this place straight away became my fave place. It is kinda hard to find the main entrance to this secret tea house, it is a very tiny alley, maybe as big as one door size alley between the shops, the more you get into the alley the road become wider and suddenly there is a big court yard full with the tables, chairs and locals having chai. We had two cups of tea before we heading to Galata Tower. There was a big protest in Istanbul while I was there, was not sure what was that about but its peaceful and no violence protest. It was safe.
Galata Tower (reminds me of Rapunzel's tower). You can see the panoramic view of the city from the top of the tower, they have restaurant and night club as well. Admission fee 12TL.
Promegranate juices are everywhere, its Kim's fave. If you buy it around Sulthanamet is more expensive 5TL/cup, around taksim or galata bridge you will find it for 3TL and orange juice for 1TL.
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