The inedible Turkey…

Thanksgiving was a bit, well, different this year. The day began with my normal routine: wake up, put on my work clothes, and make my 5 minute trek down the hill to the school. Upon entering the college counseling office I was greeted with two things often found there: sweets and personal statements. But today, the ratio was off. Lillian, the head counselor, brought in some treats for us, as well as brownies to be sold at the Thanksgiving Bake Sale! I began editing essays as usual, but the day was sprinkled with a few more fun activities than usual. I was able to sneak off for two of the Thanksgiving celebrations going on in the theater. I saw two adorable 8th graders present on the different ways people celebrate holidays of thanks around the world, as well as a hilarious talent show put on by one of the two high schools. The high school did their own rendition of America’s Got Talent, calling it “Athens College’s Got Talent,” with prinicipals acting as judges. Acts included: two boys break dancing, a group of girls dressed up and singing “Dancing Queen,” a few guitar players, and a ballet dancer. I was both impressed and entertained. It was so fun seeing the kids outside of the classroom setting! After the lively day of school, it was off to the airport for our three day weekend. Allyson and I had been invited to Istanbul by two of the teachers from Psychico College. It was a spontaneous decision to go-we found €65 tickets round trip just a week before Thanksgiving.

Our trip started with a bang…literally. While waiting in the Istanbul Airport for our fellow travellers to arrive (the two teachers, Nancy and Maria), Allyson and I were not about to let our guard down. “You are going to Istanbul with a group of only girls?!” “Always hold your purse close to you.” “You are going to really stand out with blonde hair.” “Don’t carry too much cash.” “Remember the movie Taken!!” These were all phrases we had both heard. Needless to say, when we heard a crash, saw men running around near the airport customs line, and were already alarmed by how many police officers were carrying around large guns, we were not about to stay put where we were waiting. We couldn’t tell what all the ruckess was; all we knew was that if something were to break out… we would be in the direct line of fire. We discreetly scurried away from the scene and hid in duty free–fine, this hiding location may have been some what intentional. Now don’t worry, nothing too terrible happened. Apparently it was not some sort of threat or bomb scare. Rather, some scaffolding had fallen on a guy who was sitting near a construction area; they ended up carrying him off on a stretcher and the airport went back to normal. “Welcome to Istanbul!” we both thought.

Day One:

We woke up early and took a boat tour along the Bosphorous. This tour included an hour stop in ASIA!! (part of Turkey is located in Asia…making half the country Asians and half the country Europeans??) We then got coffee in Asia during which we could hear the call to prayer coming from the mosque right next to us. Later we ate lunch/dinner at a very authentic Turkish restaurant.

Our night activities were my favorite part of day one. First we went to see the Whirling Dervishes. This was a lot of fun and very interesting to see.  I never realized that it was such a religiously tied practice though; much of the demonstration included bowing and praying. And I will admit, I was a bit disappointed with the spinning speed. Nonetheless, the twirling men sure were graceful and fascinating to watch. Next up… BELLY DANCING. No no no, I did not belly dance–We went to a belly dancing show. There were belly dancers, knife throwers, folk dancers, and a man playing an old Sultan, oh my!  We watched the show at the top of Galata Tower, an old prison turned restaurant, while we enjoyed all you can eat fruit and wine. Highly recommended to all who visit Turkey. There is also a dinner option.

Day Two:

On the second day, we started the day exploring a small bazaar we stumbled upon. I bought some apple tea, pomegranate tea, and some cinnamon sticks our new friend threw in for free. Boy was that 5′ 2″ Turkish man energetic. He ran around his little store haggling with customers and weighing out tea. We asked to take a picture with our new friend and he jumped at the chance. I don’t think anyone has been so excited for a picture before!! After hitting the bazaar, we visited the major sites of Istanbul: the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and Topkapi. While being an popular tourist site, the Blue Mosque, built in the early 1600s, is still an active mosque. It is technically called the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. Topkapi is the palace where the various sultans lived during their reign. It has now been turned into a museum. Finally, Hagia Sophia (seen in this picture) originated as an Orthodox Church.  In 1453, when the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinole, which is curent-day Istanbul, the church was converted into a mosque. Hagia Sophia is the most visited site in Istanbul. It was fascinating to see the religious identity crisis still existing in the mosque–there were Christian murals covered with hanging pendants bearing the name of Islam’s Allah.

Everything was beautiful. I think the most striking part for me though was not the magnificence of the architecture or the beauty of the interiors. It was the moment when, inside the Blue Mosque, I turned around to see the “women’s section” in the back.  Apparently the women are forced to prayer in the rear of the mosque, even behind those touring/visiting the mosque, while the men go to the front in the large area roped off from visitors. For some reason, that really hit me hard.

After the sites we enjoyed a nice, traditional Turkish dinner, during which Allyson and I tried “Testi Kabab.”  Yup, that’s right, it we chose to try a dish called “testi kabab” and boy was it delicious!! We were told by the owner that this dish is cooked in a ceramic pot, lit on fire in front of you, and then cracked open- how could we not try this!!! The best way to describe it would be to call it  a chicken stew of sorts, mixed with vegetables. They served it with couscous and I highly recommend it to anyone traveling to Turkey.

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We finished the night off with drinks at the 360 club, a swanky bar overlooking the city. There were people dining as well as enjoying cocktails, and at about 11pm the experience was complete with  an aerial fabric performance. Yup, right there in the middle of the club/restaurant, a women gracefully swung and twirled from a sheet of fabric hanging from the ceiling. What a way to cap off our last night in the city!

Day 3

Before heading off to the airport, we poked around the city a bit more. First we went to the Basilica Cistern. I would have to say this was my favorite site. It is like descending into another world that you shouldn’t know about. The cistern is deep underground and filled with water. You walk along bridges while the sound and smell of water droplets can be felt all around you. We then finished off the day with another small bazaar by the Blue Mosque where we did some shopping, met friendly (and some not so friendly) shop keepers, and sipped apple tea.

Now, you may have noticed that a very important part of Istanbul is missing from our list of activities… the Grand Bazaar. Don’t think we simply forgot this major site–sadly, the bazaar was not open while we were there due to the observation of a large religious holiday being celebrated.

Finally, I will admit that going to Turkey with two Greeks added a, well, interesting aspect to our trip.  It opened up my eyes to the fact that many Greeks still feel a divide. We were constantly hearing about what things were really Greek (according to them, pretty much everything) and they wouldn’t join us in touring the Blue Mosque. Apparently they “didn’t want to take their shoes off.”  Also, I don’t think we would have ventured over to see the Church of St. George  had it not been for our Greek friends. According to them, “this church is to Greece what the Vatican is to Rome.” It is a Greek Orthodox Church located in the heart of Istanbul, which is, according to them, a very very big deal considering the past of these two countries.

Overall, it was a wonderful trip. While I was turned off by how dirty and overcrowded it was in many places (and disgusted by the many men blatantly staring and making cat calls), I would highly recommend it to others!!

Keep checking back for more pictures… I will post some in the next few days (when I can go somewhere with faster internet).