Return to Istanbul – Part 1

As I mentioned in my first post on my 2011 trip to Turkey, I have always wanted to visit Istanbul. It seemed like such an amazing, mysterious place and it did not disappoint. Too bad that, by the time we got back there after traveling around the country for a couple of weeks, I was sick as a dog. But sick or not I was determined to soak it all in and see everything I wanted to see.

We had an early morning in Bursa and, immediately after breakfast, took off for the coast to take a ferry across the Sea of Marmara to Istanbul. Although I sort of drifted in and out on the way to where we caught the ferry, once we were on the ferry I was wide away and stood at the front of the railing to take in all of Istanbul as it hove into sight.

Our first stop in Istanbul was the Hippodrome of Constantinople. This track for horse racing and chariot races was built in 203 AD when the city was called Byzantium. In about 324 AD, when Constantine the Great relocated the capitol of the Holy Roman Empire to Byzantium (it was soon renamed Constantinople), he enlarged the Hippodrome to accommodate 100,000 spectators.

The four gilded horses at St Mark’s in Venice were looted from this Hippodrome during the Crusades in 1204. It is believed that the horses originated in either Greece or Rome.

The Serpent Column in the middle of the Hippodrome was removed by Theodosius the Great from the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. It was originally cast to commemorate the victory of the Greeks over the Persians in the Persian Wars of the 5^th century BC. It once had a golden bowl supported by three serpent heads at the top. All that is left now is the base.

In 390 AD, Theodosius the Great brought an obelisk from Karnak in Luxor (dating from about 1490 BC). He had the obelisk cut into three pieces when he moved it to Constantinople. Only the top section survives on a marble pedestal in the same spot where Theodosius originally placed the obelisk.

In 1453, when the Ottomans took over, they built over the Hippodrome. In the 1950s the area was excavated and where the track was has been indicated with paving. We had lunch at a café next to the Hippodrome before making a visit to the Blue Mosque.

Constructed between 1609 and 1616, the Blue Mosque is actually the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. It was built on the foundations of the former Byzantine Grand Palace and got the name of the Blue Mosque because of its interior. It is decorated with thousands of ceramic tiles with the most prominent color being blue. The mosque also has six minarets. It is one of the few mosques that I have been able to visit that is still an active mosque. It is quite beautiful. Fortunately photography was allowed inside.

Next came a cruise on the Bosphorus. We started on the European side. One of the first places we saw was the 19^th century Dolmabahce Palace. This was where the Sultan and his family moved from Topkapi Palace. Topkapi was too old and not stylish enough in his opinion. The new palace was the largest in Turkey. We did not get to tour it. However, it is pretty much of a Victorian European style, so not terribly unique. The Sultan was trying to match his European counterparts.

Built in 1452 by Ottoman Sultan Mehment II, Rumelihiseri (also known as the Fortress of Europe) was originally built for an Ottoman siege on Constantinople. This fortress worked in tandem with the Anadoluhisari (Anatolian Fortress), directly across the Bosphorus (and at its more narrow point), to cut off all naval traffic on the Bosphorus. After the fall of Constantinople (which was then renamed Istanbul and made the new Ottoman capitol) this fortress was used mainly as a customs checkpoint and as a prison.

Immediately after it was built, Mehment used it to levy taxes on any ship using the Bosphorus. A Venetian ship decided to ignore the orders to stop and pay. They were immediately sunk, surviving sailors beheaded, and the captain impaled and used as a human scarecrow as a warning to all other ships.

The Anadoluhisari was built by Sultan Bayezid I in 1396-7 as part of his plan for a siege of Constantinople. The siege was interrupted by a crusade and then a period of turmoil for the Ottomans. After Mehment’s successful siege, this fortress also served as a customs house and as a military prison.

Shortly before we reached the end of the cruise, we passed by the Blue Mosque, Haghia Sophia, and Topkapi Palace. We would be spending the following day exploring these last two buildings and the Grand Bazaar.

That night, we were going out for dinner and entertainment, which included belly dancers. These were not the same type of belly dancers as in Egypt. They were the more common version that are seen in most movies and TV shows where belly dancers are featured.

Once again, I pretty much passed out for the night. I was really looking forward to seeing Haghia Sophia and Topkapi Palace. Both places were legendary and the main reasons why I wanted to visit Istanbul in the first place.