Turkey

** so I started writing this over a month ago. I guess better late than never. I've been busy!

Back in August, I was invited by my friend Karyn to come stay with them in London for Christmas. I looked into the flights and found a really cheap airline that would take me from Kuwait to London, then Paris back to Kuwait (at Christmas and New Years time) for only $500. Heck yeah! While booking the flight I also noticed that I could have a 14 hour layover (7am-9pm) in Istanbul. I had friends who had gone into the city on layovers so I decided to add a third country to my trip.

When I first arrived in Turkey I regretted my decision. There are two airports in Istanbul and one- the one I was flying into- is rather far from the city. At first I tried to just hire a guide/tour so I didn't have to deal with figuring out where to go and how to get there. Most of what I found was more than I wanted to pay. When I found one that would work, he added another $90 when he found out what airport I was flying into. He also acted like it was my fault because I didn't tell him before and I responded that actually it's his fault because he should have asked. Why would I know that airport is a problem?

The other reason I was regretting it is because I was TIRED! It's almost impossible to find flights outside the Gulf region that fly out of Kuwait (and often into Kuwait as well) at a decent hour. My flight left at 3 or 4am, meaning I had to be at the airport 1or 2 am. I tried to nap, but basically I was up all day and all night before heading into town. blurg!

You can check your luggage at the airport- they have luggage storage places for a small fee. I didn't want to see a ton, but I knew I wanted to see the Blue Mosque and maybe a couple more things. Luckily there are a few things all in the same area. The Blue Mosque, The Cisterns, and Hagia Sophia are all pretty much in this square and they are all really amazing. The mix of cultures and the detail and artistry of everything was just really beautiful.

There is also a Turkish Bath right there too and I was smart enough to have a nice bath and massage while I was there. It was perfect! I had the whole super big and beautiful bath to myself. It reminded me of the prefects bath in Harry Potter. And a massage was just what I needed since I was so tired and exhausted.

I made it back to the airport for my 9:20 flight to London no problem. Shortly after my flight left apparently Kurdish rebels attacked the airport (and same airline I was on) with mortars killing one person. Then about two weeks later ISIS was blamed for a deadly bombing that killed 10 tourists right in the square that I visited. :(

So sad and so scary. Can't we all just get along so we can travel and see all these amazing places?!

Check out how cool this was- the fare for the taxi is digitally displayed in the rearview mirror.
It was so much easier to know how much the fare was. 

Selling kebabs in the middle of traffic- yum! I'm sure that meets health standards. 

The taxi driver dropped me in the right neighborhood but not the right spot- lazy jerk.
This is Yeni Cami, or New Mosque, from what I can tell. New as in complete in 1665 new. 

Yeni Cami.

Cool street lights.

Festive bike with cool buildings. Not in Kuwait anymore. 

A sweet shop I passed. 

Chestnuts-- seemed fitting for the season. 

This is Hagia Sophia at sunset. This place was stunning.  

This couple made me laugh- love it!

This place has been everything. Greek Orthodox Cathedral (537-1204), Roman Catholic Cathedral (1204-1261), back to Greek Orthodox Cathedral (1261-1453), Imperial Mosque (1453-1931), and finally a museum. 

They painted over the faces of the angles when it was a mosque. 

They were working to restore it and had two faces revealed. 

The mix of Christian and Islam was pretty cool. 

Look at all the different stones! Beautiful! 

It's hard to tell but that thing at the bottom was a mirror so when you were walking out you noticed the painting behind. 

Baptismal area. 

kitty! 

The Cisterns- built in 532. This place was pretty cool. 

It was constructed using 336 columns- many salvaged from ruined temples.
There's carp in the water. 

Medusa heads. 

The square where everything is. That's Hagia Sophia in the middle, the Cisterns were just to the left and underground, and the Blue Mosque is to the right. The tourist bombing was just to the left in this picture I think.

The Blue Mosque. You can't walk into this building without being solicited several times to buy a carpet. 

Apparently I didn't take that many pictures in here and they all looked the same.
It was still really beautiful and the detail is amazing. 

Can't really take pics in a Turkish bath but this was the cute little kit I got. :)