Five Days, Three Continents, Three Cameras

Hopefully my week-long departure from the blogosphere did not leave any of you of utmost faithful readers worried (or doubting) my return; the literal and digital vacation was quite nice, but, as usual with such vacations, I returned to a fair amount of work as soon as we started burning rubber on the Cairo International tarmac. Unfortunately, as per-usual with successful vacations as well is the disappearance of any internal motivation to do such work. So Tuesday and Wednesday was 75% procrastination, 20% confusion, and about 5% real work. Yet, to be honest, this is typical to most of my days here.

For those who haven't been faithfully reading (and why not?), I have returned from a five-day, glorious trip to Istanbul. Only 772 miles away from Cairo--almost entirely of which are over water--Istanbul is an entirely different world. Compared to Cairo, I felt as if I had entered the apex of modernity and "Westernism," even though I was still technically in the "Middle East" and the "developing world."

However, rather than overwhelm you with a minute-by-minute, photo-intensive recollection of my five day respite, which would also entail me investing several hours of time into one bloc, I have decided to appease the muses of efficiency and efficacy and report on Istanbul over several days, day by day. I have a lot to comment on, but, then again, I would describe myself as verbose. So, consider my trip to Istanbul yet another recurring series on this blog--Istanbul Isplorations (rather than Explorations) if you will. Also, a special note: my camera broke halfway through the trip, so I will be relying on others' photos.

Istanbul Isploration Day 0
Almost as soon as I published the previous entry to this blog from an AUC computer lab, I hailed a taxi and attempted to finagle my way with my limited Egyptian Arabic to get a cheap ride to the airport. No dice: I ended up paying 55 LE, which approaches outrageous, and was also almost delivered to the wrong airport (a strictly domestic budget airport, in the Imbaba slum) because I was trying to make small talk (read: practice my past tense conjugations) with the cab driver and explain that I had spent the previous weekend in Bawati (see previous post). Apparently he thought I wanted to go to Bawati rather than Istanbul. After redirecting him, we sat in pre-Iftar traffic for a good 1.5 hours, usually in awkward silence since my Egyptian Arabic teacher foolishly hasn't taught our class how to speak in the present tense (she has since capitulated and informed us that we may, if we're lucky, learn before leaving for winter break. I can't wait to use my Egyptian Arabic present tense in Iowa and Minnesota.) and my cab driver spoke no English (or at least feigned ignorance).

After gathering a significant amount of back sweat due to the stifling conditions of the 1960's Fiat cab, the driver dropped me off at the entrance to Terminal 2 (the international terminal) of Cairo International Airport. He couldn't actually enter the airport, and I had to board a bus to actually arrive at the terminal. As is the case with traveling, it was the wrong terminal. Who knew that Istanbul was actually a domestic destination? Given the placement of certain international cities in the domestic terminal, one would think that enough travelers would make my same mistake to justify an inter-terminal transportation service. But none such thing existed, and I was barred by an Egyptian guard from simply walking to Terminal 1 (about a mile away). As taxis are not allowed to enter the airport area, I had to bribe a package delivery driver to ferry me to Terminal 1.

After checking in, I perused the abundance of Duty Free shops in the airport as well as visited the preposterously-priced "coffee area" of the airport, where Starbucks (one of two in Egypt), The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Costa Coffee, Beano Coffee, and Cilantro (a coffee shop) all had kiosks strategically placed next to each other. They actually all shared a sitting area--talk about perfect competition.

The flight was relatively uneventful, save for the fact that I was randomly placed in an exit row. Apparently Egypt hasn't ascertained that one now charge someone extra to risk their life and potentially martyr themselves for the sake of the other passengers, as they do in America. In said exit row, I sat next to a Turkish gynecologist-turned-pharmaceutical representative, who let me in on all of the secrets of the Turkish clubs. Also of note: I would wager that AUC international students were a good half of the plane's population.

Upon landing in the ultra-chic Ataturk International Airport, I rendezvoused with my travel partner Halley, who has so graciously agreed to write about her experiences on this very blog (stay tuned), bought our entrance visas, and headed for Taksim Square, the heart of European Istanbul.

"Where were we staying?" you might be asking. And I sheepishly say "Oh, you know. With a guy we met on the Internet." Did your stomach churn? Are you incredulously doubtful? And here's where I assuage your fears and suspicions and advertise a phenomenon which I recently discovered (props to my roommate Dave, who has another column for the UCSD paper here). It's called CouchSurfing, and it's a social networking website where one can meet people around the world for a more authentic (and perhaps cheaper) traveling experience, whether that be meeting a local for coffee/drinks or staying at someone's home. And it has several security mechanisms, which, at least in its nascent state, contributes to its overwhelming success among its practitioners. So, Halley & I arranged to stay in a two bedroom flat shared by a 24-year-old former Michiganian and a black-humored 22-year-old Englishman, the former of which was a real estate agent/hotel manager and the latter an English teacher (I came to find that a noticeably smaller population in Turkey speaks any degree of English compared to Egypt). I only had to send them an SMS upon arriving in Taksim Square.

Which is where we soon were, amidst the efficient public buses, crowded bars (oh my!), schwanky restaurants, abject lack of hijabs, falling leaves, and cold temperatures, undergoing a mild sense of culture shock, for Egypt lacks all of these. What I also lacked at first was a working cell phone, but after several tries at powering it down and turning it back on, I managed to pick up the Turkish Vodafone network, where I was charged a mere 34 LE (over $6) per minute of call time (in Egypt, it's 0.20 LE). After contacting Josh, the Michiganian, he left the bars and scooped up our two confused selves and delivered us to his apartment.

At the time, Josh worked five jobs (he quit one while we were there) and about 100 hours a week. He assured us that he enjoyed not having days replete with free time, and I'm assuming he enjoyed a steady (and powerful) stream of income. He was an interesting guy who had spent a summer in Cairo, and thus could understand our cultural prostration. He recommended a large stein of Efes as a panacea, and directed us to one of the 400+ bars lining the Istiklal (Turkish for Independence), the Champs d'Elyesses of Istanbul. He gave us a key to the apartment, showed us his couch (and, implicitly, his floor), and pushed us out of his apartment. We chose a bar, I doubledosed on Josh's recommended remedy, and we didn't return to the apartment until 3 AM.

Istanbul Isploration Day 1:
After spending the night on the floor and being viciously attacked/rudely awoken by Josh's teething cat (which he proclaims to be schizophrenic), we were up early, quite eager to see Istanbul by day. Outside, the sun and breeze virtually beckoned us out of the flat.

The view from Josh's apartment window, overlooking the Bosporus Strait.

Halley partook in borek for breakfast, which is filo dough and potatoes, while I had some nameless dish composed of lasagna noodles and goat cheese. Turkey is quite expensive, especially given the dollar's plummet; 1 USD gets one 1.18 Turkish lira, and breakfast was 3 YTL (only outrageous because of Egyptian standards).

We walked throughout the district of Beyoglu (the g is silent), the most "European" area of the city, for it was the Italian/French merchant's quarters in the initial development of Istanbul. In typical European fashion, the area is saturated with fashion boutiques, expensive cafes, nightclubs, and cobblestoned alleys which romantically wind aimlessly throughout the neighborhood, allowing one to stumble upon the discovery of even more of the aforementioned.

Overlooking Beyoglu and across the Good Horn (not the Bosporus).

Our destination was the Sultanahmet, an area in the Eminonu district across the Good Horn which is the major tourist area of Istanbul, for it possesses the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofya, and Tokapi Palace (where the Ottoman sultans withered away their days in unsustainable luxury). However, our walk led us through the other side of Eminonu first, which is flanked by another two large mosques: the New Mosque and the Mosque of Suleiman the Magnificent.

Admiring Suleiman's mosque from across the water.


The bridges of Istanbul are lined with casual fishermen.


Halley gets some face time. Also, the Beyoglu area (prominently featuring the Galata Tower) seen from the bridge. The Turkish flag is more prominent in Istanbul than anywhere in the United States or Egypt--or anywhere that I've been.

Upon arriving in Eminonu, we fittingly visited the Egyptian Market (in Engish, it's advertised as the Spice Bazaar), where I feasted on Turkish Delight (cliched) and observed others scooping up Turkish Viagra (also a cliche?) while being overwhelmed with the scents of saffron and paprika which shopkeepers dust into the air to lure in loosehanded tourists. However, dominating the Bazaar is the New Mosque, which actually used to operate the Bazaar to generate funds for its continual construction and upkeep.

The New Mosque, from its side.


It's very difficult to take pictures inside these mosques, as they're not just rather dark, but also expansive enough that flashes are not effective. However, here's the ceiling of the New Mosque, which is a stark departure from the austerity of the interiors' of Egyptian mosques.

It was only a long walk over a hill (Istanbul is built on seven of them) to reach the Sultanahmet, which features ridiculously priced Turkish patisseries and bars in addition to its tourist attractions. Yes, I may have spent 6 YTL on coffee and a sandwich. Yes, I may be a little bitter. But, seeing wonders like the Blue Mosque ameliorate any and all of my particularly hard feelings.

Me in front of the Blue Mosque.


My attempt at capturing the interior of the Mosque, which is, despite the sheer amount of loud and obnoxious tourists, still one of the most popular places in the city to pray. Halley and I just sat and watched the activity while admiring the aesthetics of the building for a good half hour.

Literally a third of a kilometer away from the Blue Mosque is the Aya Sofya, a church turned mosque turned museum. Built by Emperor Justynian of the Byzantine Empire, it actually spurned the construction of the Blue Mosque to challenge the architectural feats of the Christians. Both are enormous. The Blue Mosque features four "elephant pillars" which supports its many domes, while the Aya Sofya's pillars are hidden, making the domes seem as if they magically float.

Posed.


It's an odd juxtaposition of Islamic medallions and badly-damaged Christian mosaics (they were plastered and painted over by the Muslims which occupied the building) in the Aya Sofya, but it's architectural magnificence compensates for the latter.


Once again, it's difficult to take flashless pictures in the dark.

Unaccustomed to walking so much and becoming a bit weary from the numerous feline attacks the night before, we decided to head down to the Bosporus and relax on the jagged rocks. My definition of relax, especially given the hard and sharp surfaces, was to watch the Mediterranean-bound barges navigate the treacherous strait. Halley interpreted it as a nap.

Looking across the strait to Asia.

Halley awoke 45 minutes later, marked by skin imprints from both the rock and her tote bag-turned-pillow, and we continued our plodding across Eminonu. All in all, we probably walked close to eight or nine miles the first day. However, I personally enjoy walking around cities at first (or all the time), as to get oriented, explore, etc. With stops at a restaurant, English bookstore, and bar, we weren't back to Josh's apartment until 1 AM, where we promptly met another traveler who would be CouchSurfing in the same room as us. His name was Brian, though his introduction was a bit muddled (and rightfully so) since he was awoken by Halley and my rummaging throughout the bedroom. However, as he began to regain coherence, we learned he was circumnavigating the globe and hailed from Portland, where he was a vegan chef. Interestingly enough, I had eaten at his restaurant (Blossoming Lotus, located in The Pearl District) when I was last in Portland this past spring break. Quite a small world. After the awkward introductions subsided, Josh blew up an air mattress for Halley and I, and, soon, the four of us, almost perfectly lined up across the room, from couch to air mattress to bed, drifted to sleep.

But not for long, as the air mattress had a hole in it. But that's reserved for Istanbul Isplorations Day 2. Stay tuned.