The cinema I went to had comfortable leather seats. "Hangover 2" was very funny and "Super 8" was another version of ET, but still good. I saw the impressive big bronze Buddha statue and the monastery with lots of gold and dragons next to it. I passed government buildings, the US Consulate, parks, and used the pedestrian walkways built over the streets and through buildings. One park had birds, monkeys, and orangutans on display. The Wan Chai area had a lot of bars and restaurants. I watched the light show from the opposite side of the harbor this time. I never felt lost or in danger while walking around. I found the Indonesian part of town for lunch, then went with a Chinese roommate for dinner near a big outdoor market and finished with a beer in an Irish pub.
My flights went well. Royal Jordanian Airlines was excellent mostly because the food was great. There were good movies and good service as well. I watched "Company Men," "Red," and "The Mecahnic." I didn't sleep much on the plane but I managed a bit on some of the most uncomfortable chairs I've ecperienced in the airport at Amman, Jordan. The landscape in Jordan was brown and flat with some valleys near the Dead Sea. I saw Cyprus out the window and Turkey looked brown and hilly.
Customs at Istanbul was the easiest I've seen. No one asked me any questions or checked my bags. I made it to my hostel on the packed tram. Dinner was a sandwich with pizza ingredients in it, then I walked around the Sultanahmet area.
I waded through hoards of tourists at Aya Sofya, The Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, and the Basilica Cistern.. All the sites were great but most of my photos have tourists in them. Aya Sofya took two hours to enjoy with its different paintings and mosaics. It was a church, then a mosque, now a museum. The architecture is impressive because the dome is so light it doesn't need massive pillars on the ground like the Blue Mosque does. Aya Sofya used hollow clay bricks and strong ribs as part of the dome to support it. The Blue Mosque was full of intricate designs, but the palace was incredible. The rooms were fabulously decorated, the tresury had golden and jewelled artifacts, they had Mohammed's and Moses' beard clippings and swords. I took a lot of photos. The cistern was nice and cool, being underground and the two Medusa columns were the other reason to see it.
I spent the evening with an American roommate. A friend recommended Palatium restaurant, which had great food, the local Efes beer, bean bags to sit in, and 3rd century ruins under the restaurant that we walked through after dinner. They were on a History Channel program once. A restaurant owner was curious about a hole in the wall, and he stumbled upon the ruins. Then we had some nargile (water pipe), Turkish coffee, and street vendor food that was questionable, but nothing bad happened.
Yesterday I saw Dolmabahce Palace which the sultans used in the 19th century after moving from Topkapi. Dolmabahce is very European in style and extremely extravangant with a 5 ton chandelier, crystal staircase, and lots of gold. The bus took me north along the water past some famous night clubs where I saw a Ferrari, a Bentley, and a Bugatti Veyron. Guys were jumping off the sidewalk into the water, then floating in the current back down to a staircase to get out of the water. I've been told the water is clean because the current is so strong despite all the ships passing through.
I stopped at a 15th century fort that was built in four months in preparation for the conquest of Constantinople. I climbed narrow stairs along the walls up the towers. There were great views, an amphitheater, a cistern at the bottom, and some cannons on display. It was a really great experience.
I had been warned about scams in Istanbul targeting tourists and a roommate got scammed into paying a several hundred dollar bar tab. He went to the police and they said they can go to the bar and make sure it doesn't happen again, but they couldn't get his money back. That doesn't sound very promising. But he probably should not have got into a stranger's car and allowed him to drive out of the city.
The military museum was closed today, but I walked down the main street from Taksim Square on the northern peninsula. it was very nice, although touristy, but the side streets had good-looking bars and cheap restaurants. I even saw a brew pub, so I'm planning to go back tonight. I tried a Turkish delight which was good with a bit of a strange flavor, then two delicious baklavas. They are pastries with flour, sugar, butter, and another ingredient such as chocolate, or walnut or pistachio. I'll work my way through the flavors while I'm here. This afternoon I'd like to wander around the bazaar and see the university, which was built in the 15th century.
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