Monday, August 11, 2008

back in istanbul

Marhaba!!

A year ago I was in Istanbul. A short stop-over after finishing my internship in Ukraine. Now that I was back again... some sort of emotions rushed through. I miss Ukraine, I miss my friends and students there :(

When I recalled walking down Sultanahmet by myself a year ago, approached by strangers and hell yeah... things that happened, I think I was pretty much in a state of confusion and heck... come what may. Hm... not gonna tell the story here hahaha

This time round, there were bombs just 2 days before we reached Istanbul (while we just landed in Dubai) so everyone was more cautious. Stories were passed about incidents that happened to some of the crew: being robbed, stripped naked and beaten, being overcharged at a cafe, etc.

Guess I am not so young and free anymore... I actually felt a lil worried walking out by myself *haha... just in case. But worry not.. nothing happened!

So yeah... we did go out to a few places and in particular is Sultanahmet where lies the astounding Blue Mosque and Grand Bazaar.

Turkish delights.... sooo sweet and colourful!

#1 meal of the day, kebab.
Cheap and easy ;)

Grand Bazaar
just like Jakarta's Mangga Dua ITC, but in a Turkish style...

We just borrowed the guns from a shop *hahaha

So intricate and detailed... if only I collected those stuffs haha

That's the famous Blue Mosque!

Snap snap...

At the entrance to the mosque...

The girls must take a pic before moving on

The pillars...

Love the lighting on this shot!

We have to cover our arms....

Inside the mosque...

At Eminonu... the ferry terminal
A nice place to relax, fish or take the ferries to the small islands or Bosphorus

people are actually fishing here... nice place!

We're just trying to be cheesy... ^^''

Opposite the small harbour is Spice Bazaar and a mosque (forgot its name)

Too bad the Spice Bazaar has closed when we reached there at 7.30pm. We just walked around and experienced the hustle bustle of sellers and late shoppers, especially for spices, sweets and dried fruits.

Looks appetizing ya...

We flew back to Dubai... and had a late dinner nearby. But the weather is killing I tell you. It's so HOT and really really stuffy.. no wind, no breeze, none!

Dinner JUST for the 6 of us... and not all served yet!