Merhaba from Istanbul (not Constantinople) (Day 54 - GToE)

(Ahhhhh, I crack myself up!)

As I indicated yesterday, today was mostly going to be a travel day and indeed, it was. It started at 6:30 am in Naples with a shared taxi to the central train station (shared with Matt, a fellow hosteler hailing from Australia). I got on the 7:00 am train to Rome's Termini station, which arrived at 8:10 am. This left me about 10 minutes to get a ticket for the Leonardo express shuttle train to Fiumicino Airport. Done - arriving at the airport at 8:55 am. I was scheduled on the 11:20 am flight from Rome to Istanbul on Rubberband and a Prayer Airlines...erm...Turkish Airlines. After a quick breakfast, there was 90 minutes of waiting around until it was time to board the plane. I had to listen to 6 old Italians talk non-stop. Man, was that annoying and distracting. I kept losing my place in my book.

Upon boarding the plane, I noticed that it was only half full, which was nice. I hate crowded airplanes. Before take-off, the flight attendants came around with a little Turkish Delight as a treat. If you've never had Turkish Delight, you are missing out. Turkish Delight is a confection made from gel of starch and sugar, with additives such as pistachios, dates, hazelnuts, or walnuts and covered with confectioner's sugar. My favorite is pistachio. Yum, yum, yum! Being a little tired of reading, I decided to watch a movie instead: What If, with Daniel Radcliffe - a predicable, but very sweet romcom, which made me laugh and cry. Lunch was surprisingly good. It was a full hot meal. Not bad for a 2+ hour flight. The landing was a little interesting as the pilot jammed on the breaks the second the plane hit the tarmac. I thought I would get whiplash from the jolt.

My room.

After getting through customs, I boarded my shuttle pickup arranged by my hostel and it was "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride". I thought the drivers in Naples were crazy, but Istanbul has them beat by a mile. There was the jumping from lane to lane to lane, cars driving the wrong way on a one way street, impossibly small roads that don't look big enough for a car, parking wherever they feel like it - including the sidewalk. Wow, it was crazy. But when I finally arrived at the hostel, I was greeted with hot apple tea (delish!) and some sort of spicy yummy appetizer (not really sure what it was). Here in Istanbul, I splurged a little (€20) for a private room with a shared bathroom. Okay, truth be told, I actually had to get a private room because no guest over the age of 45 is allowed in the dorms. Why? I have no idea but I have a double bed and no roommates. I will take full advantage of the roommate break and perhaps get a decent night's sleep, which I haven't had in about 50 days. 

Between 4:30 and 8:00, I attempted to rest my weary body. It sort of happened, but not really. Then tonight, I was treated to a traditional Turkish dinner at my hostel which is something they do every Saturday night at 8pm for anyone who is staying in the hostel. Sweet! It was rice, salad, bread, and a spicy beef stew. After dinner, there was some conversation which eventually led into a mini-dance party to Turkish music. So much fun!! I met some lovely people; both native Turks and foreign nationals. There's a lovely woman from Canada, Frankie, who is on her fourth trip to Turkey this year. She really loves this country. She's planning on doing some reiki or some shit on me tomorrow. Yeah, she's a little new age-y but it comes from the heart. From what I can tell so far the Turkish people are warm, kind, and caring people. It was a brilliant start to my short visit.

A little about Istanbul: Once the capital of Turkey, but no longer, Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey with a population of 14 million. Yow! The city is equally in Europe and Asia with the Bosphorus Strait splitting the two continents. The commercial and historic center is in the European part, while a third of the city lives across the Bosphorus in the Asian section. My hostel is located on the European side and quite close to all the major sites, which is convenient as I prefer to walk in cities like this instead of public transit. It should also be noted that in 2014, it is still not recommended to drink tap water in Istanbul. Some people recommend that you even use bottled water for brushing your teeth. It has less to do with the water treatment in Turkey and more to do with the bad pipes in Turkey. Or so they say, but when in Rome... Fortunately, bottled water is sold everywhere and is redonkulously cheap!

Oh here's a little surprise:

No, I did not lose my head and run off and get married in Italy. But being a little apprehensive as a single woman traveling alone in a Muslim country - even one as progressive as Istanbul - I decided to go out a purchase a wedding band (€18) in order hopefully to thwart any possible negative commentary. It was a suggestion by one of my roomies in Venice. I figured it couldn't hurt. I probably don't actually need to wear it.

There aren't any photos today. Tomorrow's plan is to see the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and the Underground Cistern - minimally. I may see if I can add Topkapı Palace to this list. I'm planning a cruise up the Bosphorus Strait on Monday morning, along with a visit to the Spice Market and the Grand Bazaar before leaving for the airport at 3:00 pm. This is a really quick 2 day visit to Turkey. Stay tuned.