Hans and Frans

The next day in Istanbul was spent strolling the streets, eating kebab sandwiches and a little shopping. We walked again across the Galata Bridge and I tried a famous fish sandwich that men cook on a boat that is tied to the pier. You just walk up, give them 5 turkish lira, and they hand you a sandwich. I was a little skeptical at first, but Travers had heard they were a must, and since he's not keen on fish, I tried it. I wasn't disappointed. It was very tasty and hot and filling. However, my breathe smelled like fish for the rest of the day. Thanks Travers. Luckily, I couldn't smell myself, so Travers was really the only one to suffer.

People watching by the
fish sandwich boat

This guy sold me a fish sandwich.
Behind him is the boat they're made on

We did some "window" shopping at the Grand Bazaar. And even though we had intentions to buy lots of things, it just all seemed so cheap and tacky and not really worth it. We did end up getting some egg cups so that I can eat my soft-boiled eggs out of them in the mornings, but most everything didn't seem authentic. The stores all sold the same things, some of them would try to lure you in (they kept trying to sell us rugs, but what are we gonna do with a rug in Istanbul? Stuff it into our suitcases?), and others would just ignore you until you talked to them.  We debated for 30 minutes over some trivets, and the shop owner said that the price was fixed! I thought if I put them down and slowly walked away he would start shouting lower prices at me, but he didn't. He stuck to his price!. I thought the whole point of that bazaar was to negotiate and get the lowest price. Apparently not. So we drank some tea at a cafe, bought the egg cups and left.

Me and my egg cups!
Not sure what the guy on the
left is looking at.

Tons of people at the Grand Bazaar!

The rest of the afternoon was spent hopping from cafe to cafe on our way back to the hotel, soaking in the sun with a couple of beers. We stopped at a cafe on the Galata Bridge and enjoyed watching the boats go by. I have never seen a busier harbor. There are boats going every which way, all of different sizes. It was amazing to watch the action.

Travers under the Galata Bridge

Tiniest boat ever!

We went to dinner that night in a nearby area called Ortakoy. We took a taxi and got dropped off in the middle of the busy streets and walked around hoping to find a good restaurant. Unfortunately, I wore high heels that night and the streets were mostly cobble stones. Not a good combination. So I teetered along, trying not to sprain my ankle or make a fool of myself. We walked out to the water to see the Bosphorous Bridge and were amazed at how it changed colors from blue to red. When it was red, it actually looked very similar to the Golden Gate! We then couldn't find the restaurant that we had researched about, so after lots of walking and teetering, we tried one called Kitchenette that had patio seating and views of the Bosphorous.

Us and the Bosphorous Bridge

Is that the Golden Gate?
Nope! Bosphorous!

The next day we hopped on a boat that took us out to the Princes' Islands. There are nine islands total, and ferries run regularly to the four largest ones. So we headed to the main one, called Büyükada. The boat ride took about an hour and a half. It was amazing to see Istanbul from the water, and then to see the Asian side as well. We went past most of the other islands, stopping at a few before we got to Büyükada. We luckily got seats on the outside of the boat so we could watch everything that went by. We sat next to two men who brought a large garbage bag filled with bread. They fed the seagulls the entire way. It was fun to see the birds following the boat, and diving and swerving to catch the bread that the men threw. Unfortunately, I did get a little bit pooped on. Figures. It was fun nonetheless. 

Looking back at Istanbul and
tons of seagulls following us

Büyükada!

We finally arrived at Büyükada. It is a carless town. The only mode of transportation are bicycles and horse drawn carriages. So we started out just walking a few blocks around to find something to eat. We found a place a few blocks off the main drag, and actually ordered roast chicken and rice instead of the traditional kebab. We then decided that there were too many people walking around to ride bikes and avoid them, so we opted for the horse drawn carriage ride.  The line for the carriages was long, but went fast. There must have been hundreds of these carriages on the island because they never stopped coming to pick up new passengers. When it was our turn, we told the driver to take the long route which took us throughout the entire island instead of the short route which only did half. For the next hour or so, we sat back, relaxed and got to see the entire island all in a horse drawn carriage. The island was very beautiful with a lot of trees and grass as we got to the top, and beautiful views of the neighboring islands. 

Us and our carriage

Our horses, Hans & Frans
(named by us)

View from the horse-drawn carriage

Sitting in our carriage

After a relaxing day on the islands, we returned that afternoon and met up with two of Travers' co-workers again for dinner that night. On our way to dinner, as we walked down the busy main drag, we slowly started to feel drops of rain!  Within minutes, the sky opened up and rain poured down. We ducked under a store's awning to try to wait it out. And within minutes, the busiest street I have ever seen was empty!

Empty in seconds!

We bought some umbrellas across the street for 5 turkish lira each and continued on our way to dinner, a nearby pizza joint. And after stuffing ourselves with delicious pizza, we headed to a nearby bar that had a man singing and playing the guitar. A few beers and several songs later, we were all beat and called it a night.

Me at the Intercon

Our final full day in Istanbul was a rainy one. The weather had not let up from the night before. Travers and I were checking out of our Odda hotel and checking into the Intercontinental. We had wanted our last night to be more luxurious so we splurged and went to the Intercon!  Unfortunately, we chose the most rainy time of the day to roll our bags from one hotel to the other. We were pretty soaked by the time we arrived, and luckily were able to check in right away. We dried off, Travers napped, and I watched a 80's movie called American Dreamer.




A few hours later, the rain and died down a bit so we got moving and took a tram out to the Hagia Sophia, since we hadn't been able to see it yet, and the Basilica Cistern. The Cistern was really cool, with lots of columns, and lights, and a few stone sculptures of Medusa's head. There were several pathways we could walk down, and tons and tons of columns all around.

The Cistern

Medusa on its side

Medusa upside down

One of the many columns

After the Cistern, we walked to the Hagia Sophia only to find out that it was closed on Mondays!! So...we were out of luck on seeing the Hagia Sophia this trip (although we did see the outside, if that counts). But that just means we will have something left to see next time we go.

Istanbul at night

Our last night, we had some drinks at the top of the Intercontinental, then headed to Leb-i-Derya for dinner. We saved it for last since it had a great menu, and the best views of the city and the Bosphorous.

Our final day, we slept in, packed ourselves up, and checked out of the Intercon. We had a few hours before our flight, so we walked to an area nearby called Nisantasi. It was a bit more neighborhoody, and filled with more locals. There were tons of high-end luxury shops and cute cafes. We found one cafe that had a covered back patio and had a late lunch.  Then headed back towards the hotel and after searching unsuccesfully for a magnet (we eventually got one at the airport), we found another cafe for an afternoon tea and baklava. By the way, the baklava on this trip was amazing! I love baklava. I wish I could have brought some home with me. Here is a picture of some. We didn't eat this particular one, but it looks good.

So after 5-1/2 days in Istanbul, we felt like we saw and did a lot, but we definitely left things to come back and do next time. And I really hope there will be a next time.