Istanbul, Not Constantinople

If you don't know the reference to that song -- go now and youtube it. If you do know it, I apologize for getting it stuck in your head for the next 3 days.

So time continues to fly by this summer -- it's already the end of July, and the beginning of the Sarajevo Film Fest, which is quite a big deal. Last night was the opening, red carpet and all, so this week should be interesting and fun! But I spent the past week traveling. I went with Caleb to Istanbul via Belgrade and had an incredible time.

We took a combi to Belgrade which was so hot. It was close to 40℃ that day, so it made the trip....hot. But, we got in, got to Caleb's friend's place where we were staying and slept well. The next day, our only day in Belgrade, we made the most of it. We explored and Caleb did a great job showing me around. It was nice because he has been to Belgrade many times to visit friends or pass through but has never "done" Belgrade so we were very effective in seeing the city. Also we have friends from Sarajevo who are doing internships (as part of their Master's) in Belgrade this summer so we got to meet up with them, but by the time we were going to the bar (a very cool bar on the water) both of us were so tired from seeing the city and had to go home because we had our train ride to Istanbul early the next morning.

Belgrade is a really nice city. I think it has a very mixed identity -- very different from both Sarajevo and Zagreb, but at the same time sort of a mix of both. Whenever I thought of Serbia, I always thought if it in the context of the war in Bosnia and the break-up of Yugoslavia, I mean, it's hard not to. And I've met great Serbian people in Sarajevo but the country and politics I always thought of in the terms of my first introduction through the 90s war. But on my way to Serbia, as I was reading my guide book on Belgrade, I realized that I am an American entering a country that my country was a main part of bombing for 78 days. Regardless of the reasons (Kosovo) that NATO deciding to bomb Serbia, the point is that I was asking myself how I would feel if someone from a country that bombed my city for 3 months came to visit. Now, that being said, I was met only with complete kindness from people in Belgrade. But it makes you think. I would love to go back and visit more, but I'm happy I got to see it at least for one day before I leave the Balkans.

Then we took a 24, ahem, excuse me, 27-hour train ride from Belgrade to Istanbul. It wasn't too bad, I mean there were times when it was really hot or just frustrating, but all in all it was a great experience. We even met an extremely nice couple sharing our couchette. They ended up staying near us so we met up frequently throughout our stay in Istanbul.

It's hard to even begin describing my stay in Istanbul. It was truly wonderful. There is so much to see and do -- 4 days was great but I think if you had a month you still couldn't see everything. A second visit is a definite must. The city is filled with tourists, which is kind of relieving to just let go and allow yourself to take out that map/guide and read it in the open and not half hidden under your table at a cafe. There are beautiful buildings/mosques everywhere. And of course there are the important and most famous ones but there are so many that aren't even marked or mentioned yet their beauty is astounding. The urban landscape just incorporates the ancient buildings with ease and the city has a great tram for easy public transportation. Even though there are many tourists it doesn't feel overly crowded or packed, of course you have that time of the day when the line for the Palace is ridiculous but the streets themselves don't feel overwhelming.

Trying now to remember all that we saw is even a lot. Of course there was the Blue Mosque and the Aya Sofya, as well as the Topkapi Palace and Suleymaniye Mosque. Each one is so impressive with the detailed designs, the architecture is astounding and then you take into account how incredibly old they are and it just boggles the mind. The Grand Bazaar was so beautiful, of course expensive, but I was also impressed at how calm it was, relatively speaking. A lot of the items, especially the ever-famous Evil Eye, you can find in Sarajevo. We were going to take a visit to the Turkish Baths but Istanbul is a bit pricey, especially compared to how spoiled we are in Bosnia. So we had to pass, but we filled up our time in other ways. We took a ferry to the Asian side, which was very different. Much newer and had a nice market with fish and it was a bit calmer. I'm so happy we got to see the difference. We also took a Bosphorus Cruise to see more sights along the water and spend our last day relaxing with a different perspective. By some weird events we got to sit up with the captain of the boat, have tea and I even got to steer the boat!! I'm sure the rest of the people below would not have been too happy to know that I was in charge during the "busiest part" of the Bosphorus. Oh well! Gosh, what else! We saw parks and walked along the water at various places. Met great people, ate delicious food -- both seafood and a large amount of kebaps and doner. When you are on the boat you see just how huge the city is -- it never seems to end. The hills are steep but provide an excellent view. Taksim Square was a fun place to go out but was pretty packed.

It's just really astounding how old everything is -- and how people live within the ancient. Bosnia has its own Ottoman part which is really wonderful but nothing as magnificent has Istanbul's buildings. And you really see a mix of people too. I mean there are a lot of tourists that come from all over, including a fair amount from the Middle East. The overlap between the two empires -- Byzantine and Ottoman is so interesting. Especially when you are in the Haghia Sophia and you can still see many of the Christian mosaics yet are surrounded by Islamic elements.

It was such a great trip and went by so fast yet we did so much. I can't wait to go back. I feel like there are endless things to see and it was such a nice atmosphere -- except maybe the heat -- like I said, a return is a must.