Engrossed performed and mesmerized audiences on Istiklal Street in Istanbul…a sight for sore eyes and sounds to fill your ears and soothe your soul.
Blog Archives
Dipping into the archives for ‘A Word a Week Photo Challenge- Round’
This is addictive, to rummage through the countless pictures you have taken to fit a theme each week. A Word in your Ear urges you to do just that and here I am, with my first real serious attempt to do this! This time the word is Round and it’s been fun to do this. A lot comes from our wonderful Istanbul trip last year! Others from random photo shoots at home, at weddings of friends, etc. Have fun!
Magic of the Basilica Cisterns, Istanbul- June 11, 2012
The last memory of Istanbul was also the most magical. A few hours left to leave, our bags packed and waiting, we decided to look for the Basilica Cisterns. Rumored to be in Sultanahmet, the area we had made our home for the 6 days in Istanbul, we had to walk around before actually locating this obscure gateway and were only able to find it thanks to a tour group operator trying to get his 45 people in through a narrow opening.
The Basilica Cisterns are a massive subterranean chamber built in the 6th century to store water to supply Istanbul city, then a most remarkably populated center for trade and commerce and the capital of the mighty Byzantine Empire. This is the largest of several such cisterns built by the Byzantines. The credit for this one goes to Emperor Justinian I.
With the proportions of a cathedral, the cisterns measure about 140 meters by 45 meters. Some 336 marble pillars, built in the typical Ionic and Corinthian styles, support its roof. A 4-meter thick waterproof firebrick wall keeps the water safely held. At the peak of its utility, the cisterns held an astonishing 80,000 cubic meters of water, which was transported into it via aqueducts from forests some 20 kms away!
Even with hardly any water in it, it was cold and damp, with the pillars and ceiling sweating droplets of water. The floor was slippery and it felt really eerie in the darker parts. Quite a fantastic experience for those of us who have spent many happy childhood days buried in strange mystery books. They also added spooky music to enhance the ambiance!
Restored several times over and most recently by the Istanbul municipal corporation, the cisterns stand as a testimony to man’s urge to urbanize and his ability to create infrastructure to sustain urban life. As an urban professional, I was inspired to see the remarkable feats of engineering and water management that have truly survived the test of time. At the same time, I was reminded of the bitter disappointments and frustrations of providing our modern cities with amenities as basic as water and sanitation.
Here are some images of the magical Basilica Cisterns. Forgive the blurs; these were taken with very little light and no tripod.
Fortunately, this tour group disappeared pretty soon and we could explore the cistern in relative peace….
I think I can forgive myself for using the flash, this once, in here 🙂
Quirky pics & patterns from Istanbul- June 10, 2012
I was looking through pics I had taken since September 2003, which was the first time I got my hands on a digital camera. It’s interesting to see how your eye begins to see things differently from behind the lens. How slowly you start seeing things like patterns, expressions, even wit and poetry in your visual landscape. It’s not like I aspire to be a professional photographer, but I do hope to keep improving.
Here are a few quirky pics from Istanbul. And this is the last but one of the Istanbul series. I have another wonderful place to show everyone, but that will be tomorrow!
Culinary adventures in Istanbul- June 9, 2012
As promised, here are pics from our food journey in Istanbul. Unfortunately, I didn’t photograph everything we ate, but there are some interesting things here….enjoy!
Freshly caught from the Bosphorus, waiting to be relished!
We ate sea bass bass inside salt and then set on fire in the end!
They then cracked open the salt and extracted the baked fish, stuffed with shrimp!
Final cut!
Fruit halwas, Turkish style!
The mixed flavors of the helva on a stick!! Sweet and gooey…..
Street food on the go!
Sweet shop….felt right at home among rows of mithai like stuff!
And good old bhutta…available everywhere.
Exquisite tilework at the Sultan’s tombs: More of Istanbul- June 7, 2012
I’m still on the Istanbul high. The last day we had threw us the best surprises, stuff we had managed to miss even while it was right under our noses, and our feet, literally!
A few hours before we left, we were wandering around and realized we had entirely missed seeing the Sultan’s tombs behind the Aya Sofya. Listlessly, since I was wearing shoes and we had to remove footwear outside each mausoleum, I wandered in, not expecting a lot. Well, I was in for a pleasant shock. Of all the monuments and museums and palaces we had seen until now, these had the most exquisite tile and decorative work . In structure, they are not unlike the Lodi tombs in Delhi (octagon on square, octagon on octagon, topped with a dome), which have some tiny remnants of bright tile work still on them. I couldn’t help wondering whether the Lodi Garden mausoleums had at some point been this richly decorated from the inside! And how unfortunate that so many Indian heritage structures are so altered due to the destruction cause by subsequent invasions, wars and neglect over time.
The Sea and Night Life: Last night in Istanbul- June 5, 2012
For our last evening in Istanbul, we decided to test the phrase we saw screaming out from many touristy t-shirts- ‘Istanbul never sleeps’, the declare!
We had studiously avoided any sort of organized tour on this trip and had snobbishly given a pass to the aggressively advertised Bosphorus Tours. So we started the evening by taking a regular passenger ferry over to Uskudar, which is over on the Asian side of Istanbul. Only about 30% of the city’s population lives here and we saw it buzz with the life of returning workers, lovers and families out for the evening, occupying its many endearing little parks and fountains. As everywhere in the city, open spaces were an integral aspect of life and well-used.
We then took another ferry and crossed over to Kabatas(h), which is on the European side but across the Bosphorus from the old city where we were staying. We headed back to Istiklal Street near Taksim Square, where we had spent an entire afternoon two days ago. At night, this commercial spine of the city was as live as it had been on the Saturday afternoon we were here last. Shops were open till about eleven and the cash registers still ringing. Entire families were out on a Monday night to enjoy themselves.
We made for the Cicek Passaji, a quaint old passageway full of about a dozen restaurants, and pubs where we proceeded to polish off some kebabs with an excellent Turkish dry white wine. Live music, sung by a band of musicians playing violin, a sort of mandolin, a tambourin and a sort of clarinet, filled the air. To my ears, it sounded very similar to the bard type of singing in Rajasthan, melancholy and joyous at the same time!
As we paid up short of midnight and dashed out hoping to still catch public transport back to the hotel, we saw the streets still full and merriments in full swing. We literally ran to catch the funicular back to Kabatash and then the tram back to Sultanahmet (will write separately about public transport), which had been our ‘home’ stop for our stay in Istanbul.
Adieu Istanbul! Happy to have been here…
View of the Topkapi Palace from the ferry out
Night view of Dolmbahce Palace and the famous Bosphorus Bridge
The city never sleeps…close to midnight on Istiklal Street
The charming Cicek Passaji, where people were celebrating, singing and laughing till probably the wee hours of the morning….
Sights, sounds, smells! The bazaars in Istanbul- June 4, 2012
Istanbul has been an important trading hub for centuries and its bazaars are an important aspect of its ecosystem. We walked through a wholesale market not unlike Delhi’s Chandni Chowk to get to the Spice Bazaar, or as the locals call it Misir Charsisi, referring to the historical trade with Egypt in spices. Akin to Khari Bowli, which is located at one end of Chandni Chowk, the Spice Bazaar sells an amazing assortment of condiments. We got educated about several varieties of saffron and the shopkeeper actually dissolved a few grains of the fiest Iranian saffron in water to show us how magically the colour seeps out compared to Turkish and Spanish saffron, which are considered inferior. Indian Saffron, to my amusement, was not saffron at all in this market, but a name used to refer to haldi, or turmeric!
The Spice Bazaar, the Grand Bazaar as well as some other smaller little markets on the way are indoor bazaars that pulsate with activity inside beautiful living Ottoman structures, replete with details in paint and tilework, period light fixtures and much more. Well ventilated, the bazaars do not feel claustrophobic and an entire industry of cafes, food stalls and nargili (hooka) places thrive inside.
We ended up buying some ceramic work and were lucky to find English speaking locals who helped us find a good price and refer the right shops. Carpet and kilim traders were out to get us (in a gracious nice way, none of the pushing and shoving type of touting here!), but we escaped them after a short session of looking at some gorgeous old used Armenian and tribal kilims that had been brought in from the villages for restoration! Did not seem polite to photograph those, but they were similar to the durries we get in India, but with richer colors.
Advice to visitors here. Haggling is fine! We saw some kids for India doing it desi style and it worked pretty well!Find out prices from at least 3-4 shops if you want to buy ceramics, carpets or anything substantial price wise.
You can eat constantly in Istanbul. This man sold us a donor kebab, gave us a free buttermilk drink and insisted on getting a pic with Rahul!
Check out the interiors of this spice market!
Light fixture
Honey being sold in the honeycomb! This is a big industry here. We saw old men making artificial boxes lined with wax honeycomb sheets for bees outside our hotel…
Sponges and dried fruits
Outside on the streets between the two bazaars
This reminded me so much of Delhi. Structures like this peeked out at us all the time. This one also had shops stuffed inside and some paid loos as well!
The ceiling from inside of the loo bazaar!
Grand Bazaar. In terms of scale, much larger that the Spice Bazaar, higher celings, more ornamental inside….fascinating!
We did see signs to show that restoration work happens from time to time…
Super friendly cafe owner took this one. We ate the most awesome veggie stew here with bread!
One part of the Grand Bazaar ceiling with the plaster work undone…check out the brickwork dome!
Topkapi Palace, Museums, Blue Mosque and whirling dervishes! Istanbul Day 3- June 2012
Very small things can endear you to a city. Istanbul is very much a tourism-oriented city. At every corner, you get accosted by a smiling man asking you to come and eat in his little streetside/rooftop cafe. “Biradar (brother),” he calls. And if you refuse, he says, “Maybe tomorrow?”. Don’t break his heart by refusing him, be polite and say, another time! To me, this ritual captures the essence of this genteel culture, this fascinating mix of East and West, this city that was the seat of Christianity for a thousand years, then the seat of Islam for another several centuries. With a predominantly Muslim population, today Turkey holds forth as a beacon of tolerance and modernity in a world that is increasingly suspicious, divided and myopic in the way it views other cultures.
Today was our best day here so far. We had no game plan in mind and the entire day unfolded beautifully and effortlessly, starting with a long walk by the Sea of Marmara (marble) along the Golden Horn and right next to the old city walls. We saw the locals enjoy their Sunday in the most simple and delightful ways, fishing, sunbathing, strolling.
Remains of the city wall. Typically, Ottoman masonry had stone with a few rows of brick. We saw this in several places. Very interesting texture.
Bathers…This pic reminds me vaguely of the French Impressionists painting bourgeois bathers
We ambled through Gulhane Park and into the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, which has an impressive collection of Antiquities art, especially of the necrophiliac kind!
Mummy!
These cats in Istanbul have some character! This kitten stared at me outside the museum building, while a huge and aggressive tomcat nearly ate our Shawarma roll tonight!
We visited the Topkapi Palace next, which was the seat of the Ottoman Empire in its hey days. In terms of scale, it was larger than Fatehpur Sikri perhaps, and much more ornate. Items from the royal treasury and armory were in display and despite the tourist hordes, it was fascinating. The palace is located at the highest point in the city, so the views were rewarding by themselves.
Throngs of people on a warm day
Baghdadi Pavilion..every time these guys won a war, they made a pavilion!
That is the first decent pic of both of us together on this trip…a good woman painstakingly took this one..thanks Lady!
We took in a show of whirling dervishes in the evening at a charming theater called the Hodja Pasha. It used to be a Turkish hammam, and now the ladies and gents bathing chambers have been converted into performing spaces. The dervishes whirled beautifully in their pristine white flowing robes, just as I had imagined them. I don’t quite think this is supposed to be a performing art form though, considering about 40% of the audience was dozing off!
As we got off the tram to head back to the hotel, we were captivated by the lighting on the two jewels of this city- the Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque, the latter we hadn’t seen yet. To our delight, it was still open and we had a peaceful viewing and opportunities for some night time photography.
Before I sign off, I have to say I love how the public spaces are used by residents in Istanbul. We’ve seen birthday celebrations replete with confetti happening on the streets. Lovers cuddle and families picnic in the gardens everywhere. Well-maintained infrastructure and efficient and low-key policing facilitate this, but it is also about a culture of using the city as a canvas for your life. How I wish we did this more in Delhi, which in my opinion rivals Istanbul in its legacy and character!
Sultanahmet Square by night
Lit up Aya Sofya. Note how full the open space in front of it is even at night.
Mukta Khatoon?
The Blue Mosque- one of the most beautifully symmetrical buildings I have seen. Quality tile work in blue inside lends in an ethereal feel and its name!
Blue Mosque
Soaking in the Aya Sofya- June 2, 2012
Way back in SPA when I was an undergrad architecture student, I remember clearly marking out the Hagia Sophia (or the Aya Sofya as the locals here call it) as an architectural building I had to visit within this lifetime. It featured among more obvious ones like the Parthenon and Stonehenge, which I haven’t got to yet! What impressed me even then was its history. It’s been a church and a mosque and way back in 1935, Mustafa Kemal Attaturk (yes him, the guy who established Turkey as a republic) ensured it became a museum, in the spirit of bequeathing a monument with such a tremendous history to the public at large.
We spent an entire morning here today, mesmerized. A massive structure that has seen fires, additions, demolitions, modifications, excavations and restorations from 360 AD till the present, the Aya Sofya is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture. It has one of the most massive domes in the world and was the largest cathedral in the world for some 1000 years!
I will not bore you with facts. Here are some images that might give some idea of what it felt like being in here. The dark inside of the museum contrasted hugely with the bright summer sunlight out there in Sultanahmet Square. But it was the inside that blinded you with its beauty, its perfect proportions and intricate details.
Entrance
First gallery had an info on the building, some exhibits
Exhibition of calligraphy inside the building
Mary and Jesus from the church period and massive Arabic inscriptions from the mosque period- Charming!
Dome
View from the first floor gallery
Restored mosaics were exquisite
Mary and Jesus mosaic
God is in the details
View of Blue Mosque from the gallery in Aya Sofya. This was an attempt to outdo the Aya Sofya that didn’t quite succeed
Missed the kids all the time, but I wouldn’t have been doing this had they been here!
Rahul, chilled out as usual
Bidding adieu. The structure is so massive, there’s no way you see the dome emerge till you walk quite some distance away…
ramblinginthecity 