Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Hagia Sofia soft light


Hagia Sofia soft ligh, originally uploaded by Fun Lilliy.

I just loved the soft light that you can enjoy inside Aya Sofia , the soft whispers of people every one trying not to disturb the peaceful quietness that you feel once you go in because you are mesmerized by the beauty of the building.
Istanbul... even when you hear that name in a movie you start visualizing a mystic city... you could almost start hearing the music in the background of your thoughts and smell the spices in the spice bazaar..
I am going to give glimpses of the areas I visited and the sights I have seen...
I stayed in the area called Sultanahamet and if it’s your first visit to Istanbul and you are interested in Old Istanbul and the important historical sight seeing, then this is the place to stay... In one of its nice Boutique Hotels (will talk about my hotel later in a different post). This area has all what’s important to see and you can walk everywhere... its crowded full of tourist and because I came and it was the first day of “Seker Bayrami" “Eid Al Fiter” holiday even Turkish and tourist from Syria and its borders came as well... I don’t mind crowded cities if I am seeking a busy vacation of exploring which was my aim in this trip. The center is the Sultanahmet center and park where you can stand and while you are looking around trying to decide what to see first you can enjoy for one lira grilled corn or boiled what ever is your preference or hot chestnut…. Yammm... which is also a favorite of the locals... every one is walking around eating corn... I think even if you don’t like it they will tempt you to at least try a bite of it out of curiosity. From this center you can also choose one of the tourist buses, there are Kiosks that book and sell you the tickets... I suggest first just to walk around with a map that you can get from the tourist office in the center with the man that just nods and points to the maps for you to take and figure it out your self... a city travel guide would be useful to take with you... Something like the book that I actually bought after I came back “lonely planet istanbul encounter”... but if you like to be surprised then just follow the tourists and go where they go these groups are all going to the same sights that you should be checking out… or just check out the websites do your research and put a list that you will find in the map and GO! That’s what I did before I went... these are the links…
To be cont….
Time for the Turkish lesson…
Turkish phrase #11:
Ingilizce biliyor musunuz? ingeleezje billeyourmoosunooz? =do you speak English?

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