Between East and West

 

This has been one of the main descriptions of Istanbul for centuries. Looking at the world map, it is easy to understand why. Located between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, straddling Europe and Asia, Istanbul has always been a crossroads of worlds, cultures, religions, and trade. The end of the Silk Road, the terminus of the Orient Express, the end of Europe and the beginning of Asia… the end or the beginning? Is 1453 the date of the fall of Constantinople or the conquest by the Ottoman sultan Mehmed II? It depends on which side you stand on—and also on the journey 😊. For us, Istanbul marks an ending: the end of our Turkish and Asian chapter and our return to Europe.

Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul—three names for the same city that say a lot about its history. First Byzantium, the Greek city; then Constantinople, renamed by the Roman emperor Constantine; and finally Istanbul, as named by the Ottomans. As one might imagine, its history is long, tumultuous, and sometimes bloody… The building that best represents it is undoubtedly Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya in Turkish). Often nicknamed “the Great Church,” it is the most important monument of Byzantine architecture and remained one of the most prestigious churches of Christianity until the 15th century. After the Ottoman armies captured Constantinople in 1453, it was converted into a mosque in only three days. And despite the centuries, wars, and earthquakes, you can still read on its walls the traces of its many lives—from the beautiful mosaics of the Byzantine period…

…to the large cedar plaques displaying verses from the Qur’an.

Even today, Hagia Sophia remains a symbol. Converted into a museum in 1934 by decision of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (recognized and revered for modernizing, secularizing, and westernizing Turkey), the current president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (better known for his conservative policies and defense of Muslim commitments), decided to reopen Hagia Sophia for Muslim worship and reconvert it once again into a mosque. What does that mean today? That if you are Muslim and come to pray, you can enter for free, whereas tourists must pay €25 and only have access to the first floor… A debatable decision that was heavily criticized at the time. So we still tried to enter through the prayer section, but it didn’t work. Not looking Muslim enough—or looking too much like tourists? Probably a bit of both 😆. This situation is undoubtedly unfair and questionable. Jérôme preferred not to go in, while the historian in me could not miss the opportunity to visit this place rich with 17 centuries of history…

But let’s stay on the subject of mosques, because Hagia Sophia is obviously not the only one in Istanbul. Several are worth stopping for because they are very beautiful. Among others, the unmissable Blue Mosque,

the Süleymaniye Mosque, from which there is a lovely view of the Bosphorus Strait,

and the New Mosque.

Turkish mosques are generally built following the same model: first a courtyard (for the larger ones) and/or a fountain with water for purification.

Then the main building, which consists of a large central space topped by a dome, sometimes accompanied by side aisles and additional domes. The whole structure forms a complex that is somewhat difficult to photograph from the inside. Finally, there are the minarets (from one to six depending on the size of the mosque), long and slender in Turkey, from which the calls to prayer are made.

A mosque is not only a place of worship and prayer but also a social space where people come together. You can see children running around, teenagers hanging out, and people reading or chatting quietly.

The floor is always completely covered with carpets, so you must remove your shoes before entering, and people kneel or sit directly on the floor. The atmosphere is calm and warm, and the ambiance is very different from that of churches…

That’s it for religious Istanbul. Now let’s look at commercial Istanbul. Shops are absolutely everywhere! The Grand Bazaar is obviously well known,

as is the Spice Bazaar,

but it doesn’t stop there. The city is covered with small shops! And what’s strange is that products of the same type are grouped in the same sector: the street of handbags, the street of sports tracksuits—there is even a street where several shops side by side sell zippers and buckles for handbags… You really wonder how they all manage to survive! But business seems to be doing well, at least from what we saw. Our favorite remains by far the butcher’s district, where we ended up almost by accident. Stalls with meat carcasses hanging everywhere and very intense activity during this Ramadan period… truly amazing!!

A bustling metropolis of 18 million inhabitants, both cultural and multicultural, you can find everything while wandering through the different neighborhoods, such as Balat with its pretty colorful houses.

In Karaköy, Jérôme even tried fishing… 

He caught two or three small fish—a modest contribution to filling the stalls…

And as always, we have wonderful encounters—or rather reunions. With Nelly, this Breton who now lives in London, whom we met in England during the Rugby World Cup and who jumped at the chance of our visit to return to Istanbul for the umpteenth time. A huge thank-you to her for spending the long weekend acting as our guide 😊

And thanks also to her for taking us to that restaurant—we don’t really remember where—where we met the colorful and unforgettable Boukette, with her very strong opinions on many subjects, including Russian women coming to Turkey to find a husband 😅.

Another rich stop that beautifully closes the Turkish chapter of our journey, which lasted five weeks. A country we truly liked very much with its culture, its varied landscape, its people and its great food💕. We've now crossed the border into Bulgaria. It’s amazing how a simple line on a map can bring such a change of scenery! Now it’s golden domes rather than minarets that we see in the distance, and the calls to prayer are gone. A new chapter begins…

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Jérôme and Sophie