Traveling to Turkey from Poland was awful! After an incredibly long day of frustration after frustration, I was quite discouraged and admittedly, not overly excited about being here.

To my surprise and relief however, I ended up meeting some really friendly tourists while waiting in line at several sites, tried some really tasty Turkish food, experienced my first Hammam (Turkish bath), and was delighted by the Spice Bazaar. Turkey definitely grew on me after that initial rough start. 😉

Food!

My hotel stay in Istanbul included a traditional Turkish breakfast every morning. It always had olives, cheese, thinly sliced meat, tomatoes, cucumbers and a hard boiled egg. There was also an assortment of fresh bread, pastries or coffee cake. Yum!

There were lots of restaurants to choose from near my hotel and each were really wonderful! I tried Pide, or ‘Turkish pizza’, vegetable casserole, fresh bread with dipping sauces, Turkish tea and of course, baklava.

The most impressive aspect of eating out here was the hospitality and friendliness of the staff at each restaurant. I felt warmly welcomed, the owners would often come out to speak to me and at one place, I received a complimentary appetizer and dessert!

Hagia Sofia Mosque

This mosque was originally a church! Built in 537, it began as the patriarchal cathedral of the imperial capital of Constantinople. In 1453 after the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire, it was converted into a mosque.

I met a super cute couple from the UAE while waiting in line to see the mosque. They were really excited to meet someone else who spoke English as they had been traveling through Turkey for the last week and struggled with the language barrier. Before leaving, they asked if we could take pictures together.

Sultan Ahmed Mosque

Across from the Hagia Sofia is the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, also known as The Blue Mosque. I was excited to see this mosque because it is known for it’s beautiful interior walls and being bathed in blue light on the outside at night.

There was a huge line at the entrance when I first got there. It went fairly quickly, and it is free to enter, but it wasn’t until we were all inside the mosque that we realized that the entire thing is under heavy construction! The only aspect that we could see of the original interior was this tiny area of exposed ceiling. According to a local shop keeper, it has been under construction for 3 years. It was so funny to have waited in such a long line to mostly only see a bunch of construction materials. 😂 Oh well! Maybe next time.

Topkapi Palace

In the 15th and 16th centuries, this palace served as the main residence and headquarters of the Ottoman sultans. It is now a museum that consists of four courtyards and several large buildings with kitchens, a former harem, and administrative buildings. It also has displays of Ottoman weaponry.

The palace interior had so many beautifully painted tiles and intricate ceilings with a lot of gold detailing. The baths were large and impressively designed with lots of light. My pictures don’t really do it justice, the place is so pretty, I can’t believe people actually lived here.

I met another super friendly couple while waiting in line for an audio guide. They are from Pakistan and we checked out some of the sites together. At the end, they asked if we could take pictures as well! 😁

There have been a lot of stray cats in many of the places that I’ve visited, but in Turkey, there were a surprising number of large dogs roaming around or taking naps in the midst of tourist hot spots (and at ATMs).

Hammam (Turkish Bath)

A friend in Tanzania had mentioned that if I ended up visiting Turkey, I had to try a hammam. Not having heard of this previously, I did some research and found that a hammam, or Turkish bath, is a specialized spa tradition that dates back to ancient Arabia. It is a practice of cleansing the body via steam and flowing water.

I booked a 45 minute treatment at the Ayasofya Hurrem Sultan Hamam, built in the 16th century, and located between the Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. I was equal parts excited and also a bit nervous. I had heard that you need to ‘leave your vanity at the door’ because you’re nearly naked during this treatment.

You guys, it was awesome though!! The facility was beautiful, the staff were welcoming and the treatment, though a touch awkward at first, was relaxing and unique. They do a type of warm steam relaxation in this beautiful marble room with pillars, a body scrub, a bubble massage, and then washed and conditioned my hair! Afterward, I was left to rest in this pretty pillowed area and given a bottle of water, some juice and Turkish delight. I left feeling totally happy, mellow and refreshed!

The Spice Bazaar (Misir Carsisi)

If you get a chance to visit Istanbul, this place was a definite highlight for me! It was bright and beautiful! They have candy, tea, spices and dried fruit on display and the presentation, colors and smells are so inviting.

The Grand Bazaar

Opened in 1461 with 61 covered streets and over 4,000 stores, this was one of the world’s first malls! There are a lot of exposed pipes, beams and electric cords in the midst of pretty hanging lanterns and scarves. It is easy to get turned around in here, but was neat to explore.

Galata Bridge

Spanning the Golden Horn, this bridge is full of local fisherman. Crossing the bridge, to the west is Europe and to the east, across the Borphorus, is Asia. Below the bridge you can find restaurants that sell fresh fish throughout the day and several pretty mosques are visible as you walk across it.

Hippodrome of Constantinople

This was a former public arena and mainly used for chariot races. It was also home to gladiatorial games, official ceremonies, celebrations and torture of convicts. It functioned in Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman periods. (This isn’t the best photo of the area, but I was trying to be quick to avoid several local vendors that were approaching me at the same time).

The sellers and vendors here tended to be a little more suave and flirty in their approach. I got a lot more compliments and comments on my appearance, clothing, sunglasses, etc. They were definitely less aggressive than those that I met in Zanzibar.

Overall, people were friendly and a firm ‘no’ usually stopped any unwanted selling tactics. The food was delicious and I never felt unsafe traveling as a solo female.