Turkish Delight

It is said Turkey represents the meeting of East and West, and Istanbul's bustling streets depict exactly this. Thousands of traditionally dressed Muslims donning burkas and hijabs, Asians, Christians, and everything in between, all walking alongside past mosques and churches alike. This blend of cultures works harmoniously and nearly every afternoon I parked myself in the luscious park between the Blue Mosque, the main mosque of Istanbul where thousands take prayer each day, and the Hagia Sophia, a recently converted museum which throughout the ages has been both a Christian church and a mosque, as dominance and ownership changed hands.  This strange combination is one of a kind, and creates a certain charm, which made me fall in love. 

Before arriving I knew next to nothing about Turkey, and the only attraction I knew of was the Grand Bazaar so Zoe and I headed straight there to weave the hundreds of intricate lanes hosting stalls selling all sorts of goods- lanterns, scarfs, hand painted ceramics, clothes, Turkish food and so much more. Honestly, if you could navigate your way through the crowds and turns, I'm sure you could find anything you needed. The items on our list though were souvenirs and presents, which we had been very lazy in buying so far (sorry mum!) I stumbled across a few goodies but I won't reveal them here, shipping presents home will probably be even slower than me writing this. After a good shop, it was time for another major landmark that even I had heard of, the Blue Mosque. Unlike other countries *Vatican* Istanbul wants you to appreciate its culture and main place of worship so they are prepared with a wardrobe of appropriate clothing including a headscarf, and a lesson on how to fashion it properly. The interior was incredible but wasn't as 'Blue' as the name led me to believe. Regardless Zoe and I sat down and soaked in the atmosphere quietly, and watched as many locals undertook their prayer ritual as though no one was watching. Unbeknownst to us, we had arrived in Turkey at the perfect time. The final few days of Ramadan were taking places, so we were thrust into the heart of Islam and all the celebrations associated with it. Every night, families would gather in my favourite park and at the call to prayer, as the sun set, they would break their fast with a huge family feast. It was really special to watch and Zoe and I even packed a picnic one night and joined in, waiting until darkness to eat, which seemed to be appreciated as we received a lot of smiles and nods of what I assumed to appreciation. Following the feasts, festivals begun. Each night brought something new, a night market, marching bands, dance performances, all of which brought enormous crowds, cheering, singing and applauding voluminously. 

Our evenings were filled with Ramadan festivities and while the very disciplined Muslims starved during the day, Zoe and I continued to eat (fasting seems physically impossible to me, I was in awe of these people) and explore the many other sights Istanbul had to offer. We hiked to the other side of the park to check out the Haghia Sophia which still preserved relics of both Christian and Muslim in habitation of the building, huge Islam symbols directly underneath mosaics of Christ presented an interesting juxtaposition. We delved under the streets of this ancient city and discovered the secret gem, the Basilica Cistern which dated back to the 1100s and used to provide water to the city. Now, it's importance is slightly reduced however, it does play host to a fun stall in which you can dress in traditional Turkish sultan outfits and get pictures, obviously, Zoe and I were dressed up and posing within minutes of entry. Topkapi Palace was another incredibly old site and extremely well preserved. The facades were polar opposites of the historic homes I have visited throughout England. Intricate mosaic tile patterns of all colours of the rainbow covered the walls and floors of every room, and the jewel collections of enormous rubies, sapphires and emeralds were astounding. One night we skipped our usual picnic in the park and headed to the theatre for a night of traditional dancing. Within two hours we were taken on a dancing tour through all regions of Turkey, and got to experience all sorts of fantastic music and costumes, as well as belly dancing, which I had been most looking forward to. The dancing did not disappoint but surprisingly, the music stole the show, the clarinet player was the most captivating and talented musician I think I have ever witnessed. Considering my usual musical taste is Top 40 and 90s pop, this was not what I expected to amaze me, but I was left applauding speechlessly, this guy could play! 

As usual, once our cultural appetites had been satisfied, the more urgent appetite for food was reawakened, and to the Spice Market we went. A slight misnomer, as spices were one of three main goods sold here, spices, tea and most importantly (as far as I was concerned), Turkish delight. You might think, 'ah, Turkish delight, I've had that before, pink squares of sweet jelly covered in icing sugar, nothing special' and until arriving at these markets, I would have agreed with you. But true Turkish delight is so much more than that. Of course, the traditional Turkish delight we all know is available at every stand, in all colours imaginable, but even the shop vendors cast this to one side, and direct you to the good stuff, and boy is it good. Cranberry covered pomegranate flavoured Turkish delight, with pistachios dispersed through the centre, was my personal favourite. They were covered in rose petals, saffron, nuts, berries, coconut, marshmallow, they were filled with hundreds of flavours, rose water, pomegranate, strawberry, cherry, orange, coffee, chocolate, nougat, and filled with mixed nuts, plain jelly, honey, fruits or marshmallow. And that description is only scraping the surface. As you stroll through pondering which flavour to indulge in, your stomach is kept happy with hundreds of samples from every single store all trying to entice you in. The smell is incredible as the heaped piles of varying spices and teas give off irresistible and varied aromas, so your nose, mouth and stomach are constantly pleased whilst wandering through. This market is without a doubt responsible for some of my favourite flavours of the trip, and my recent 5kg weight gain (whoops!)

Turkey taught me a new more relaxed style of backpacking and culture appreciation which I will take with me. A traditional Turkish breakfast started the day, followed by sightseeing, an afternoon relax in the park people watching, a trip to the spice market to treat my tastebuds, back to the park to break our fast (or feast further) and then join in festivities before an early night in bed. Travelling at its finest, maximum eating, cultural appreciation, fun and for once, a craved break from alcohol. I will definitely be back to Istanbul one day, I finally understand the hype about Turkey, although I can't pinpoint it, it's got something very  unique and special going on.