6 June

6 June

We read the Istanbul book last night and decided on what to do today.  At 9 we were entering the Basilica Cistern, which was built in 532 AD.  The cistern was built by Emperor Justinian to primarily provide water to the Great Palace.  Aqueducts carried water from 12 miles away to be stored in the underground cistern.  The Romans were great recyclers, as almost all the columns used were from some other site and were either Ionic or Corinthian.  There was a column that had peacock eyes or tears with an associated story.  Additionally there were two capitals that had Medusa carvings that were used as bases for two columns.  One of the capitals has Medusa's head upside down and the other has her head facing sideways.  Unfortunately the history behind the capitals has been lost.

After the cistern, we started our stroll down to the Ferry landings.  There is a tremendous amount of boat traffic between Old Istanbul, New Istanbul, and Asian Istanbul.  At times it looks like the ferries could be playing "chicken" on the waterways, because there appeared to be no specific traffic pattern for transit.  Our Bosphorus "cruise" took 90 minutes,  leaving the Golden Horn and starting  across the strait to New Istanbul, up then up the coast, across the strait again and down the Asian side.  There is definitely a difference in architecture between the 3 cities.  The Modern side has a lot more European influence plus new buildings, where as the Asian side has pockets of expensive waterfront property as well as cheaper looking apartment buildings that aren't as well kept or as tall.

Next we had lunch, based on yet another book recommendation.  The calamari was pretty good, but not as good as what we had in Sorrento.  Lunch was under the bridge, and Roger does not like being approached by restaurant "barkers" saying that they have the best food in all of Istanbul.  They weren't nearly as funny as the guys at the Great Bazaar.  Once we finished lunch it was time to head back towards Sultanahmed area via the Spice Market.  The colors of the spices and various Turkish delights were so different.  Unfortunately, we've been told that the spices won't get through customs if the dogs are being used.  From there   I let Roger do the navigating and we ended up way off track in a very different neighborhood.  I finally got my "Venus" power away from "Mars" and asked a guy to show us on the map where we were.  Needless to say we got redirected and eventually all was good.  We did happen upon a piece of the Bozdogan Aqueduct which is about 1/2 mile long.  We ended up taking the metro back, which cost 7L for the two of us.  My feet are now propped up and I'm relaxing.  We pick up our laundry around 7pm, which will be washed, dried and folded for 32L.  Drop off and pick up in the same day was still less expensive than what we've previously paid in Europe.  (Not cheap like in Argentina.)