turkey day in turkey: sultanahmet

istanbul, turkey has been top on our travel list for years. where east meets west has fascinated me for even longer. constantinople, the ottoman empire, suleyman the magnificent! incredibly rich history here. we decided that time is precious, and right now, we have a lot of it since nate is a student. so we just went for it and planned a thanksgiving trip to turkey. we couldn't pass up turkey day in turkey! 

i planned a few side trips within turkey, but every time i went to finalize those plans, it just didn't feel right. frankly, i am so glad we spent our time solely in istanbul. there are so many layers of the city to see and touch and taste and hear and explore. plus, you know...we did have two kids with us. to keep things exciting, we split our time in two areas of istanbul: sultanahmet and beyoğlu.

i laughed looking back at these photos because they are so telling of our family at this point in time. we have a hodge podge of cold weather gear. sage prefers pajamas or a very curated selection of skirts and dresses to wear each day. i had to beg her to wear pants since it was cold outside, but one day i gave in and she wore a pajama top under her coat. she's particular about her hair, too. nora is happy-go-lucky until she isn't, then growls or shrieks until sage announces that "nora isn't being very kind" (a popular topic of discussion these days). of course traveling with kids isn't easy, but these girls were champs most of the time.

we couldn't believe the royal treatment the girls received from the turks. i am not exaggerating when i say we left nowhere empty-handed. every shop, restaurant, market, or mosque we went into someone would pinch their cheeks, swoop them up out of my arms, slip them candy, bestow gifts, or exclaim "masha'allah!" (god has willed it). while i wouldn't call the city itself kid-friendly, the culture is overwhelmingly kid-friendly. we loved it.

we thought it would be fun to find deli turkey to actually EAT turkey in turkey, but things turned out better. our hotel offered a full thanksgiving dinner, and the waiters brought sage her own dessert plate of petite macarons while we finished off with pumpkin pie.

my favorite experience of the trip was the night i snuck away to indulge in a turkish bath (nate had a turn too). we went to the ayasofya hamam, built at the request of suleyman the magnificent's wife in 1556 AD. i was contemplating all of that while splayed out on a heated marble stone being rubbed in olive oil bubbles, finished with a warm robe and turkish delight. sounds indulgent, and it is, but this was real life in turkey for thousands of years.

we started off with a bang (if you call sleeping jet-lagged in until noon a "bang") at the hagia sofia. i just had no idea how stunning it would be in person. the juxtaposition of christianity and islam on the same walls is so interesting to me.










we really didn't see any other americans, or families for that matter. the double stroller really helped us blend in...




we woke up to this view out our hotel window with the call to prayer blaring five times a day. i actually love how the mosques seem to compete for loudest call to prayer.

we meandered through topkapi palace at dusk, taking our time. hello, bosphorus strait!

the teddy bear was that day's gift from the turks. sage named it "fawny"



loyal rick steves followers, through and through + the turkish tiling was gorgeous







roasted chestnuts and fresh pomegranate juice on every street corner

the most overwhelming place! sage busted out a little concert of christmas songs in the middle of the crowds as we stopped at a stall, which i found particularly amusing in a country where most people don't celebrate christmas.




the mosque of suleyman the magnificent, sitting high on a hill with views of the whole city, was more stunning to me than the famed blue mosque.

and one dimly-lit photo to remember the cool underground cistern, built by emperor constantine and later used in a james bond film.

it's true that the more you learn, the less you know.
the more we explore the world, the more i want to see all of it, and want to understand much more than i do.