"Did we just become best friends? Yup."

        Here it is, day 3 of 5 in Istanbul, and I think my plan backfired. I figured I’d take a few days off from writing, as I didn’t want to bore you with too many posts full of the usual- “Today I did this. Then we went here. Oh, and that food/sight/person we met was awesome.” But now as I sit down to write I realize that a lot has gone on and you’re probably going to end up bored anyway. Sorry in advance, but hope you enjoy!
        Friday morning we got to Istanbul around 7:30, and after breakfast and the diplomatic briefing Katie, Nicole and I met up with most of our Poverty and Politics class for our trip to the International Finance Corporation.  Our teacher, (who hasn’t been on the ship since Greece because she left to meet up with her son who got really sick in Italy and came to her family’s hometown in Turkey) was back, and as she teaches at Pitt her first words to me were “Can you believe the Pirates!” Love her. After getting landing cards that we need to get through dock security we headed on the bus and made our way to the business district of Istanbul.
        The talk ended up being really interesting, and we learned a lot about world poverty issues and initiatives. The IFC (and yes, every time I say that I do think of CMU’s Inter Fraternal Council) is one of six organizations that make up the World Bank group, and works across the world as the global leader in private sector development.  The really unique thing about them is that they’re actually a for profit company, using the money they make as a way to show other investors these struggling nations can really be profitable, and then taking the funds and using them on new projects across the world.  I wont bore you with all the details, but long story short I’m definitely glad I went.
        After the meeting we had some time to walk around the mall next door. We were supposed to eat lunch there, but we didn’t have much time to spend so we just wandered for a few minutes and met up with the class outside. Professor Finkel bought us all simits (basically Turkish everything bagels they sell on the street) to try, and they held us over until we made our way back to the ship.
        We met up with the rest of the girls, and after changing and a quick lunch at the pool bar we were on our way to the bazaars. The Spice Bazaar was first- a few rows of little shops selling all the spices, candies, teas, small kitchenware, etc and filled with thousands of people. It was a little overwhelming and super crowded, but an experience and so worth it. One shop owner was successful in drawing us in (trust me, they all gave it their best shot) and gave us from samples of Turkish Delight. This kind of gummy candy with nuts inside is EVERYWHERE here, and even though I wasn’t a fan of the taste, I like it because it always makes me think of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. 
        The Grand Bazaar was next, and if I thought the Spice Market was overwhelming then I don’t even know how to explain this one.  There’s over 3,000 shops crammed into this little area, full of anything and everything you could want or need and each with a very persistent owner standing out front trying to talk you into coming in. We ended up spending over 2 hours in one light store, drinking apple tea with the sales guy, looking at almost every bulb and stand, and eventually buying a ton of stuff. I was being indecisive (shocker) and decided to wait till later, but we’re going back tomorrow and I may be convinced.
        We came back to the ship to drop off our purchases, and then headed out again to find a place for dinner.  Once again Alex had her Rick Steves book, and he led us to this kind of fancy restaurant across the river. The waiters didn’t speak much English and we got some interesting looks from other people there, but the food was amazing and it was fun to get a really authentic Turkish meal. I finished off with my first cup of Turkish coffee- super strong and a kind of weird texture because it has the grounds in it. Apparently at some places people will read your fortune in the left over coffee grounds like they do tealeaves, but not at this place. We left and walked around for a while, then some of us just came back to the ship while others went to find a hookah bar. I think we might try going to one another night since its such a standard Turkish thing, but we’ll see. 
        Yesterday we went to see the typical Istanbul tourist sights- the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and the Basilica Cistern.  They were all pretty cool and really informative.  Hagia Sophia is neat because it was built as a Christian church before being taken over as a mosque.  They tried to earase all signs of Christianity but it was cool to see where the two religions kind of blurred together there.  I think all of our favorite site was the Cistern. It was underground reservoir for the city in like the 1500s and now its just a tourist attraction. It was really interesting reading about the history, and SO nice to get out of the heat for a while.  In addition, I think I can use it for one of my water class projects, which is always a plus.
        We were starving by this point so we headed back down the way we came to this cool Turkish restaurant we saw on the way. It was called The Han and had these really low tables with rellly low benches and cushions and pillows to sit on. There were women in the window making the Turkish equivalent of a crepe so that was neat to watch too.  The food hit the spot and we all left ready to, once again, do some shopping. 
        When we were done we figured we’d get a cab back to the ship rather than walking in the heat, so we headed down the hill to what looked like a cabstand. Since there were 7 of us we figured we’d need to get two, but nope! Our driver informed us that he would gladly take all 7 of us (8 including him?) in his 4-passenger car. I know I know. But it was only 15 lira and our legs were killing us.
        About a minute into the ride, however, we realized that if our aching feet didn’t kill us our lovely cab driver probably would. Seriously, every country we’re in the drivers just gets worse.  With 3 of us sitting on laps and everyone more than a little nervous (Katie later admitted she almost left Candice with a very wet lap)  we swerved in and out of lanes, dodging people attempting to cross the street and even taking a sharp left when the car in front of us started going in reverse? When we finally pulled up next to the ship we breathed a collective sigh of relief and headed in for a little siesta.
        After dinner we headed with two other girls to the “New District” and spent some time walking on Istiklal Street. It reminded me of any main street in any major city- full of shops, restaurants, bard, and of course, lots and lots of people. We wandered around, shopping and people watching, for a while before finally finding somewhere to eat dessert.  Chocolate fondue was an amazing decision, most clearly evidenced by Megan and Alex ending the night drinking all the pots of left over chocolate. We started to just walk home the way we came, but the alleyways that had been both dark and sketchy didn’t get better as time went on, so we ended up grabbing cabs halfway.  Luckily there were only 4 of us in each this time, so it was (slightly) less perilous.  
        Today we decided to sleep a little, but of course I was awake at 7:15 like clockwork. I went up and ate breakfast outside which was nice, then met up with Katie, Megan and Alex to head to find the Turkish bath.  It was so weird to be out on Sunday in what were basically empty streets, since just the day before you seriously felt like you were being pushed and knocked and jostled by people every which way.  After a few wrong terns and stops for help we ended up outside the Cemberlitas Hamami, the only bath recommended by every one of our books, websites, and friends.  We all decided to spring for the bath, soap treatment, and oil massage, and after paying headed in to the “women’s section” to see what we did next.
        To put it lightly, the receptionist who spoke perfect English and explained the packages to us was a little misleading.  We walk in to see all these people sitting around in the little towels they give you, and a bunch of barely dressed Turkish women walking around telling people what to do and where to go. After some confusion we figured out that we were to go went upstairs, change and get our lockers, then come back down and head in to the bath area.
        I don’t know if you’ve ever gotten a Turkish bath or if you know anything about it, but basically the main decision you have to make is about wearing a bikini- yes or no.  Everything says its fine either way, but it makes it pretty clear topless is the most authentic route. We didn’t think we were feeling quite that adventurous and said we’d at least wear them down and go from there, but when I finish with my turn in the bathroom I come out to find Alex, Megan and Katie standing in the hallway with some very apparent bare shoulders. I caved. When in Istanbul, right?
        The whole process took between 1-2 hours, and was made up of the bath itself and the massage. Ready for the step-by-step instructions?
1.      Lie down on your towel on a huge marble slab, and spend the next few minutes steaming and sweating until your masseuse is ready for you. (aka- walk in to see your RA and about 10 other SAS girls, along with 10 other women, laying topless on a big rock. Spend the next 15 minutes awkwardly avoiding eye contact until someone grunts and points at you to come over to the other side.)
2.      After being summoned, move over to another part of the stone where you get a good washing from your masseuse. (aka- quickly walk over and lay down in front of a rather well fed and mostly unclothed Turkish woman, who proceeds to spread bubbles all over you and scrub layers of dead skin off with a cross between sandpaper and an oven mit.)  
3.      When she’s done, get rinsed off and go sit in the jacuzzi until you’re good and relaxed. (aka- once she dumps buckets of water over your entire body, including your head, walk to the room next door and sit awkwardly in a pool with 4 or 5 strangers until you feel good and wrinkly and ready to move on.)
I think you get the idea. It was actually super relaxing and after the first minute not really that awkward. It would have been helpful if the women working there spoke English, but in a way it added to the fun. We were all taken to separate rooms for our massages (which were AMAZING) and after a quick shower to rinse off we met up to have a glass of apple tea.  We compared stories and changed, then after joking that “well we’ve been sleeping our way across Europe together for the last month so its about time we saw each other topless,” made our way home.  

All in all it was an awesome experience and something we’re so glad we did. Just one more thing to check off the bucket list ☺ We’re getting lunch at the pool bar now, then heading out to see a whirling dervishes show and get dinner. More to come from Turkey!