Just returned from the land with the most history I've ever seen. Turkey, or Istanbul in particular, has been a very interesting experience for my family. At times I was bewildered by the amazing architecture of the old Masjids, or 'Çamii' as they are also called, old Ottoman houses, and other buildings as well, and at other times the scenery of the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara were always a pleasant sight. Though we tried to enjoy ourselves as much we could, often we were put off by a number of things which left us wondering what Turkey, and Istanbul especially, was really about.
"A Photo I took of the Ayasofya"
Our entire experience there was humbling, enlightening, insulting, and also stressful; one would question if it was a holiday at all. Probably the most thing that bothered us was the way we were treated. Before leaving for Turkey, we were well informed of prices of entrance fees and transport and such things; as soon as we had entered our transport to the hotel, our "guide" offered us some tours for a price that was 7 times the regular. This wasn't the only occasion we were attempted to be ripped off. Other times there were excessive attempts to convince us we had no other choice but to pay them, lying about how the 'Satiş Noktası' (Sales point) was already closed; it was annoying.
"Further down Istiklal Street From Taksim Square"
We did not feel like guests in a country, we felt exactly like the purpose of our invitation (yes tourism is an invitation by a country); to bring our money with us and give it to them. It was very annoying being constantly called "Hajji" and treated with a friendly smile only to be attempted to be ripped off. Being presented with Menu's that had prices rubbed off, while there were perfectly good ones to give us was a clear sign. I know I'm sounding like I'm calling the entire people rip-offs; I'm not saying that, it just felt like the way we looked was a clear sign for everyone to approach us; but clearly it was alright to push us and bump into us, often being told to move out of our places because we were tourists.
What was insulting about that was the way we were constantly tagged by beggars and pimps, yes pimps, even if they could see we were with family.
During the last days I was dehydrated and couldn't see straight, I huddled over my dad to a taxi. As I got into a Taxi the driver decided... "Hmm, these guys look like in a desperate situation, let's charge them more. $10 Dollars, Hajji". Its a metered Taxi that would cost us less than a third of that!
Our holiday wasn't all bad as you can see with that smile:
"Inside the Ayasofya"
It was absolutely wonderful seeing the sites, and I could honestly say, I did not have anything that I ate there that I didn't enjoy. Everything I had was delicious, from the Döner Kebab all the way to the International foods; the Turks know food! We were cautious as to whether we were served pork or not, some places feeling ridicule for thinking we would be, and others informing us that we had the option. We left with a sense of confusion about what do Turks think is right.
Visiting the Ayasofya, Süleymaniye, and The Blue Mosque were probably the highlights of our trip. Reading the centuries of history behind these buildings was amazing. It makes one wonder which of these were built as Masjids and which were built as Churches or Synagogues, this was the case with all the mosques in the city. At times we wondered if the Sultans knew how to build Masjids or did they build Churches with minarets. My brother and I kept thinking of the Planet Naboo in Star wars and kept humming the Duel of the Fates track; hilarious!
"Naboo Palace - Star Wars"
The Blue Mosque, although still functioning as a Masjid, was open to everyone to visit. Back at home in UAE, Women aren't allowed to pray in the view of men, and non-muslim visitors aren't allowed in, both of which were happening not only in The Blue Mosque, but every other mosque in the city. It was a bit annoying not knowing how to answer visitors asking us whether they could go in or not. Maybe my family and I are not built for the Tourist Role, and maybe we're just very paranoid, we could definitely say that this holiday wasn't 100%, but I believe we would definitely give it another visit, to Bursa maybe?
"Stepping into the 'Süleymaniye Camii'. My 1000th Photo"
All in all, the whole experience was good for us; we picked up some 'Türkçe' (Turkish) as some people would refuse to answer us in any other language; (the words "Türkçe bilmiyorum" which would get the message through that we didn't know Turkish) , and we became grateful for what we are used to at home. I myself felt glad that a country such as Turkey was getting ahead in this world; its political influence rising, I'm happy; being a Muslim and all, but I couldn't help feel that the Turkish people are a bit confused as to where they belong and their own identity. These were the same sentiments our "guide" at the start was feeling. In places we saw people who called themselves Muslims and were fully clothed in the 'hijab' and answering calls to prayers, in others we found men of the same claim either selling women to others or themselves to gays, Friday is not a holiday and it didn't matter if you wanted to pray Friday prayers or not. We couldn't tell who was Turkish and who wasn't, some were very western and some very eastern. Though I do not judge, for I see the same thing happening right here at home, and we may be bothered by what goes on around us, but so long as we stay true to what we believe in and provide the rights of others (which Turkey does well), then only God can judge us.
