/Tuesday, July 18, 2006
After spending 2 whole weeks with Hob at my place! Im back at her place now! Yes! I feel so deprived of internet usage! TEGV has internet but the computers are so freakin' slow that the only thing i can do with it is to check my emails. Plus!! Im not used to keyboards with Turkish alphabets yet!
We"ve been monkeying around during these two weeks, chilling out everyday at all sorts of funny places, BBQs, Turkish ice cream cafes, Amusement Parks and doıng MORE nargile smoking. *Pooof* Nargile totally KILL your lungs but we don't care! At 5 YTL per pipe, its dirt cheap!
Quoted from Harry, our friend from UK, who is an aspiring politician:
"Im gonna make smoking illegal because it makes the air smell bad........ but I would not ban nargile because they don't make the air smell bad.........& they have APPLE, BANANA flavours......rich in VITAMINS....."
*hecks* Nargile is more harmful than cigerettes but they really do smell GOOOOD.*haha*
We went on a mini-road trip to Istanbul! Met up with the 3 NTU guys again!They are flying off on 12th july and Istanbul is like a mini-stopover for them before they fly back to Singapore.
I must clear some misconceptions that i may have created on my bloggings.
We haven been spending $$ money $$ like water for our roadtrips. (with 3 NTU accountancy student, how to be extravagent?? *Neow* *Neow*) haha.
In fact, we always source for the cheapest hostels, stay in the lousiest accomdations, shopped for groceries at the cheapest supermarkets, eat bread and jam for dinner to save money, always bargin for our tickets and never buying anything without bargining real real hard!
Yes! Budget travelling is great! Not only you save alot, you also get to enjoy the best sights and places like any other tourist, but for much much much less $$.
We even set up a society: "The GBGS society."
GBGS-> "GIAN BIN GIAN SAI"
(yes, we are super cheapo-na-nas, but as i always say, we don't fuckin' care!)
Yah, it's quite of silly to set up this GBGS society but it sorta' bond us together as a group and guess whose the president?
*Drumrolls*
Hobbit! She's the ultimate member cos she's gonna be outta' Sillypore till next feb, so she gonna scrimp and save like CRAZY.
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Back to the Istanbul trip! Istanbul is the richest and most modern city in Turkey and it is also the city WITH:
THE MOST DANGEROUS NIGHTSPOTS, THE MOST AMOUNT OF TOURISTS, THE MOST DANGEROUS TAXI-DRIVERS THAT WOULD CHEAT YOU BY ALL MEANS, THE MOST RIDICLULOUSLY PRICED GOODS AT BAZZAARS.
I know i sound very cynical about travelling in Istanbul, but overall, its a pretty nice place to visit because the best mosques are found there and they have many beautiful palaces and tourist-ty places!
I was completely blown away by Istanbul's burstling city life, the grandeur and splendor of its mosques and its totally-oh-so-totally BILLION-$$-WORTHY Palaces thats burstling to the brims in full-blown Grandiose!
Yes. I've never been more amazed by the sight of mosques or palaces in my whole life, it's tat amazing.
myyyy impression of mosques before I came to turkey:
1) The only mosque I've ever stepped into is the one opposite my aunt's house in Eunos, Sillypore.
2) Repetive designs, Motifs, no depictions of any human or animals. Only flowery patterns and arabic words.
myyyy impression of Otterman Palaces before I came to turkey:
1) I really have no idea how they look like!
2) I've only seen Buckingham Palace in England! Old, browny and spooky.
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This is us outside Istanbul's famous BLUE MOSQUE (Sultanahmet)
Here"s another place that we visited, the Dolmabahçe Palace! I love this place! It"s fantastically grand! And the freakın" 20 YTL tour around 1/3 of this place took 2 HOURS! It humong-gous! We could see the famous Turkish Bathhouse (huge) used by sultans who lived there. The whole place is filled with (huge) Chandeliers, (huge) European Curtains, (huge huge) intricately painted ceilings, and there"s a (huge huge huge)
4.5 Tonnes crystal Chandelier in the Grand hall!!!!!!!!!!!!
Plus! I had to pay freakin" 6 YTL to bring my camera in! Plus Flash photography is not allowed! >Sucks. The GBGS society had to freeride on my 6 Moohlah and I took 130 shots and 4 videos within 2 hours for the group. *Hecks*
Google at its Grandeur@
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolmabahçe_Palace
The Blue mosque was built between
1609 and
1616 by order of the Sultan
Ahmed I, after whom it is named.
It is within walking distance of the
Topkapi Palace, residence of the Ottoman Sultans until
1853 and only a short distance from the shore of the
Bosphorus. Seen from the sea, its domes and minarets dominate the skyline of the old part of the city, as was its builders' intention.
The mosque was deliberately sited to face
Hagia Sophia, to demonstrate that Ottoman and Islamic architects and builders could rival anything their Christian predecessors had created.
The mosque became known in the west as the Blue Mosque because of the predominantly blue colouring of paintwork of the interior. However this blue paint was not part of the mosque's original decor so it is being removed. Today the interior of the mosque does not strike the visitor as being particularly blue.
98% of the people inside this place were tourists! Japanese, Europeans, Koreans, Americans and 5 singaporeans! *haha* This is the measly 2% of people in the mosque (Islamic Worshippers). I was standing behind long rows of barricades with FLOCKS ＡＮＤ FLOCKS of Tourists with their tour Guides when I was taking this shot.
Yes. This mosque is a more like a tourist attraction rather than a place for people to pray. (In my opinion that is). Dun want to offend any Turks here. *hecks*
DID I MENTION THAT ENTRANCE FEE IS *BEDAVA*?? (Turkish word for "Free!")
Yesh! **GBGS member's eyes lit up!**
One last shot with the Blue mosque. It has 6 freakin minarets! The only mosque said to be challenging Mecce with its deliberate construction of six minarets!
The mosque was deliberately sited to face
Hagia Sophia, to demonstrate that Ottoman and Islamic architects and builders could rival anything their Christian predecessors had created.
This My friend ........is Hagia Sofia!
I simply LOVE THIS PLACE. It's the epitome of "juxtaposing".
WHY? IT'S a freakin church and a freakin' mosque! I was so amazed by the sight of Mother Mary sitting comfortably on one of the wall murals while Islamic inscription surrounds her.
I never knew such an interesting structure existing until I stumbled upon Hagia Sofia:
Here's a shortcut history, "Constantine the Great" built this church in 500BC (somewhere there). The Ottermans came along took over the place and wanted a express mosque+ get rid of this christian church.
So they merely painted over mother mary, Jesus and his angels.
Yup, Restoration works include carefully scrapping away the Mosque's exterior layer to reveal underneath intricately painted potraits of Saints and the saviour.
Interesting rite??
Well, It was to me at least! Haha!
"Restoration work in the 20th century was begun in 1932 by the American Byzantine Institute, during which most of the figures were uncovered. Due to its long history as both a church and a mosque, a particular challenge arises in the restoration process. The Christian iconographic mosaics are being gradually uncovered. However, in order to do so, important, historic Islamic art would have to be destroyed. Restorers have attempted to maintain a balance between both Christian and Islamic cultures. In particular, much controversy rests upon whether the Islamic calligraphy on the dome of the cathedral should be removed, in order to permit the underlying Pantocrator mosaic of Christ as Master of the World, to be exhibited (assuming the mosaic still exists)."
Look. A mix of Islamic Christian Mosaics.
Google at it's Grandeur @
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hagia_Sophia
it just ain't right @ Tuesday, July 18, 2006
