Istanbul - West meets East

After one spent considerable amount of time in Germany, at least one time or other, one should have gone to Turkish shop to eat the famous Döner Kebap or Durm. After hearing about all the stories about Turkish culture, food and historical cities from our Turkish friends in Universities, Istanbul was always in my list of European voyage. Thanks to the cheap air tickets by Condor Airlines from Hamburg to Istanbul. If you are having Indian passport, one can get on arrival visa by showing the hotel bookings and return tickets for two weeks.

Istanbul is a sandwich city between Europe and Asia and so is the culture of Istanbul with the conglomeration of east and west. One side you see the tall skyscrapers, modern outfits and western style and on the other side one sees the traditional Mosques, Bazaars and trademark Islamic buildings. The lovely Bosphorus bridge connecting Europe and Asia and one of the busiest bridges in the world is a treat to watch especially with lights in the night time.

Had a chance to rent a car to explore Istanbul and near by places. Driving in Turkey is more or less similar to driving in India. Hagia Sophia, Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Dolmabahchi Palace which shows the richness of Ottoman empire are some of the must see places in Istanbul. The Grand Bazaar is the oldest and one of the largest covered markets in the world and strolling across this Bazaar is definitely a life time experience.

A cruise ship on the Bosphorus on a sunny day is a must in Istanbul. The same cruise ship on the Bosphorus in the night with belly and Turkish dance and Turkish cuisines on the ship is yet another great experience ;) Had a chance to go to Sile, a small beach located by the Black-Sea shore and is just 45 minutes drive by car from Istanbul. The most fascinating aspect of Istanbul is the restaurants. They have marvellous and huge varieties of Turkish food and sweets which one can savour to the core.

Thanks to Özge and Ismail, my good Turkish friends in my University hosted us in a traditional Turkish Restaurant and their hospitality was simply awesome. It’s a special feeling to catch up with friends with whom you rubbed shoulders in German Universities and to meet them in their homeland. Thanks to my good friends Prabu and Aishwarya who accompanied with us for the trip and we had loads of fun with both of them and they gave a great company. Prabu made excellent pictures with his SLR camera and the ladies as usual posed for the pictures ;)

All in all it was an excellent trip which will reside in my memory for long time. After exploring Istanbul, I should say Turkey is no way developing country, it is indeed developed nation. Probably the same quality of life is not to be seen in other areas of Turkey. By far, in my opinion, Istanbul looked grand and rich in all aspects. Istanbul must see place in Europe. Oh I am sorry in Asia Oh no Europe and Asia ;)

Cheers,

Sathish Kumar S