Jade Mediterranean from Rome -> Greece -> Turkey pics report (Nov 27 - Dec 7, 2013)

[cmdchiefthom]

Absolutely fantastic photos. Thanks for sharing....

[thamanrp]

Thank you everyone for the kind comments! Our next port of call...

 

Istanbul, Turkey

 

We had an overnight in Istanbul port. There was so much to do and see in Istanbul. I would rank it as high as London, Paris, and Rome. You need a few days here to get a good glimpse of Istanbul. The people were very nice and friendly, the food was excellent, and so much history. We will definitely go back to visit again.

 

We did all of the stuff on our own. To avoid the lines we booked the entrance tickets online (Topkapi Palace and Hagia Sophia). But since we visited in December there were no line at all once we arrived. So, if you are going in the low season I think you can get the ticket on site and save a few bucks on the fees. Here are some of the pics from the trip.

 

 

Arriving Istanbul

 

 

Bridge connecting Europe side to Asia

 

 

Jade docked at the port - view from our balcony

 

 

Topkapi Palace Model - For centuries, this was the palace where the great sultans hung their turbans. Topkapi Palace stands on the ruins of Byzantium, the ancient Greek settlement at the eastern tip of the Old Town peninsula. After capturing Constantinople, Ottoman Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror chose this prime location—overlooking the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus, and the Golden Horn—as the administrative center of his empire.

 

 

Imperial Gate, Mehmet the Conqueror (a.k.a. Mehmet II) built the gate when he chose this site as his administrative center in the 15th century—just above the entryway, notice his imperial signature, or tugra (too-rah)

 

 

Gate of Salutation

 

[thamanrp]

Divan—the council chamber where the viziers (ministers) of the imperial council governed the Ottoman Empire for almost 400 years.

 

 

Inside the council chamber, the viziers would sit on the sofa according to their rank in the hierarchy. (This is why some people call sofas “divans.”)

 

 

Gate od Felicity

 

 

Sultan's Reception Hall

 

 

Reception Hall, a throne room designed to impress visitors

 

 

[thamanrp]

 

Imperial Tresury - too bad no photograph allowed inside

 

 

Hall of Holy Relics - which shows off some of the most significant holy items of the Muslim faith. These relics were brought to Istanbul in the early 16th century, when their original locations—Egypt, Mecca, and Medina—were conquered by the Ottomans.

 

 

As this is a very holy site for Muslims, you’ll see many people praying with their hands open.

 

 

 

[thamanrp]

Sofa Pavilion - Ahmet III would lounge on a sofa here and gaze at his tulips after a long night of worldly pleasures

 

 

 

Sultanahmet Park

 

 

View of Hagia Sophia from the park

 

 

[thamanrp]

Blue Mosque

 

 

 

 

Blue Mosque Outer Courtyard

 

 

Inner Courtyard

 

[thamanrp]

It was a rainy day so we went and walked around the Grand Bazaar afterward

 

Grand Bazaar - first shopping mall ever built. During Byzantine times, this was the site of a bustling market; when the Ottomans arrived, it grew bigger and more diverse. The prime location attracted guilds, manufacturers, and traders, and it grew quickly—its separate chunks were eventually connected and roofed to form a single market hall. Before long, the Grand Bazaar became the center for trade in the entire Ottoman Empire. At its prime, the market was locked down and guarded by more than a hundred soldiers every night, like a fortified castle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 10, 2014 by thamanrp

[thamanrp]

Next day in Istanbul

 

View from the ship

 

 

 

 

Walking on the Galata Bridge - it was early morning but you can see some of the fisherman on the bridge fishing already. Later in the day the bridge will be full of fisherman.

 

 

While some of these folks are fishing for fun, others are trying to land a little extra income. They catch mostly mackerel or anchovies.

 

[thamanrp]

New Mosque

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Spice Market

 

 

 

 

 

 

[thamanrp]

Hagia Sophia - the Great Church of Constantinople. Built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian in A.D. 537 on the grandest scale possible, it was later converted into a mosque by the conquering Ottomans, and now serves as Istanbul’s most impressive museum. Hagia Sophia remains the high point of Byzantine architecture

 

 

Fountain - The Ottomans added this fountain in the mid-18th century.

 

 

Donation Mosaic - The mosaic dates from the 11th-century reign of Basil II. Scenes such as this became common in later Orthodox churches, and usually depict the patron who funded the church’s construction and to whom the church is dedicated.

 

 

In the mosaic, you see Mary and the Christ child enthroned. Jesus holds the Gospels in his left hand and makes the three-fingered sign of the Trinity with his right hand. Two mighty Roman emperors flank the Holy Family: On the right, Constantine presents Mary and Christ with a model of his city, Constantinople (symbolized by city walls). On the left is Justinian, presenting a model of his greatest achievement, Hagia Sophia.

 

 

Interior Narthex - Hagia Sophia’s interior narthex is an attractive space, with nine vaulted bays richly decorated with mosaics. The walls on either side are lined with inch-thick marble panels, which were glued to the wall with stucco and pinned with iron rods.

 

 

Alabaster Urn -This is one of two Hellenistic-era urns (second century B.C., one on each side of the nave) that the sultan brought to Istanbul from Pergamon—the formidable ancient acropolis of north Aegean Turkey.

 

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The main dome—185 feet high and roughly 105 feet in diameter. It's taller than Notre Dame in Paris and Statue of Liberty can do a jumping jacks in here.

 

 

Apse - When Hagia Sophia (the original church, facing Jerusalem) was converted into a mosque, a small off-center niche was added in the apse’s circular wall. Called the mihrab, this niche shows the precise direction to face during prayers (toward the holy city of Mecca, which is south of Jerusalem). The stately columns flanking the mihrab are actually huge candles—standard fixtures in royal mosques.

 

 

 

High above the mihrab, on the underside of the semi-dome, is a colorful Mosaic of Mary and the Christ Child on a gold background. Christ is also dressed in gold. Part of the background is missing, but most of the scene is intact. This mosaic, the oldest one in Hagia Sophia, dates from the ninth century.

 

 

[thamanrp]

Column of St Gregory - This is the legendary “perspiring column,” the Column of St. Gregory, the miracle worker. For centuries, people believed this column “wept” holy water that could cure afflictions such as eye diseases and infertility.

 

 

Upper Galleries

 

 

Deesis Mosaic - one of the finest of Hagia Sophia’s Byzantine mosaics—though certainly not its best preserved. Dating from the 13th or 14th century, its theme—the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist asking Jesus for the salvation of souls—is common in Eastern Orthodox churches. Notice how Mary’s and John’s heads tilt slightly toward Christ. The workmanship is fascinating, especially the expression and detail in the faces.

 

 

The 12th-century Mosaic of the Virgin and Child with Emperor John Comnenus and Empress Irene. Mary stands in the center, holding the Christ child in her arms. Christ’s right hand extends in blessing, and he holds a scroll in his left hand. As in many such mosaics, the emperor offers Christ a bag of money (representing his patronage), and the empress presents a scroll. Their son Prince Alexius is portrayed to his mom’s left on the adjoining pier—added to the scene only after he became co-emperor at age 17.

 

 

The 11th-century, Mosaic of Christ with Emperor Constantine IX Monomachus and Empress Zoe. Constantine and Zoe are portrayed in ceremonial garments, flanking Christ on his throne. The inscription above the emperor’s head reads, “Sovereign of Romans, Constantine Monomachus,” while the empress is identified as “Zoe, the most pious Augusta.”

 

 

Exhibits in the upper galleries

 

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View from the upper galleries

 

 

 

[thamanrp]

Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii)—Officially named for its patron, but nicknamed for the cool hues of the tiles that decorate its interior, the Blue Mosque was Sultan Ahmet I’s 17th-century answer to Hagia Sophia. Its six minarets rivaled the mosque in Mecca, and beautiful tiles from the Iznik school fill the interior with exquisite floral motifs. The tombs of Ahmet I and his wife Kösem Sultan are nearby.

 

 

Six Minarets - Aside from its impressive scale and opulent interior, the Blue Mosque is unique because of its six minarets. According to Muslim tradition, the imam (the prayer leader) or the muezzin (a man chosen for his talent in correctly voicing the call to prayer) would climb to the top of a minaret five times each day to announce the call to prayer. On hearing this warbling chant, Muslims are to come to the mosque to pray. Today, an imam or muezzin still performs the call to prayer, but now it’s amplified by loudspeakers at the top of the minarets.

 

 

 

 

 

[thamanrp]

Blue Mosque Inner Courtyard - The courtyard is surrounded by a portico, which provides shade and shelter. The shutters along the back wall open in summer for ventilation. In the center of the courtyard is a fancy fountain, once used for ablutions but no longer functional. When the mosque fills up for special services, worshippers who can’t fit inside pray in the large vaulted area in front of the mosque (on your left) and, if necessary, fill the rest of the courtyard. But today such jam-packed services are rare. Muslims are not required to actually go to the mosque five times each day; they can pray anywhere. The exception is the midday service on Friday, which the Quran dictates should be a time for all worshippers to come together in congregation—making mosques more crowded on Fridays.

 

 

Hippodrome - Built in the fourth century A.D., the Hippodrome was Constantinople’s primary venue for chariot races. But as the place where the people of the city gather, this racetrack has also been the scene of social and religious disputes, political clashes, and violent uprisings.

 

 

Egyptian Obelisk - This ancient, pointy pillar was carved about 1,500 years before Christ to honor the Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmose III; its inscribed hieroglyphs commemorate his military achievements. The obelisk was brought here from the Temple of Karnak on the Upper Nile sometime in the fourth century A.D. What you see today is only the upper third of the original massive stone block (imagine the original height!)

 

 

The base, which was cut out of local white marble and stands on four bronze feet. Reliefs on all four sides of the base depict Emperor Theodosius the Great and his family at the royal lodge, watching the Hippodrome races.

 

 

Column of the Serpent - This was a victory monument dedicated to the gods by 31 Greek city-states to commemorate their victory against the Persians at Plataea (479 B.C.). It stood at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi for 800 years, until—like the Egyptian Obelisk—it was brought to Constantinople from Greece in the fourth century A.D.

 

[thamanrp]

Underground Cistern - This vast underground reservoir dates back to Byzantine Emperor Justinian’s reign in the sixth century A.D. Because it was built on the site of an earlier basilica, it’s often called the “Basilica Cistern.” Turks call it yerebatan sarayi, which means “sunken palace.”

 

 

 

A forest of 336 columns supports the brick ceiling. Most of these were recycled from earlier Roman ruins in and around the city.

 

 

 

At the far end of the cistern,there are two recycled Medusa heads lying on the ground—one sideways and one upside-down—squeezed under pillars. This fearsome mythological gorgon—with hair made of snakes and a gaze that could turn people to stone—was often carved by Greeks into tombstones or cemetery walls to scare off grave robbers. In Roman times, she became a protector of temples.

 

 

[thamanrp]

Some night shots around the Sultanahmet Park

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walking back to Galata Bridge - notice a lot of restaurants on the bridge

 

[thamanrp]

Night shots - view from the ship

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jldev]

Thanks so much on another awesome trip update. In terms of the two days in Istanbul, what did you get done on Day 1 and what did you get done on Day 2?

[js4rq]

Awesome cruise review... those Istanbul photos brings back memories! :D Can't believe it's been 1 1/2 years since we went to Europe!

[gbntmom]

Thank you for continuing to post. Your photos are gorgeous and your descriptions fabulous! Your efforts are much appreciated.

Janet

[AF-1]

Wow. Just joined this thread. I will be on Jade next spring. All I can say is thank you. I don't have to leave the ship. I've seen my entire cruise thru your camera lens.

[thamanrp]

Thank you everyone for the kind comments!

 

Thanks so much on another awesome trip update. In terms of the two days in Istanbul, what did you get done on Day 1 and what did you get done on Day 2?

If you are taking the cruise that stops in Istanbul be sure to check the schedule. On our itinerary, when the Jade arrived, Topkapi Palace was opened but Hagia Sophia was closed. The next day Hagia Sophia was opened but Topkapi Palace was closed. So our itinerary were:

 

Day 1, ship arrived in the afternoon, Topkapi Palace, walked around the Sultanahmet park, trying to go inside the Blue Mosque but it was too late, rain starting to pour so we went and shopping at the Grand Bazaar then have dinner afterward.

 

Day 2, walked across the Galata Bridge, visiting the New Mosque, Spice Market, lunch, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Underground Cistern, taking night shots, dinner, then back to the ship.

 

All the pictures are in the timeline order. We wanted to visit Taksim Square at night but it was raining the first day (too cold and windy for us even though it was only 45F) and we were just too tired from all the walking the second day. We know we would be back again so we'll just save it for next time :-)

[binwinbinwin]

Blue Mosque

 

 

 

 

Blue Mosque Outer Courtyard

 

 

Inner Courtyard

 

 

Your photos are truly breathtaking and capture the beauty of the several historical cities you visited. Was Istanbul your favorite port during the 10 day cruise?