Blue Mosque - Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul

Wow. The Blue Mosque (or Sultan Ahmed Mosque) is incredible. Built in the early 1600's, this is a structure not to be missed if visiting Istanbul. I recommend reading more about this mosque on the Wikipedia page here.

This is really the one sight we went to see in the city.

I wasn't too keen on waiting in the loooooong line that wrapped around half the mosque... but Jaime new that the inside was supposed to be worth it. Thankfully, I think we had turned up right before it opened for the afternoon after the mid-day closure. The line moved rather quickly once the mosque opened up to visitors again.

It was free to go inside. We had to take our shoes off and wear disposable slippers. It was crowded inside - but mainly because of how incredible the inside is to see!!

I missed a good photo of the lights that were hanging. Thousands of lights were low throughout the mosque... and the domed ceiling was just stunning. WOW.

3 hours in ISTANBUL, TURKEY

Istanbul is a city that I have wanted to get to. I definitely enjoyed our time there buuuuuut 3 hours in the city is not enough! It was fun to go out and see some of the main sights instead of sitting in the airport. We left a lot of extra time to get back to the airport and it's a good thing we did! It took us twice as long to get back in the evening traffic as it had to get from the airport to the city center.

We started at the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque)

Outside the Blue Mosque:

Turkish Delight mmmmmmmm

(we taste-tested enough to count as dinner #1)

Even the sewer covers are pretty here!

View of the Blue Mosque down one of the main touristy streets:

Dinner #2:

Istanbul, Turkey and Uzbekistan - SPRING BREAK!

Donna, a good friend of mine from my time in Vietnam, now lives in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. She is working as the art teacher in the international school there.

I decided to go visit Donna for my spring break this year. My friend Jaime came with me! She is the friend that I visited in Copenhagen, Denmark for the Thanksgiving holiday this past November.

Jaime and I met up in the Istanbul airport and had an 8-hour layover. Being the first time to Istanbul for both of us, we decided to purchase a tourist visa and go for a trip into the city. I hope to get back to Istanbul this summer, as 3 hours sightseeing wasn't enough! The $30 USD I paid for the visa is good for 180 days and is a multiple entry visa - perrrrrfect.

This is Donna's second year in Tashkent (like me in Milan). When she first told me about accepting a position there, I had to look on a world map to figure out where she would be!

This was my first time going to this part of the world. What an adventure!

Honestly - I read a lot about visiting the country before going. This was the most nervous and cautious I have been so far in my travels. I wore my hair in a tight bun all week and wore loose clothing that covered me. I also did not want to be out after sunset. I was very glad to have a friend traveling with me for the week, since Donna was working. Overall - I felt safe the entire time and really enjoyed the week of traveling and exploring.

Below are two maps, which I created in Google Maps, to show this trip:

Milan is furthest West;

Istanbul, Turkey is flagged in the 'middle';

The 3 cities I visited in Uzbekistan are furthest East:

Closer up of Uzbekistan...

We started and ended in the capital city - Tashkent (northeast);

Took the train to Samarkand (middle);

Took another train to Bukhara (west) and flew back to Tashkent:

Before going on this trip, a teacher at school asked me what there was to see in Uzbekistan... and I didn't really know. Both Samarkand and Bukhara were major cities along the silk road trading path. I had read a lot about the mosques and mausoleums but wasn't sure beyond that. This was a trip like no other that I've taken.

The sights ended up being FANTASTIC. The blue tiles were my favorite (pictures to come!). The mosques are enormous structures that are filled with beauty and detail. The history throughout these ancient cities is incredible.