Tea House in Sultanahmet

My friends and I hit this tea house in the Arasta Market after visiting the Blue Mosque (background), but it was still daylight, and empty, on account of it being Ramadan. But come nightfall, it packed up full of Turks and tourists, and probably a few Turk tourists as well. A great place for backgammon if there ever was one. Especially if you like being beaten pantsless by an idle waiter. Am I right, Paul?

What is this thing?

A guy was selling these outside the Spice Market, along with three buckets of leeches. He had a box of them, which were all split like bananas, but bumpy like gourds, and full of ruby-red seeds like a pomegranate. What are these dang bananagranate gourds? Should I be punching myself for not getting any?

Photo Rummage Pile

Okay, let's see here, what do I have laying around the old photo grab bag?
Did I show you this one, yet?















It's inside the Ayasophia, near the apse.
What else, what else? Hey, what's this?














This here is the interior of the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent. You might be able to see a film crew in the left corner. It seemed there were film crews in all the mosques around Istanbul. Anyway, this mosque, like the other big, famous mosque, Sultanahmet (aka the Blue Mosque), was supposedly heavily influenced by the Ayasophia. But if you ask me--and I know you're not--all the mosques in Istanbul look a little like the Ayasophia, which looks a little like a bell you'd see at a hotel bell desk. Ding! Call to prayer. Ding! Insh'allah!

Here's another of Suleyman's mosque.



















Alright, last one for now. Remember kids, just because your mosque is blue, it doesn't mean it's sad.

Footie in Istanbul

Went to a footie match when I was in Istanbul. Besiktas v. Genclerbirligi (Ankara). The Black-and-Whites bested the Ankara side with a messy 1-0 win. To say the least, the Besiktas crowd probably kept the home team in the game better than the players.

Round and Round We Go

Ramp to the upper level in the Ayasophia.

Constantinople's Still Istanbul

Though the sun has set on my Istanbul adventures, watch the Smokehouse for the next week or so, and I'll post some of the awesome hilarity that I didn't get a chance to regale you with during my time on the Golden Horn! So stay tuned for more navel gazing!

So Bazaar.

Okay, Bob, tell our contestants what they didn't win.















A selection of fine teas, from the Spice Market.















A lovely fruit basket, look at those figs!















Wonderful, handmade soaps that look like fruit!















Pickles!















And a year's supply of leeches!