grand bazaar, turkish spa, and some mosques

This week I have a few days off because my family is busy, so yesterday I went out to the historical city center with two other au pairs, Natalie and Hunter, and we had a wonderful time together!!

First stop: Spice Bazaar

A glimpse into the Egyptian Bazaar aka Spice Bazaar. Spices (surprise!), teas, and Turkish delight were the most common goods sold here I'd say, but there was quite a variety. I don't exaggerate when I say almost every shop worker tries to holler and get your attention and get you to stop for conversation or to sample something or to look at something as you walk by (and the place is made up of probably a hundred small shops? I don't know, I'm a horrible estimator but they're packed in there). It could be taken as annoying and overwhelming, or it could be taken as humorous and interesting, and I generally took it as the latter. :)

If you don't know, these my friends are hookahs (aka waterpipes). They are everywhere here and even on some restaurant menus different kinds of hookah are offered. You smoke flavored tobacco called shisha with them, but it doesn't include the nicotine and many other chemicals that cigarettes have. They are very popular here. My au pair friend bought one, ha.

Next stop: one of Istanbul's most famous attractions, the Grand Bazaar. This thing is massive. And it's practically chaos.

This place is huge and it is very easy to get lost. The hollering shopkeepers translates to this site as well. Many stores sell the exact same goods, but some are completely unique and have handcrafted items, so you just gotta search. Bartering is generally expected or else you can get majorly ripped off. Most common shop products: scarves/shawls (some called shatooshes), genie lamps and other brass-type knick knacks, ceramic tiles and dishware with painted designs, jewelry, hanging beaded spherical lighting things (I have no clue what they're called or how better to describe them haha), and carpets.


From here we went to a hamam, which is a traditional Turkish bath. We went to one somewhat out of the way that was more authentic and less touristic. It cost about 50 liras plus tip, which ended up being about 30 USD. SO worth it. So what was it like? Well, Hunter, Natalie, and I (who barely know each other) got handed towels by a large older woman who only spoke Turkish and ushered into a small room with a bench in it. We figured we were supposed to undress but didn't really know what was going on so we asked some other girls who had just come out and they gave us the lowdown on what to do and expect. In the nude we then sat in a sauna room with sinks lining the walls and plastic bowls. The Turkish lady showed us we were supposed to sit on the floor and pour the water on ourselves using the bowl. After about 45 minutes she came back in and (for some reason I was first) had me come lay on a table in the middle of the room. She used a kese which is a scrubber thing that I bought at the bazaar (we knew we had to buy these and bring our own or else they'd use a communal scrubber and we didn't want that) and basically scrubbed off all the dead or mostly dead skin off my whole body. Then she came back and lathered us up with soap and then gave us massages! It was wonderful. It was also awkward, but not to the degree I'd have expected. Obviously this woman does this for a living and it was completely normal to her, so it was ok. Then she came back again and washed our hair for us. That was it! I felt incredibly clean and relaxed; we all really enjoyed it and I would recommend it as something anyone visiting Turkey HAS to do. (There's a separate part of the hamam for men).

Me, Hunter, and Natalie at Lucca's, a restaurant in the trendy neighborhood of Bebek after a long and wonderful day together.

Today I ventured into the same area alone, having some souvenir shopping to finish up on and some mosques to see. This is the "New Mosque".

I thought I should take a picture of this stand since it is one of the most common sights on the streets in Istanbul. These circular bagel/soft pretzel things are the #1 street food and snack in Istanbul, called simit.

Suleymaniye Mosque - same architect as the Hagia Sophia; much more quiet and less busy. I really liked the location of this mosque, away from all the hustle and bustle. It felt a lot more like a place of worship and less like a mob of tourists.

All mosques require you to take off your shoes and cover your legs, arms, and head (this is true if you're a woman; the men must have their legs covered and that's all I think - ha, that guy on the left isn't following the rules I guess, easier to get away with in a more "minor" mosque such as this one). I managed to forget about this yet again when leaving the house today so I didn't dress properly... I may or may not be utilizing souvenirs I bought for other people in this picture. Oops.

This little mosque was a hidden gem. It's called the Rustem Pasha Mosque. This is the exterior - those beautiful tiles again!

And finally, this is the interior of the mosque called New Mosque (exterior pictured way above).

So now I'm trying to figure out what to do tomorrow, and I'm actually running out of top-sites to choose from. There are a lot of smaller things I could see, but I have successfully packed a lot into these two weeks!
Some people have asked me what a typical day is like for me ("typical" day has only actually occurred maybe 5 times so far haha). Here it is:

I said some of this before I think, but when I'm not off like this week I meet Ella for breakfast at 9 and eat with her. I play with her (we try at least one board/card game and to do a bit of one of her preschool workbooks) until 12pm which is when I have a few off hours until 3 (and my lunch on my own time). At 3 I resume my care for Ella. Usually at some point we go to the playground nearby with Muhteram (Denis's nanny who unfortunately only speaks Turkish) and Denis. I play with her until 6 which is when I feed her dinner in front of the TV. Then she usually watches TV or plays a bit more until 7:30, which is when I help her with bath time. Then we read 3 books and I tuck her in, and I'm off the rest of the evening. Usually I sit in the house and use the wifi or read (I'm currently reading Les Miserables :) or journal. So that's my typical workday!

Hope you enjoyed these pictures! With all of these places though, you really have to be there to fully appreciate them. You have to smell the spices, hear the salesmen, and see the mobs of tourists to fully appreciate the bazaars, and you have to be in the mosques, smelling the foot odor and feeling the carpet under your bare feet, hearing the silence, seeing the devoted pray-ers on their knees with the traditional coverings to fully appreciate the mosques.

But maybe this blog will do for you, at least until you can get here yourself, eh? :)

my "job", the incredible topkapi palace, and the blessing of fellowship!

This week has been more of the actual job part that I'm supposedly doing here. Days can be long trying to entertain Ella for hours on end, but we are becoming more and more bonded and the more she grows to like me the sweeter she is towards me which I love :) (I'm all for the hand-holding, lap-sitting, hugging sweetness of little girls, and she's been a little hesitant to show this kind of affection but it's coming!) It can also be difficult reconciling the way I would actually raise kids with the fact that she is not my child and needing to determine how much liberty I can take with the way her parents choose to raise her.

Play Doh is one activity that is fun for both of us! The previous day we spent several hours making animals that belong to the swamp (it's educational along the way - she learns about new animals and also has fun guessing what I'm making) and today we made animals of the ocean! Also note the Nutella she managed to get even on her forehead at breakfast, and her unicorn shirt which is telling of her great love of the fantastical world of fairies, unicorns, and princesses. She is sure a cutie.

I also tried to come up with animals that would be easy for her to make. She liked using a little Play Doh tool that made worm-like things, so I told her they could be sea cucumbers! Later on she referred to the sea hamburgers she made. Ha!

I took Saturday as my day off for the week and went to the Topkapi Palace. This was where the Ottoman Sultans lived from 1465-1856, and it is incredible. It's really many buildings and rooms, not just one, so visitors today just wander through the courtyards and in and out of the buildings of the palace. There were also treasuries in which no pictures were allowed to be taken, but I saw lots of whole-gemstone jewelry, weapons, and thrones. I also saw many holy relics of Islam, including pieces of Muhammad's beard, his sword, his cloak, Moses' staff, and David's sword (ha, think they were really theirs?).

The Sultan would sit in here and they would bring gifts by this window for him to see them. This was part of what was called the Gate of Felicity. Inside was a school Christian children were taken to to be trained in Islam (during this time Christianity was still tolerated, but unfavorable). Depending on their intelligence, diligence, and success they could even become viziers.

The library

The tiling! Tiles were the primary wall coverings. SO intricate and colorful and beautiful!

 The harem had a separate entrance (and fee). "Harem" = something forbidden or kept safe. This harem had four parts: eunuchs' living quarters, concubines' living quarters, living quarters of the mother of the reigning sultan called the Queen Mother, who was the most important woman of the harem, and finally the kiosks and baths of the emperor. The eunuchs were brought from Ethiopia (eunuchs were only men allowed in harem for obvious reasons, all the sultan's women living there) and were actually considered very powerful because they could see the emperor at any time.

The concubines' rooms are on the right; the most favored ones had the rooms with windows. 300-500 concubines lived in the harem at one time! They were educated and pampered and could end up marrying the sultan's officials or even bearing his sons if they found his extreme favor. (I found it interesting they talked about how music education was considered one of the most important parts.)

Queen Mother's room

Love this.

Mirrors used by guards to watch many entrances to harem

I walked around to some random smaller sites then...

Fountain of Ahmet III

Sogukcesme Sokagi - old wooden house lane

 What an interesting day! I definitely learned a LOT. It is amazing to be in a beautiful city so packed with centuries of such rich history and diversity!

I have been really trying to intentionally make extra time for my own times of worship, prayer, studying scripture, and listening to podcasts, but even with all of this nothing can replace fellowship or even simple interaction with other believers! I have really been missing this a lot. It is very difficult not being able to talk about or share in what matters most to me with the people I spend all my time with to keep it a reality in my moment-by-moment life, if that makes sense. But today I experienced the fulfillment of my (and many others') prayer that I would find some fellowship - through my sister I made a connection with an international church here and my host family was supportive and actually had their driver take me to church this morning! It was a great effort to find the physical building as it was in a different area of the city, but eventually we found it and after waiting a bit for someone to come and open the building (I was quite early) up came a family of 4 girls and parents who are from the U.S. The gathering was small and as far as I could tell all Americans. I didn't meet everyone, but was warmly welcomed and amazed to find out the family I met first live very near to me in Istanbul! The service was simple but I came away extremely refreshed having had praise and worship, a sermon, and prayer basically in the style I am used to. My host grandmother might be the one to drive me next week (I plan to attend weekly!), which means she might actually sit in on the service. I am so thankful the Lord has provided this church for me and these wonderful connections! I am encouraged.

I feel your prayers. As I am being challenged and experiencing new things continually I know I am learning and growing in various aspects... I know I cannot be thankful enough for this opportunity and am really trying to make the very most of it :)

Please continue to pray for my witness, my relationship with Ella, and that the Lord would use this unique season of my life to prepare me in whatever ways he chooses for future seasons he walks with me into.

All my love!