Tag: Istanbul

  • Second Home Hostel, Istanbul, Turkey

    Second Home Hostel, Istanbul, Turkey

    As promised, here is the video we created over the past few days for our pals at Second Home Hostel in Istanbul. It still amazes me that it can take over 30 hours of work to produce a video less than two minutes long. Hope you enjoy it. Attentive readers may recognize the beautiful female…

  • Istanbul Eats Photo Competition

    Istanbul Eats Photo Competition

    Hey! If you’re reading this, then I’ll assume you’ve been digging the blog. How about sharing the love back to us. One of the photos I took in February and posted on this blog is a finalist in a photo contest over at IstanbulEats.com. Please vote for my pic here, by emailing istanbuleats3@gmail.com with the subject heading “Turkey Vote…

  • Documentary Photography: An Unrealized Ambition

    Documentary Photography: An Unrealized Ambition

    I hate when people ask me if I’m a photographer. Sometimes it’s the gear that prompts this. They see the expensive looking camera, or maybe pick up my kit for a moment and are taken aback by how heavy it is. “Whoa! You must be a photographer.” Maybe it’s the final shots that have them whoa-ing,…

  • Topkapi Palace (Topkapi Sarayi)

    Topkapi Palace (Topkapi Sarayi)

    Topkapi Palace located in Istanbul, was the headquarters for the Ottamen Empire for more then 400 years. Today it is a museum. When we went it cost 20 Turkish Lira per person, and if we wanted to go into the Harem it would cost an additional 15 Turkish Lira per person. The ticket for entering…

  • Everyday Istanbul
  • The Turkish Bath Towel Was Too Small

    The Turkish Bath Towel Was Too Small

    Which one should we go to? This one costs double the price, so is it better, or is it just more because it is physically one of the oldest Turkish baths? There are so many questions when it comes to Turkish baths, or Hamams, for us Canadians who are very used to wearing lots and…

  • The Basilica Cistern in Istanbul, Turkey

    The Basilica Cistern in Istanbul, Turkey

    Below the streets of Istanbul, beside the famous mosque Aya Sophia, is an underground tank, called the Basilica Cistern or the Turkish name, “Yerebatan Sarnici”  meaning “Underground Palace”. It was constructed in the 6th century during the reign of Emperor Justinianus. The cistern is supported by 336, 9-meter tall marble columns. Istanbul used the cistern…

  • “The Truth” about Istanbul

    “The Truth” about Istanbul

    Our friend Colin has been pestering us to show “the truth” of the places we visit, rather than the stuff you can find in “any art history text book.” He wants to see the gutters, poverty, deprivations of every kind. Mostly that’s just his own twisted personality, but it presents some problems. Turkey is simply…

  • Aya Sophia: up close and personal

    Aya Sophia: up close and personal

    I went camera crazy in Aya Sophia. I loved the details. Through these photos, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

  • Aya Sofia

    Aya Sofia

    UPDATE: (a couple more photos added) Aya Sofia was built about 1500 years ago by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, and served as the most important church in Christendom for about 900 years before being converted into a mosque by the Ottomans in 1453. Even after all this time it is still impressive. Suffice it to…