4th Annual Holiday Trip; Part I --Istanbul

In late December my father, little sister Rochelle, and family friend Laura embarked on our fourth annual holiday trip. Four years ago my father decided he was tired of the commercialism of Christmas. And so dad planned on an Australian holiday. Why Australia? Because Australia equals cricket, and every Trinidadian appreciates cricket. Australia just happens to have the best cricket team around right now. But due to some technical difficulties and the great distance between Arizona and Australia, we ended up in London that Christmas. With the intent of going to Australia every year, we have now been to London, Italy, and Greece. This year, we headed to Turkey and Egypt (neither of which is Australia, but both are special in their own right.)

When I told my friends that I was headed to Turkey and Egypt, they were alarmed at the prospect given the current social climate. I must admit that their concern made me a little nervous about spending Christmas and New Year’s in two Islamic countries. But I was ready for the experience.

Rochelle and I flew home to Arizona from Nashville and Austin, and two days later headed out. (Fortunately, I was released from my jury duty obligation.) We flew to Turkey on British Airways through Heathrow. When we arrived to Turkey it was late at night. We were picked up by the Apricot Hotel shuttle and headed to our hotel. At the Apricot, we were introduced to the Turkish delicacy, Apple Tea. Now I call it a Turkish delicacy, but I learned that no one drinks it but the tourists. Sigh. Apple Tea is like unsweetened apple cider. It is served all day long and it tastes divine!


From my hotel room I could see the Blue Mosque, one of Istanbul’s greatest sites. This was the first time I had seen a mosque up close. We woke up the next morning and enjoyed a homemade breakfast at the hotel. Then we set out to see the sites: Topkapi Palace, Aya Sofia, and the Blue Mosque.


Topkapi Palace is now a museum with amazing relics including thrones, gold and jewel encrusted items, and Islamic artifacts. As we walked through the palace and learned about the former sultans, I was surprised to learn that Topkapi Palace holds John the Baptist’s hand and Moses’ staff. The staff was not on display, but John the Baptist’s hand was… It was in that moment that I realized the amount of history in Turkey.

There were many school children touring the Topkapi at the same time. The children were more interested with my family then the history—they waved, said hello, and took pictures of us as we walked by. It was then that I realized there aren’t many black people in Turkey—we didn’t see more than ten during our entire trip.


Off to the Hagia Sophia . . .
-RXW