Final thoughts on Istanbul

What an amazing adventure this has been.  Turkey is one of those places where no matter how many times pictures you see, you have to experience it in person.  You can't walk in Istanbul without gaining an appreciation for the historical crossroads that the city occupies.  Of why empires have chosen this place as their seat of power, and why they have built magnificent monuments to honor the city.

And the people!  So friendly and willing to help at every turn.  Their love of children is something that took me aback at first.  Random strangers would come up to Nuha while we would be walking around a site, and would pick her up and pinch her cheeks.  Behavior like this back home would have me half-reaching for my cellphone to call the cops, but here there is a genuine love for children.  Security guards at airports would take Nuha from us and play with her while we went through security.  Even school children, no older than eight, and present at almost all the historical sites on their daytrips, would come up to us, ask us how old Nuha was, and start to play with her.  At the Blue Mosque, where Nuha started crying hysterically for Saeeda, who was still inside, I was approached by a mother who wiped away Nuha's tears, consoled her (something I as her father was unable to do), and gave Nuha her own child's snack to keep her calm before just walking away.  Incredible.

What I enjoyed the most about Istanbul was being surrounded by vestiges of Christian and Muslim buildings, each singing to their Lord through their architecture.  Saeeda and I made an excuse every day to somehow end up at the Blue Mosque at one time or another.  It was impossible to rip yourself away from the beauty and significance of that structure.

Even the south, with its heavier commercialization, was beautiful in its own way.  Beautiful beaches, stunning mountain ranges, unspoilt countryside.  No doubt there is much to see in Turkey for the outdoor enthusiast, or someone just wanting to get away from it all for a while.

This is not going to be our last trip to Turkey, if there is anything that I can do about it.  The country is too beautiful a jewel to be left unappreciated for long.