Istanbul Part 2: A Church and Some Miniature Turks

Tuesdays can be tricky for sightseers in Istanbul.  Some of the major museums such as Topkapi Palace are closed.  As a result, other tourist sites can be much busier.  Therefore, we decided to spend the day away from Sultanahmet, visiting some of the lesser known attractions.  The first destination on our list was Chora Church (Kariye Müzesi).  "Chora," in Greek means "outside the city" or "rural.  When the original chapel was constructed in the 4th century AD, it was built outside of the city's walls.  Hence the full name of the complex is "The Church of the Holy Savior in the Country."  Over time as Constantinople grew larger, newer city walls were constructed which incorporated the church within the city limits.

The current iteration of the Chora Church dates to its renovation in the 14^th century by a wealthy statesman named Theodore Metochites.  Although the sun was setting over the Byzantine Empire when these repairs took place, impressive mosaics and frescoes were still added to the interior of the building.  Unfortunately, these were eventually covered for over 400 years when the Ottomans converted the church into a mosque.  The building has since been restored as a museum, but much of the beautiful artistry has been lost over the centuries.

Unlike our time in Cappadocia and the Aegean coast, we were going to take our time in Istanbul and go at a slower pace. Therefore, we finally got a chance to sleep in late (with the exception of the loud calls to prayer) and left the apartment a little before noon.

We took the tram from Sultanahmet to Topkapi Station (located nowhere near the palace), transferred to the T4 line, and exited at  Edirnekopi.  From there, it was a 15 minute walk to Chora Church.  We did have to cross a highway and a couple of busy roads to get to our destination.

Near the highways were some well-preserved remnants of the old city walls of Constantinople.

Unfortunately for us, the Chora Church was undergoing major restoration.

The entire exterior was covered in scaffolding and sheets.

A significant portion of the interior
(Nave and Apse) were closed off.

Fortunately, the important mosaics were still viewable. Admission was 15 TL ($5.50) per adult and free for children.  We started with the exterior narthex where the colorful mosaics tell the story of Jesus Christ.  In the church, the scenes are not in chronological order.

Above the door leading outside, the Virgin Mary carries the Little Baby Jesus in her womb.

Mary (on the donkey) and Joesph (left) travel to Bethlehem.  Joseph's son
from a previous marriage (on the right without a saintly halo) leads the way.

The reason that Mary and Joseph made their way to Bethlehem was to enroll for taxation.  The
governor of Syria (seated) likely represented Theodore Metochites, who started as a tax collector.

The Nativity is depicted.  On the right, the couple share the manger with farm animals.

The three Magi travel to Bethlehem to pay their respects to the Little Baby Jesus.  Not good at
keeping important information to themselves, they seek King Herod's assistance in finding him.

Already crowned "King of the Jews" by the Roman Senate,
Herod orders his soldiers to find and kill the Little Baby Jesus.

Herod's men slaughtered all the male children under two years of age in Bethlehem.  This
depraved act was nothing new for King Herod who even had three of his own sons executed.

While Jesus and his family flee to Egypt, Elizabeth hides from the soldiers in a cave with her
young son, John the Baptist.  It would take many more years, but Herod would get his head.

The mosaics then fast-forward to several years later.  On one of the domes, two scenes are depicted by a large mosaic.

John the Baptist, dressed in animal skins, presents Jesus to a group of priests.

In this scene, Jesus is tempted four times by the Devil (the dark, winged creature).  

In this mosaic, the Messiah turns water into wine.  A toga party ensues.

Jesus multiplies five loaves of bread to feed the people.  In response, the Atkins Diet is created.

After all are fed, there is still enough bread to fill more baskets.

We then walked into the Interior Narthex where the mosaics
mainly focused on the Virgin Mary and her mother, Saint Anne.

Mary is always shown wearing a dark blue robe.  St. Anne wears a red one.

A flying angel tells Anne that she will give birth to Mary and have a divine grandson.

Mid wives attend to Anne (left) while others bathe the newborn Mary (lower right).

A priest presents a tiny Mary to Joseph while a crowd of rejected suitors look on.

Mary (left) accompanies Joseph (center) to his loveshack home while his son (right) leads the way.

This mosaic of St. Paul (along with one of St.
Peter) flank the doors to the locked Nave.

Jesus holds the Bible and makes the sign of the Trinity.  His ancestors are shown below.

There are a couple of other mosaics showing Jesus' miracles...

...such as curing a leper and healing the masses.

These mosaics are definitely worth seeing. They have almost been restored to their original glory.

In the limited amount of light, the gold in the tiles really stood out from the dark, stone walls.

The mosaics in both narthexes were definitely worth seeing.  They have almost been restored to their original glory.  But there was still more to see in the Paracclesion.  This section of Chora Church was originally used to house the tombs of important Byzantine figures such as Theodore Metochites himself. The niches where their crypts used to be are now empty.  Instead of mosaics, this section was decorated with frescoes--mainly dealing with the Afterlife.

In the center of this large dome is a painting of the Virgin Mary and the
Little Baby Jesus.  Angels wearing Byzantine clothing encircle them.

Murals around the dome...

...honor four Byzantine poets.

The Paracclesion is much better lit thanks to a few of these windows.

The centerpiece of this portion of the Chora Church is the fresco depicting the Last Judgement.
Jesus sits in the center and is flanked by his 12 Disciples, Mary, John the Baptist, and angels.

Below Jesus are the kneeling figures of Adam and Eve.  A scale judges several naked,
trembling souls.  Jesus' right hand points upward for heaven, the left stays down for Hell.

Hell is depicted as a river of fire burning these condemned souls.

In this fresco, St. Peter (left) unlocks the gates of Heaven while the Good Thief who was
crucified with Jesus holds a cross.  The damaged area on the right shows Mary on the throne.  

In this painting, Jesus breaks down the gates of Hell to rescue the righteous
people of the Old Testament.  He is shown pulling up Adam and Eve.

Below Jesus' feet is the faded image of a bound Satan and several broken locks from the gate.

After our visit to the church, we hailed a taxi to take us to our next destination. Despite our attempts at haggling, I think we still got ripped off as we had to settle for a 35 TL ($13) fare to take us to Miniaturk.  The place reminded me of Legoland.  Similar to that theme park, Miniatruk contains small-scale versions of historic places throughout Turkey, albeit without the colorful, interlocking blocks. The Wife really thought that the idea was cool,  She believed that The Kids would enjoy it more than another museum or historical ruin.

The park looks like a Putt-Putt course sans the clubs, balls, and fun.

Miniaturk is indeed awesome…if you are a five year-old child.  There are small playgrounds, a mini maze, and giant-sized chess boards for small kids to amuse themselves.  In fact, the place was teeming with busloads of school children here for field trips. There were also other families too, but likely tourists from outside the Istanbul area.

Aren't things supposed to be SMALLER at MINIaturk?

I saw more women wearing burkas at Miniaturk than I saw in the rest of our time in Turkey.

Some models of the places where we had already visited such as Ephesus, the Mausoleum, or Chora Church were mildly interesting.  It's mainly because these reproductions could give us a better idea what these ancient sites used to look like.

The Temple of Artemis even has a miniature reproduction of the multi-boobed goddess statue.

It would have been nice if they had reconstructed the
entire Celsus Library of Ephesus, not just the facade.

This small replica of the Mausoleum at Helicarnassus is more interesting than the real ruins.

The real walls of Constantinople held off the Islamic Conquests for 800
years.  It would take only a second for a five-year old to hop over these. 

So this is what the Chora Church is supposed to look like without all the scaffolding.

Some of the sites that I would never have a chance to visit are also somewhat interesting.

I really wanted to see Mount Nemrut, but it would have added a three day detour to our journey.

Located just a few miles from the Syrian border, the village of Mardin doesn't get many tourists.

What I felt less enthusiastic about were the miniatures of the famous sites that people travel around the world to see.  I just didn't see the point.  I also had very little interest in recreations of the many minor mosques or school buildings located in small cities throughout Turkey.  While The Wife and The Girl enjoyed Miniaturk, The Boy and I felt otherwise.

There was no need to come to Minaiturk to see the Blue Mosque.
We could have just looked out the window of our apartment.

Is Atatürk airport really a historic or cultural site?

This reproduction of Taksim Square was missing some miniature rioters.

I guess tourists took Bosphorus cruises back in the 19th century.

After leaving Miniaturk, we were able to hail an honest taxi driver who took us to Taksim Square for only 20 TL ($8). This area is considered the center of modern Istanbul.  It is a main hub for the city's transportation and utility networks.  As a result, it has also been the location where demonstrations take place.  The most recent ones were in 2013; but political protests have been going on there for several decades.

In the center of the square is a monument dedicated to the founder of the Republic of Turkey

From Taksim Square, we walked down Istiklal Street, one of the most well-known and busiest shopping areas in Istanbul. Unlike the Grand Bazaar in the Old City, this avenue mainly has modern shops and boutique stores.

As many as three million people visit Istiklal Street on any given day.

At this point in the mid-afternoon, we were all pretty hungry.  We went down a side alley and had a late lunch at Zubeyir Ocakbaşı.

A man grills kebabs on an ocakbaşı, a long fire pit with a copper hood.

Grilled red peppers with yogurt

Ezme (chilli and tomato dip)

Although they were just a garnish, these grilled peppers were great.

The karışık et (mixed kebab) was a safe and delicious option.

The Boy and I enjoyed the ciğer şiş (lamb liver kebab).  The Wife was not a fan.

We shopped for what seemed like eternity at the different stores. Although we found some inexpensive clothing for The Girl, The Wife was disappointed in the options for herself. We also stopped at a store called Paşabahçe which is known for beautiful glassware. However, the prices were too steep for our stomachs.

A trolley runs the length of Istiklal Street for those who are too lazy to walk.

Street entertainers serenaded passersby with folk music.

I didn't say it was TURKISH folk music.

We slowly made our way down to Galata Tower, a nine story tall structure that stood out from the skyline during medieval times. It was built in 1348 when the area was a colony for Genoese merchants. The Galata Tower was used for observing ships in the Golden Horn.  But it also functioned as a defensive structure as the Genoese had a complex relationship with the Byzantines.

Supposedly, Galata Tower has a nice
restaurant with great views of Istanbul.

We will never know because the line to get up there was too long for us.

Eventually, we jumped back on the tram at Karaköy Station to get back to our apartment. For dinner, we stopped off at Tarihi Sultanahmet Köftesi, an eatery opened in 1920.  It has gained so much acclaim over the years, that several other places have opened up that include the moniker "Sultanahmet Köftesi" in their name.

The restaurant also had a take-out window where a köfte sandwich could be purchased for 10 TL.

Well-known for its köfte (meatballs), the restaurant has a very limited menu containing one soup, a few side dishes, and only two entrees.

Although the waiter brought us some bread...

...we also got a side order of rice.

The Wife wanted some extra pickled peppers...but not this many.

The lamb kebab was the more expensive and less tasty entree.

These köfte were the reason why this restaurant gets rave reviews.

The service was quick and efficient.  The food was tasty, but not good enough to go out of ones way to try.   Luckily for us, Tarihi Sultanahmet Köftesi was one of the closer restaurants to our apartment.