{"id":1856,"date":"2020-01-12T10:35:59","date_gmt":"2020-01-12T10:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/viralvacationideas.com\/?p=1856"},"modified":"2022-05-21T14:50:51","modified_gmt":"2022-05-21T14:50:51","slug":"unexpected-things-to-expect-when-wandering-in-istanbul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/viralvacationideas.com\/unexpected-things-to-expect-when-wandering-in-istanbul\/","title":{"rendered":"Unexpected Things to Expect when Wandering in Istanbul"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Istanbul was the first stop on my three week long adventure across Turkey, Greece, and Italy. Turkey had never been on my travel radar and I had about a hundred other places on my travel bucket list that I wanted to visit<\/a> first. The second the trip was booked, I fell into a Turkey researching frenzy and never once regretted the decision to go there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Istanbul
Istanbul skyline with Suleymaniye mosque and New mosque view from Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I read all about the beautiful mosques and Islamic culture, whirling dervishes (which weren\u2019t as prevalent as I had hoped), and ancient history of the former Constantinople and fell in love before ever stepping foot in the country. It\u2019s a much different experience than other European destinations<\/a> that I\u2019d gone to, I think mainly due to the religion and culture. It just seemed more foreign and exotic and exciting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Aerial
Istanbul and Bosphorus from a bird’s eye view<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I had a quick two days in Istanbul before setting off for a new Turkish locale and jet lag and being awake for 36 hours (I can never sleep on planes, ever.) was setting in but it wasn\u2019t going to stop me from experiencing all things Istanbul. Here is a list of unexpected <\/strong>things you\u2019ll experience if ever you find yourself wandering the streets of one of the most beautiful cities in the world<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Dogs, Dogs, and more Dogs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\"Dogs<\/a>\n\n\n\n

Y\u2019all, there are stray dogs<\/a> EVERYWHERE, like thousands of them. Anyone who knows me knows that I\u2019m a sucker for precious pups. I had no idea that there would be dogs roaming around with no one paying them any attention. Apparently the dogs are ear tagged, vaccinated, fixed, and released back into the streets. I love the idea that they are not just euthanized like they are here in the States. I\u2019m not sure what kind of problems they cause just roaming about, but the general population that I saw didn\u2019t seem too bothered by their presence. I will admit it got a little distracting at times because I could\u2019t resist giving them lots of love during tours around the city. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Call to Prayer<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Blue
Blue Mosque or Sultanahmet Camii at dusk in Istanbul, Turkey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Waking up at 3:50 am to the sound of someone chanting over the minarets is much less of a nuisance than you might think. It was a pretty neat experience knowing that muslims all over the city were hearing that call so early in the morning and making their way to the mosques to pray. Islam is such a fascinating religion and has such devoted followers that absolute love their religion and want to share it with you. <\/p>

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