Turkey Through The Ages : Day 2, a place called Narnia.

Assalamualaikum

Alhamdulillah, we made to 2nd day!. Ring ding dong! Wake up day 2!

Wake up, meeting with Him, and we looked through the window. Okay, that tiny white little pieces thing. They fall, fall and fall. Guess what? Istanbul was snowing!!

 

I feel like laughing to myself. I once said to myself, “Holiday, do come faster. I wangg to escape from this super-cold-ness!” and here I am now, in Istanbul, and it’s snowing. Where do you want to run Nawal?? And when we start the journey that day, I was shivering whole day! (escaping plan EPIC failed). 

“Man proposes, Allah disposes”

Kita hanya mampu merancang, tapi harus diingat, sebaik-baik perancang adalah Dia  *insaf* *sobsob*

Snowing.Freezing. JALAN TETAP JALAN! (ambil semangat tentera Sultan Muhammad Fatih)

So, where are we heading Dora? Take the map. Find the clue. Oh, today we’re going to Dolmabache Palace!

I saw some pictures of this palace through the internet. Thanks to Mr. Google Image. But then, when I arrived there, I was like…..

"Where’s my prince caspian?, this is seriously-no-kidding a place called Narnia!”

It was a huge breathtaking beautiful palace *gasping for the air*

And.. the snow made it a called place Narnia!

I do remember when I was a small child, I watched Cinderella and I was dreaming to be on her castle. And that day, my dream came true. The staircase, the hall, the architecture, it was a well done job by its architect! Sayang sekali, no camera are allowed!

But, behind all this, there was a story behind this castle.

Dolmabache palace – was built by Sultan Abdulmecid I. Its construction cost about 5 million Ottoman gold coins. *mata bersinar2* I wonder why, I wonder how.. What’s the purpose of this construction? Ahem kaya sgt ke Ottoman Empire sampai bina istana bermillion2 ni? Then, tour guide yang membawa kami pun meng-explain…

“The construction of this palace was on purposed to impress the European country”

I was like.. “oooooo…….” Bila tour guide tu membawa kami dari satu hall ke satu hall dalam palace tu, banyaklah dia mention tentang hall ni artist terkenal ni, batu marmar, seni dari France, Italy and so on. So basically, pembinaan Dolmabahce Palace ni memang teliti and sekecil2 benda pun masih mengekalkan ciri kesenian dan kemewahan yang tinggi! (Tombol pintu dia pun colour pink berukir2)

Then, Nad told me, “Nawal, kalau jual palace ni, mesti boleh bagi 1 country miskin makan kan?”

I nod. During the time of its construction, the community are affected by the idea that “makin berseni suatu empire itu, makin tamadun lah mereka” Ingat tak dulu2 belajar sejarah, Michealangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, semua pelukis2 terkenal ni kan sangat2 dikejar untuk mencantikkan bandar2 di Europe. Ottoman empire ketika ini juga tidak terkecuali dengan idealogi ni. Maka, Dolmahbahce Palace dibina dengan tujuan nak impress Europe. Tapi, apabila manusia tidak lagi menjadikan Allah sebagai Yang Satu untuk di-impress, tujuan hidup kita sudah mula berubah. Malah, dengan pembinaan yang menggunakan cost yang tinggi ini, Ottoman Empire akhirnya jatuh muflis. So, mahukan kita kesudahan yang begini? *deep in the heart, nauzubillahuminzalik, ya Allah jauhkan aku*

The story of Dolmabahce gave me a lot of lessons. Before leaving this palace, I was talking to myself.. “Today, I ‘ve been to a place called Narnia, cantikkkk, agak2 macam mana syurga nanti? Terasa sangat jauh nak dream to a place called jannah..”

Bye bye Dolmabahce Palace. But hey, taking pictures is a must! So here’s a lil bit,

 

Dora, where’s our next pit stop?

Rumeli Hisari.  Eh, Museum Military! (change of plan due to snow)

Umm… umm… Museum military eh? Haha, show me gun, show me sword, show me cannon, my face will stay the same .______. haha, to be honest, I had no interest to all these stuff. But, there are still few things that attract me. The story of the conquest, the chain that surround Golden Horn, and Mehter!

Mehter? Never heard of it? Let me tell you. It was a band that built by Sultan Muhammad Fatih around the time of conquest. We got the chance to watch their performance. It was good and really pembangkit semangat! Nisha said, their music was meant to raise the spirit of the soldiers during the conquest!

Ohh, the military museum was actually once a military school

……………..

Then, off to Spice Bazaar! This is the best part huh? We do love Kapali Carsi(closed bazaar) (until…wait for Day 5)

So, today, are you gonna shop till you drop? *teringat pesan abah, jangan membazir* so, I’m gonna be the smartest buyer today

Before we called it a day, we went to have dinner in the restaurant under the bridge to eat FISH! Yummy yummy! After all the day, we’ve bee cherished with the free tea and sweets by the restaurant owner. Thank you, jazakumullah khayr pakcik pakcik semua

Let’s called it a day huh? Goodnite Istanbul <3

Assalamualaikum!