“The Travel Wish List”: Istanbul (Not Constantinople)
Besides the fact that my main man Ernest Hemingway spent some time in Istanbul in 1922,
there are a few reasons I want to hit up the largest city in Turkey.
Once a basilica, later a mosque after the Ottoman conquest and now a museum, the Hagia Sophia was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years until the Seville Cathedral was finished in 1520. It’s gorgeous, let’s be honest, and that’s really a motivating factor behind wanting to visit it.
Much of my desire to go to Istanbul is driven by the fact that I’ve never been to an Islamic country and the Middle East fascinates me to no end. Istanbul is located on the border between Europe and Asia, and is the only city in the world on two continents. It seems to me that this city is truly a beautiful combination of eastern and western culture at it’s finest.
And now, a little YouTube lovin’ that inspired the title of this post:
So just remember, if you have a date in Constantinople, she’ll be waiting in Istanbul.
Are you really the owner of “The Travel Wish List”: Istanbul (Not Constantinople) and that has made all the difference, this is an amazing site! Congrats
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Hi,
I’m Turkish and living in America and coincidentally found your article. You don’t have to worry about visiting an Islamic Country especially Turkey, we are not conservative and very welcome to tourists. Me and one of my American friend had a Turkey tour together last year, it was lot’s of fun, she loved Turkiye. We went Istanbul, Troy,Pamukkale, Efes, Mersin, Kapadokya…