Tiny Tiles

On Sunday we awoke to another stunning day of Turkish sunshine. Warm and breezy, it was a perfect day for exploring one of the Western districts of the city which holds the Chora Church Museum.  We took a long, complicated, tram, metro and walking combo to get close and when I said to Helena, "Well, this is an adventure...", she said "Don't say that! You remember the last time you said that!" Oh yeah, after my adventure proclamation in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka, a scorpion promptly bit her.

The Chora Church was built in the 11th century by King Theodosious II, but the remaining decoration dates from the 14th century.  It was originally a Christian church, but was later converted to a mosque under the Ottomans before being turned into a museum in the 20th century. The draw now is the stunning mosaics inside, which more than make up for the (now) humble exterior.

After the museum we stopped for lunch at a somewhat fancy Ottoman restaurant next door, which boasted recipes dating to the 16th century.  Vine leaves stuffed with rice, walnuts and currants, almond soup, and grilled cheese with oyster mushrooms were just some of the specialties we sampled.

We then made the courageous decision to walk back to our flat, when it had taken us nearly 2 hours using public transportation to get there. Walking was more direct and it only took us an hour or so, but it was rough going and by the end we were beat.  Helena took photos during our trek, so maybe she'll guest blog and share those.

We thought we'd perk up with a little Turkish Delight (called lokum in Turkish). We hit the sweet shop then hightailed it home for some tea and relaxation. For those of you who don't know, Turkish delight is a kind of gummy/jel/nougat confection that comes in various flavours, some with nuts.