Sumpah saya penasaran...
Reading this writing on the wall...
Baca tulisan yang ada di dinding saat menyusuri kompleks Istana Topkapi di Istanbul...
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| The writing on the wall... |
What's in there?
Beneran... setelah membaca dari berbagai sumber, tanya sana-sini, saya dan Udi, my hubby, langsung celingukan mencari tempat ini...
HAREM
THE HAREM
Situated on the north part of the second courtyard of Topkapi Palace, Istanbul, I certainly have tons of questions in my mind as I paid the extra ticket to get into this section...
What so special about it?
My guide book described how this place has attracted so many visitors just to hear the name :D...
Well, to my limited knowledge, the word Harem is originated from Arabic and it means forbidden...
So, are those living in this place 'forbidden'?
Hmmm...I have no answer to that...
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| Open the door and welcome.... |
But for sure, the establishment in this area is just amazingly beautiful...
Of course, we are talking about the Sultan's wives and concubines..The Harem..
I imagine drop dead gorgeous and beautiful ladies lived here for the Sultan's pleasures, under the command of Queen Mother!
Starting from the very first corridor as we stepped into, we have wowed by beauty of it... Well, to those who have read my previous postings on Topkapi (click here) or even Hagia Sofia (click here) and Blue Mosque (click here), might be bored with this 'wowed' thing..
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| one of the lounges...I really wanna sit here :)... |
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| one of the hallways.... |
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| one of the rooms... |
Again, lines of most beautiful women in Istanbul, or maybe even in Turkey, dressed in traditional costumes and smelled wonderful with bright smiles filled my imagination.
I overheard a guide mentioning Roxelana, one of the legendary powerful women in the history of Ottoman empire, who started her days in the harem before becoming the legally wedded wife of Sultan Suleiman, the Magnificient and being the mother of 5 of Sultan's children, including his heir. Hmmm...I have to check for more juicy details for that :D...
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| The illustration in one of the rooms...kebayang para wanita cantik ituuu :D... |
Kalau mendengar kata Harem, terus terang saja, saya langsung membayangkan deretan wanita-wanita cantik pilihan untuk menemani Sang Sultan. Don't ask me further, karena 'selir' alias 'wanita simpanan', yang notabene menjelaskan arti concubine, langsung terlintas :D. Tak heran kalau tempat ini memang cantiiik sekali..karena penghuni juga wanita pilihan. Dan pada masa itu, sah-sah saja Sultan memiliki begitu banyak 'teman' wanita yang memang bertugas untuk menyenangkan hatinya
Dan khusus di bagian ini, ruangan yang tersedia pun banyaaaak sekali...Kalau menurut buku petunjuk saya, ada sekitar 400 kamar khusus di bagian Harem, karena di setiap masa pemerintahan satu Sultan tertentu, kamar-kamar baru pun ditambahkan. Tidak heran kalau bangunan tambahan itu seperti memiliki gaya arsitektur yang berbeda.
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| beautiful windows....the detailed corrugated metal used are lovely |
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| the fireplace...not only the tiles, but the metal craft is also amazing... |
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| the royal bathrooom :D.... |
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| a comfy stool for you, ladies :D... |
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| I want one at home :D.... |
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| need to freshen up? here's the place :D... That's just the toilets :D.... |
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| toilet jongkok :D... |
Let alone the Sultan's couch...the one that you see above...
And the Courtyard of the Favorites :D....I like the name :)..apa ya rasanya jadi favoritnya Sultan #aduuuuh....
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| The courtyard of favorites...Like the name! imagining pretty ladies smiling, hoping the Sultan would pick her :D... |
Dan seperti saat melihat bagian lain dari istana ini, rasanya memang tidak selesai-selesai rasa kagum ini...takjub dengan keindahan sekaligus sejarah kompleks ini...
Jangan bosen ya kalau Mama Bo et Obi masih berbagi cerita tentang Istanbul :D...
Cheers..
