Day 115 - Old Town in the Sun

October 26, 2018

Thursday, October 25th, 2018.

I just can't believe how fast time is going. The first month seemed eternal and now we are almost at the end of our fourth month of travel. Today we stayed home all morning, mostly because Sunshine needs to do her homework. I need to find something else for Daniel, he finishes math and writing in an hour! He is too smart but if I let him, he will play electronics nonstop.

We went out for lunch to a doner place near our home. After that, we walked to old town and took more pictures. The streets were full because the sun was out. It was beautiful to see all the hustle and bustle compared to the previous days when it was cold and rainy. The market or bazaar looked alive. We also paid to see the inside of the famous mosque that Gazi Husrev-beg founded in the 16th century.

We were having a great time but then we remembered the dogs and came back home, they eat their dinner around 5:30pm and then they need their walk. Normally is Gregory and Daniel who do the afternoon walk but this time I took Gregorio's place because his foot has been hurting. He did scare me a little when he said he thought he might have a fracture and even tried to make a doctor appointment. However, he thinks it could be from walking a lot in the Clarks shoes he wore on Tuesday to go to the Rotary meeting at night. We will see... I just hope we find a doctor that speaks English!

Delicious doner kebab for lunch! About $2 each.

Can I have a bite? Me das una probadita?

The sun is out, Lili is so happy!

Requirements to go in: take off your shoes, cover your head, and pay, of course!

I love the fact that most of the mosques that I have seen are full of light.

Notice the beautifully painted details on the wall. Only geometrical or plant designs.

Interior

Detail of the ceiling

Reading the Quran

Men's side

Women's side, although... well, it seemed more like the chatting side. LOL

The three women in front were tourists. I could tell because they were taking a lot of pictures like me. The women in the back were locals and having a good time.

Outside of the mosque, the beautiful old ablution fountain.

The mosques have cemeteries outside. We noticed that the front must be a woman and in the back, men because it had a fez on the top.

Inside the mausoleum is the tomb of Gazi Husrev Beg who did many good things for his community like building a madrasa (school), library, water supply to the city, public toilets (which still work) and much more. They built the mausoleum to bury famous people. You can't go inside, I took this through the window.

Another old mosque.

A street outside the market full of small cafes.

An artisan working with copper

City Hall

There are some beggars but not that many like you see in big cities, plus I saw many Muslims give them change.

Tip: if you plan to stay in a hotel or hostel, make sure you pick one with a name that you can pronounce. We were laughing at the name of this one! Say that one 3 times fast. The kids got actually got it pretty quickly! They're really soaking up the culture wherever we go.

This is the library that was built by Ghazi, the same one who built the mosque. The library was rebuilt because it was destroyed by shelling during the war -- on purpose.