Istanbul

So, this morning we've woken up at Istanbul. We've been here before, and we LOVED it, so you can imagine how pleased and excited we are to be here again.
Last visit, our ship docked right alongside the old town. True, we had to negotiate a road crossing that could be likened to crossing the path of stampeding bulls, but once across (and still alive), we were in the gardens surrounding Topkapi palace,  with the rest of the delights of old Istanbul just minutes away.

But not today. Today we were docked on the opposite side of the Golden Horn, and would need to cross the Galata Bridge to get to the old town and all its treasures, and we decided to walk.

You can just see the wells, one at each side of the building. People sleep in them!

First, we had to walk through the new city, but even here there are beautiful and amazing things to see. We never got to the Galata Tower, but we did see a couple of mosques and this disused building, only it's not completely disused. The well on each side of the building makes a perfect bed for a homeless man. He's hidden from view, sheltered, and probably quite cosy. We know this from watching someone climb in.

Eventually, we got to Galata Bridge. It was already busy, with fisherman, street sellers, trams and tourists. We love the hustle and bustle of this place.

Fishermen on Galata Bridge, and the New Mosque behind

Across the bridge we could see a large Mosque. We've been here before and visited the Blue Mosque, and we know how amazing these buildings could be , so we decided to visit this one.  And we weren't disappointed.

After the New Mosque, we made our way through the streets, following the tram route to the main attractions.  Last time we'd visited, we managed to see much of the Topkapi Palace and the Blue Mosque, but we'd missed the Harem, and the Hagia Sophia, so of course that's where we went. The queues were long, but we've learnt that they move forward quickly, so it wasn't too long a wait to get into each one of them. First the Hagia Sophia.

Then a walk to the Topkapi Palace, popping in to an artists gallery on Soguk Cesme Sk. on the way.

After the Harem, we headed for the Grand Bazaar, which is somewhere we've been before and loved.  Sadly, it wasn't open, so we made our way down to the spice market, another place we'd found really interesting. (I say we, what I really mean is I. If I remember rightly, Peter sat in the square whilst I shopped.)

This city is amazing. It is so alive, so vivid (and so full of tourists).  Stalls overflow, the shops are full of colour, the street vendors fill the air with the smell of roasting chestnuts, corn and sweet cakes, and people of every creed and colour fill the streets.