First stop, Istanbul
Hot and sunny - in the high twenties but with a gentle breeze we all loved Istanbul. The Sultnamet area was clean and calm, dominated by the Blue Mosque and Aya Sophia with lovely gardens and fountains it was a great contrast to the chaos of Cairo.The entrance to Taksim palace - original home of the Otoman Sultans now home to an amazing jewel collection (including the fifth largest diamond in the world). Highlight for the girls was discovering spinning tops.
Turkish flags fly everywhere from giant ones on the tops of hill to this slightly more modest version on Aya Sophia (a huge church built by the Emporer Domition in AD 500ish and still in great condition with original mosaics.
By the Bosphorus and very hot - just about to discover the delights of apple tea.
Aya Sophia by night - the eveings arouns Sultanamet where lovely with music, dancing by a whirling dervish, food stalls and a steady stream of people drifting through the gardens.
No comments:
Post a Comment