Istanbul

Well it has been a pretty amazing couple of days. With each trip I seem to always start or end by saying, “This was the best trip ever”…. and this is no exception. Already I have to say this is the best trip ever. Istanbul is everything we hoped it would be – an incredible mix of people and cultures with amazing site and great food.

So much has happened already that I am far behind in my blog.

Mostly we have focused on Old Town site of some of the most ancient and impressive sites including the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofia (first a Church, then converted to a mosque), Topkapi Palace (home of the sultans).

Inside Aya Sofia - That scaffolding is taller than the Statue of Liberty.

Yesterday we walked several miles around the Old Town. Using the Rick Steve’s guidebook we ventured into several locals neighborhoods where you had the distinct feeling of not being with a bunch of other tourists.

We also spent time in the Grand Bazzar (Bizarre?) and the Spice Market. These have been marketplaces for centries and the Grand Bazzar alone has over 4000 shops or stalls.

A brief respite from being assaulted by Carpet Salesmen.

Let me repeat that – OVER 4000 shops. It makes the Mall of America look like the local strip shopping center.


They sell pretty much everything here – from cheap crap (and lots of it) to true antiques. There is even an informal currency exchange where men shout at each other and into cell phones as they trade thousands or Lira, Dollars, Euro, etc. – a kind of poor man’s Wall Street and real mad house.

Typical Scene at the Grand B.

The Spice Market is similar but specializes in spices and foodsutffs. Piles of freshly ground cumin, tumeric and chiles. Mounds of fruit and nuts. Honey dripping from honeycomb into containers to be transferred for sale. And literally thousands of people jammed into a few city blocks jostling each other to get through and get the goods.

A group of women checking out the goods... and me while I take their photo.










At the spice market - man did it smell good in there!

I have had the good fortune to go to markets in many parts of Europe including some pretty awesome ones like the main market in Budapest or the Nascht Market in Vienna. I have never seen anything even close to this.