Istanbul Part III

Photo Time!

Our apartment was on a lovely twisting road in Sultanhamet, the old part of Istanbul. 

 

During our first full day, we checked out Hagia Sofia and the Blue Mosque. The line to see Sofia was monstrous.

Worth it.

 

 

After Aya Sofia, we headed to Tokapi Palace. The lines, again, were long, but the palace was cool. I especially enjoyed walking around the harem. 

 

Here are a couple of views from the palace.

The sun actually came out after the first few chilly, cloudy days. I was so excited! This is the Blue Mosque.

Emily and Talia were brave enough to take a Bosphorus Tour. (I hate small boats and opted to take a ferry to the Asia side later. The ferries are bigger.) Beth and I stayed on the shore, but I did take a photo of the guy selling tickets in case they didn't come back. :) 

 One of the most interesting parts of Istanbul is the Grand Market and the Spice Bazaar. It seems that I only got one photo of the Grand Bazaar.

 

Here is the Spice Bazaar. Lovely! 

 

  

After the girls left for Cappadocia, I headed to the newer part of the city (Taksim) and explored. Here is the inside of a huge vintage store.

 

And perhaps the creepist picture of the entire trip is below. This is NOT a good way to display child mannequins! (This was a common way of displaying them, by the way.)

 I also went to the Balisica Cistern and the Asia side of Istanbul, but I forgot my camera. Whoops. You should totally check out Beth's blog: The Grand Adventures of Anna Ravioli for more photos. She's a lot better at taking photos than I am. (I'm notoriously picture impatient.)

This post is brought to you by Ryan Adams, Oh My Sweet Carolina. (Oh the sweetest winds, they blow across the south.)