It's Friday evening here. I got off the plane around 1:00pm and by the time I got out of the airport it was 2:00pm. I decided to take the Istanbul Metro and then transfer over to a light rail train. It went pretty smoothly and I got to the heart of Istanbul for only 3.20 Turkish Lira (vs 20 Euro taking a cab). The man sitting next to me seemed to have a 9mm tucked in the back of his pants. That made me a little nervous, as he wasn't wearing a uniform of any kind.I don't seem to be getting much hassle here. I'm guessing that it's because I look like I might be Turkish. I'll walk down a street and see shop owners urging tourists into their shops, but they seem to be leaving me alone.
The hotels are pretty pricey in Istanbul. The first place I went to was a bit of a dive and they wanted 35 Euros/night. That's 53 Canadian dollars. I continued walking around and looking for places. Two others were about twice that price and finally found one for about 30 Euros. I left my backpack and went walking around.
I didn't get a lot of time before the sun started setting. It started getting dark about 5:00pm. I managed to get some photos of the Sultanahmet Mosque (more commonly known as the Blue Mosque)and that's about it. Tomorrow should be a more fruitful day.
Landing in Istanbul:
Sultanahmet Mosque:
Vendors near Sultanahmet:
7 comments:
Those rugs look really nice - good thing you don't have space or P would want one. Glad to here you got there safe, and can pass as a local (minus the gun in your pants ;))
Ms. Homer... is that a euphamism? Have fun Marko!
Hey Marko!
Glad to see you've embarked on yet another adventure. Looking forward to following your trails on your blog. Hope you enjoy the Middle East as much as I did. Safe travels!
Hey Marko...Turkey is so fun! and the food is amazing. I had a gyro with french fries rolled in it at Taksim Square, so good! Have a blast and if anyone gives you any trouble, tell them "Sieter Geit!" which means F-U!
Marko - once again your photos are breathtaking! Once again we're on the same continent...let me know if you're going to be passing through Paris. I can get there in a jiffy ;) Can't wait to read about the rest of your trip.
The vote's unanimous - you're going to be on FrontPage, News Releases, Portal and CE for the next 14 months. ;)
Topkapi Palace !!!
what an amazing place.
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