Istanbul. Wow. I have wanted to come here ever since I saw a picture of the skyline at dusk when I was in high school. So it feels pretty good to be here at last! I really don't know where to start and what to say... I think I'll just let the photos do the talking. These are just a few of the hundreds we have taken. I'll post a few more in the next couple of days.
So we've been to most of the main tourist sites such as the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofia, Grand Bazaar, Spice Market etc. plus around the city to different areas. We were hoping to hop on a ferry and venture around the Bosphorus river and over to the Asia side, however the weather has turned the past couple of days so we might wait and do that when we are back here in August.
Tomorrow we are off to Cappadocia and then on to eastern Turkey, before heading back west and along the Mediterranean coast. We have had to make a minor change to our travel plans and will now no longer be going to Syria (if you follow the news you will know that Syria is having some major issues at the moment). This was an extremely hard decision for us to make, as it was one, if not the the country we were looking forward to the most. However, with the problems and instability that is present at the moment, and after speaking to a few people here in Turkey, plus our own research - Andrew and I decided it would be best to visit another time, when we can travel around and experience Syria properly without any restrictions (some examples - at the moment no cameras are allowed at all in Damascus, even if you are a tourist. Also, some borders are closed such as the one with Jordan). So instead we will divide the time we allocated for Syria and spend more time in Turkey and the rest of the Middle East.
Check back for more Istanbul photos (more architectural) and I'll try and draw up a map so you can see where we are headed.
Enjoy the photos!
So we've been to most of the main tourist sites such as the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofia, Grand Bazaar, Spice Market etc. plus around the city to different areas. We were hoping to hop on a ferry and venture around the Bosphorus river and over to the Asia side, however the weather has turned the past couple of days so we might wait and do that when we are back here in August.
Tomorrow we are off to Cappadocia and then on to eastern Turkey, before heading back west and along the Mediterranean coast. We have had to make a minor change to our travel plans and will now no longer be going to Syria (if you follow the news you will know that Syria is having some major issues at the moment). This was an extremely hard decision for us to make, as it was one, if not the the country we were looking forward to the most. However, with the problems and instability that is present at the moment, and after speaking to a few people here in Turkey, plus our own research - Andrew and I decided it would be best to visit another time, when we can travel around and experience Syria properly without any restrictions (some examples - at the moment no cameras are allowed at all in Damascus, even if you are a tourist. Also, some borders are closed such as the one with Jordan). So instead we will divide the time we allocated for Syria and spend more time in Turkey and the rest of the Middle East.
Check back for more Istanbul photos (more architectural) and I'll try and draw up a map so you can see where we are headed.
Enjoy the photos!
Ahh, I miss it. Everything looks so familiar. The teacups, the beautiful loose tea, the mosques, the doors, the men with caps, the awesome pom juice on the streets... This place is like none other. Your photos are gorgeous. Good job with the timely posting, by the way! I'm impressed.
ReplyDelete* Julia
shame to hear about syria- but happy to hear you will be safe. i love the pomegranates & green doors! did you try the turkish delight? x
ReplyDeletethanks Julia! yeah I'm doing my very best to try and keep on top of it so it doesn't get too overwhelming and I give up lol. will see how it goes!
ReplyDeleteTahnee - been eating so much turkish delight and baklava! soo good! wish you were here x
Ah what a treat to stumble accross your site. I've enjoyed your snaps soo much.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
From Grace