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Published: June 10th 2011
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Home for 1 week
Our studio apartment in Istanbul. What you see in the photo is the apartment. Our first full day in Istanbul is just about over. We arrived here at about 8:30pm last night after a relatively uneventful trip. The plane took off and landed safely 3 times which was all we hoped for - we travelled via Singapore and Dubai with no time to do any shopping in either location. We caught the bus from the airport into Taksim Square where we eventually met our landlord for the week, Namik. We have a great location in Beyoglu, just off the main drag of Istikal Cadessi, but far enough away to be quiet.
It was quite a walk from the bus station in Taksim Sq to our apartment (about 2km) carrying bags so the thought of walking back up the hill for dinner last night was not all that appealing. Deb managed to forage some bits from the local corner shop and that did us until this morning. After a shower it was off to bed in an effort to become human again.
We awoke early to the local Muezzin calling everyone to prayer at dawn. The local mosque must be pretty close because he was pretty loud but it was nice to hear more
distant muezzins still going after "ours" had finished. We eventually got up and went out to get some bits for breakfast. It would have been better if we'd checked our watches before doing so as it was only 7:00 and nothing much was open. However, it was nice to get out and have a look before the crowds.
We'd previously decided that today would be a quiet day. We caught the Istanbul Sightseeing Bus which is a hop-on/off double-decker bus tour of the main tourist sights. We only got off in one place (Sultanahmet) but used the tour as an opportunity to get a feel for places we wanted to visit. Sultanahmet is the historic (and tourist) heart of Istanbul and is where the Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar and Topkapi Palace are located. We spent quite a few hours walking through the area, had our first real food (since leaving Brisbane) for lunch, went to a carpet shop and visited the Basilica Cistern. We basically chose the Cistern because the queues were short but it wasn't a disappointment. It was built in 532 and used to store water for the Great Palace. Our guide book says that it is
Turkish Delight
We didn't indulge from this shop (too early in the morning) but it's just as well we are doing lots of walking. We indulged at lunchtime and ended up bringing some home with us. 65m long, 143m wide and that its 4m thick vaulted roof is supported by 336 columns arranged in 12 rows. The symmetry of the design is highlighted by the lighting of the columns - it was pretty spectacular.
After that it was back on the bus back to Taksim Sq. We walked back via some back streets in an effort to get an idea for places to eat at tonight. It looks pretty good and we won't go hungry. We also managed to find a little shop that sold beers (not bad at all) and get the wifi working so all is good.
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