Day one we were out early walking from our Hotel to Explore Topkapi Palace including Harim. Built as a palace, it has beautiful tiles on walls and ceilings/domes. It also gave Lenore a chance to look at local jewellery; up to 86 carat diamonds anyhow.
The Topkapı Palace (in Ottoman: طوپقپو سرايى) was the primary residence of the Ottoman sultans for approximately 400 years (1465–1856).
It is now a museum holding various artefacts from the Ottoman Empire; jewellery, clothing, books including Islamic texts. All very grand.
Istanbul is a city of 14million, but again we are spending almost all time in the historic centre, walking or using the regular and crowded tram service.
In the afternoon we visited Hagia Sophia (photo left top), which is just amazing for a building from 6th C; nothing approached its size anywhere in the world for many hundreds of years. In the upper level we viewed this 11th C mosaic of Jesus with the Byzantine emperor on the right and Princess Zoe on the left.
Follow this site we walked across a large plaza to the Blue Mosque for a private and most interesting tour. The guide was amazed when he asked the hight to the dome. Lenore said 44m! It is actually 43m.
Day 2 we visited the Grand Bazaar (one of its many enterances is shown in the photo on the right side) and the Basilica Cistern, a 6th Century water reserve (bottom left). Those who remember 007 From Russia with Love" will recall James travelling by row boat across the water. For those who saw "Skyfall", it was motor bikes on the roof of the Grand Bazaar.
Photo top left is the Blue Mosque, so named for the use of blue tiles.
Oranges and pomegranates are in season, and street vendors are selling freshly squeezed juice.
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