ISTANBUL 2011! Part II

Here are some pictures. I was going to intersperse them at the appropriate points in the text, but I’m way too tired. There are probably more grammatical mistakes in this one than usual, and I apologize, but I’m not thinking straight enough, and am too lazy to read over it again.

The Hagia Sophia: Our hostel was right by the square that houses both the Hagia and the Blue Mosques, so I was able to get shots at all times of day. There were tons of mosaics inside, but the bearded one was my favorite because they made the beard look so realistic. That cat was just chillin’ on the altar.

 

Street Scenes: Some shots walking around. The pictures by the water are as we crossed the bridge from the European side of town to the Asian side. The fish was on the Asian side, and they sold they amazing mussels that they scooped out, added rice and spices and then put back in the shells. It was cheap and delicious, even though I did not eat them gracefully! The fourth one is the street that our hostel and Big Apple Hostel (where a lot of ACT kids stayed) are on.

 

Topkapi Palace: Some shots of the inside. It was more like a complex of courtyards with rooms attached, but we didn’t see the Harem. The first one is the main gate. The picture of me is the view from the far side of the palace looking over the water.

 

Hippodrome: Wasn’t that impressive and was just looked like a constructions zone filled with tractors and wires and fences and workmen, but this obelisk was there; it’s the oldest thing in Istanbul, as it was taken from Egypt and is from 2000BC, or sometime around there. Go look it up.

 

Bazaars: The first is the entrance to the Grand Bazaar, but the inside was nothing special, I felt no need to take pictures. The second two were taken at the Spice Bazaar, a little more interesting and definitely better-smelling.

 

Blue Mosque: Directly across from the Hagia Sophia. Some bad shots of the inside, and some of the outside. The weather was never that nice, so I couldn’t get a good blue sky or anything in any of these pictures.