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Wow we are finally here in Istanbul,great flight easy transfer on the early flight and arrived at 5.30pm rather than the middle of the night. People here are very friendly and helpful. It is a modern city in some parts but where as are is charmingly European with narrow cobblestone streets which only one car can fit but traffic goes both ways somehow,they are very patient and reverse back but unfortunately drive on either side of the road no left and right so crossing the road can be frightening.
Istanbul was celebrating the beginning of Spring with a fair beside the sea so after 16hrs flying we showered and went along. The Romanian folk music was really lively and the gorgeous gypsy men could really shake those butts like no Aussie ever could, the food stalls were interesting but crowded, you could buy a beer on any street corner and the backdrop to all this was the spectacular blue mosque all lit up high on the hill. At midnight the sky filled with fireworks, what an incredible introduction to Istanbul !
The weather is cool, cold at night but you can see Spring everywhere...tulips, pansies and flowering trees are beautiful gardens are everywhere and the days sunny. The rooftop garden where we have breakfast has great views of the mosques and minarets and we woke at 5.00am to the songs of prayer from the mosque. It truly is a fascinating city with icredible buildings from the Ottoman empire at every turn a photo opportunity.
Today we visited the underground cisterns,huge rows of marble columns underground some ornately carved with Medusa's head and her hair of snakes.
We are going to see the Suni whirling dervishes tonight.
The food is so spectacular I even photographed it, excellent yogurt strawberries and plums, baclava breads pastries and nougarts !
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