Istanbul day 2

Decided to do what I love to do in cities, and that's get up early and go wandering before the crowds appear. Went and checked out the Blue Mosque - well as far as the courtyard - the mosque itself was closed for prayers so will have to go back. But so beautiful with no people around. Then we found a plinth marking the beginning of the Roman road, which was used as a starter point for measuring distances to other places- amazing to think that our systems for measuring road distances came from that point.

Back to the guesthouse for breakfast - fresh fruit (peaches, pears, plums, watermelon), Turkish yoghurt (slightly tangy & runny, & nothing like shop stuff), cereal, breads, fresh pancakes, jams, creamy nut butters, then flavoured cream cheeses & feta, tomatoes & cucumber, pickled veggies & different olives, dried fruits, cakes, biscuits & pastries...incredible! And of course coffee - such a relief after HK to get good coffee.  This does make it hard to get moving in the morning.

Next stop the Basilica Cistern. An amazing underground water cistern with columns and domed ceilings. Built 527-565 AD it has these amazing columns holding up the roof- and apparently they were taken from older buildings, so they're not all the same. There's a bit of water still in the bottom, and fish swimming about - it was renovated in the late 1980's with walkways, mood lighting, and music. Very cool.

We wandered down to the waterfront via Topkapi Palace (didn't go in because Ros hates the glorification of obscene wealth at the expensive of the poor - haha, actually it just didn't appeal & the crowds were unbelievable!). So we took to the back streets & had a chat with a shopkeeper who asked us if we knew John Keys middle name- we didn't, and it's Phillip!  

The waterfront and harbour were teaming with people so we caught the tram up to the Grand Bazaar- like that wasn't going to be busy. Gold,silver,carpets,ceramics,copper,antiques,fabrics - tea sellers weaving in and out. Painted peeling covered ceilings; wide and narrow alleys, cafes and spice shops, and twists and turns everywhere. Lucky I have a great sense of direction! I bought Turkisk delight - fig & pomegranate & pistachio- delicious,

There's a breeze blowing today so it's not too hot, about 29 degrees with not too much humidity. Perfect for a beer on the rooftop terrace of the guesthouse overlooking the Bosphorus & the Sea of Marmara.

The Blue Mosque