The Ballot - Greeks, Turks, Last Post and those Marbles

[Flying mermaid]

Don't you love the central courtyard? Have a look at some of the pillars in the corridors - you can see etchings from prisoners!

 

[amaroo]

..........

 

[UpInTheAir:)]

What's FS??

 

[boomy]

What's FS??

Four Seasons

 

[amaroo]

We've pre-arranged a walking tour for tomorrow so we decided to head out for the afternoon and take a looksie and get a feel of the place.

Saturday and it was busy! Istanbul has a population around 16m - you instantly get a feel for it.

Hagia Sophia



Blue Mosque



Street food - Istanbul style





Beautiful

 

[amaroo]

Grand Bazaar. Closed Sunday - Chock-a-block Saturday.

The place is huge!

 

[amaroo]

Yummy









Entrance to the FS hotel

 

[amaroo]

Dinner tonight is a concierge recommendation - Khorasani Restaurant





Before.....



After...,,





Not bad!

 

[dmitri]

Great photos Amaroo, Istanbul is such a great city, worst traffic I've ever experienced though

 

[amaroo]

Some photos taken during the 5min walk back to the FS





Worlds largest Tulip carpet. Tulip displays are all over Istanbul ... amazing colours.

 

[amaroo]

Great photos Amaroo, Istanbul is such a great city, worst traffic I've ever experienced though

This is one of the reasons we stayed at the FS hotel. The location is perfect - all the major attractions are within 15min walking, including the walk down to the Spice market/Golden Horn/Bosphorus. The trams are a fun ride...

 

[boomy]

Been to the markets already? How many leather jackets did you end up buying?

 

[Pushka]

Wish we had stayed there instead of the IC. Horrible traffic.

 

[dmitri]

This is one of the reasons we stayed at the FS hotel. The location is perfect - all the major attractions are within 15min walking, including the walk down to the Spice market/Golden Horn/Bosphorus. The trams are a fun ride...

Good call, I stayed at FS Bosphorus, best hotel I've ever been to.

 

[amaroo]

Good call, I stayed at FS Bosphorus, best hotel I've ever been to.

Tough call between the two in Summer. FS Sultanahmet doesn't have a pool - they started digging but had to stop when they hit ancient ruins. A summer swim might overrule convenience.

 

[amaroo]

Today we're doing an 8 hour private walking tour. Sites covered;

Hagia Sophia
Blue Mosque
Basilica Cistern
Spice Market

FS breakfast to get us going.

Menemen with a side of spicy sausage.



Eggs Benny

 

[Flying mermaid]

You will love the Cisterns - quite eerie and beautiful. There are some interesting mosaics you can see in another place - if any time ask them to take you there.

 

[Pushka]

You will love the Cisterns - quite eerie and beautiful. There are some interesting mosaics you can see in another place - if any time ask them to take you there.

Agree. MrP wondered where I was taking him. But its fascinating inside.

 

[amaroo]

You will love the Cisterns - quite eerie and beautiful. There are some interesting mosaics you can see in another place - if any time ask them to take you there.

Awesome!

Is the other place Topkapi Palace? We ran out of time and did this the next day.

Agree. MrP wondered where I was taking him. But its fascinating inside.

A sneak peek...

 

[Flying mermaid]

You went below street level and they had uncovered original Byzantine mosaic floors - from memory it was a small street with a small entrance in the Sultanahmet square area. Great Palace Museum or something like that. Wouldn't take much time but they were lovely mosaics.

The sort of thing you look at once you have done the big ticket items.