We have only been here for two sleeps and I have seen and heard so much that I don’t know where to start.
The beginning is good. We arrived at our hotel and to stave off jet lag and the temptation to go to sleep we went wandering down to the waterfront. The Bosphorus Strait to be exact. It was hot, very hot but the walk downhill was easy. It was bustling to say the least and we wandered aimlessly with not much of a plan. We sat for lunch in a soothing air conditioned restaurant, but no beer for WH as alcohol at this restaurant, as in many, is not served so he settles for a mint lemonade. True. We watch the ferries and decided to jump on one that looks to go across the Strait. Once onboard we joke that maybe it’s not the right one and we will end up somewhere else but it’s a good feeling to be able to jump and see.
The ferry gets us to the other side and we wander and wander. It’s hot very hot so we get back on a ferry and watch the other ferries. We watch the constant stream of loading, and discharge and the simplicity of it all. We look at the infrastructure or sometimes lack of it and it’s interesting. You can take the girl out of the ferry but not the ferry out of the girl. Did I mention it feels good to be here.
I am very much wanting to start the next day of writing so will finish this beginning Istanbul post and you can know that we arrived, its hot, its busy, and its all good.
Did you know that Istanbul has a population of 18 million? Did you know that the city is the only one in two continents, one half being in Europe the other seperate by the Bosphorus Strait in Asia? Did you know the towers around the mosques are called minarets and they are tall so that the call to prayer can be heard across the city?