During ski week I went to Istanbul! The flight is only about three hours, and I took full advantage of the fact that I have cousins living there. Not only did I stay with them, but they gave me the grand tour. I loved it! My pictures can't begin to do this place justice, but I'll show you anyway.
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| My favorite: the Haghia Sophia; originally a church, then a mosque, now a museum |
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| inside the Haghia Sophia |
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| Field trip to the Haghia Sophia: one teacher (not shown), a couple of moms, and at least forty students...We ran into them again at the cistern. I wished so badly that I spoke Turkish; I wanted to tell the teacher how impressed I was with how well her students behaved. |
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| It doesn't look anything like any cistern I'd ever seen! Thanks to my cousin Lee, I saw it again that night in the James Bond movie From Russia, With Love. |
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| Sultanahmet Mosque ("The Blue Mosque") |
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| inside the Blue Mosque |
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| Turkey has so much history, it doesn't know what to do with all of it! These pieces were in an alley behind the Archaeological Museum and the Topkapi Palace with a sign that said "Please don't touch the artifacts!" |
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| Inside the Chora Church; it was built in the 11th century and decorated in the 14th |
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| How's this for a family tree? 24 of Jesus' ancestors are depicted in this mosaic "The Genealogy of Christ" (Chora Church) |
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| I forgot to mention the fabulous food! |
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| Spice Bazaar |
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| a look inside the thick walls of Constantinople |
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| Rumeli Fortress, built on the Bosphorus in 1452 |
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| There weren't any handrails in the 15th century! |
