SAtraveller

6. Experiencing Istanbul - 2

The next morning we were up and went for a tasty breakfast on the roof of our hotel. This provided us with fantastic views of the Bosphorous and the Hagia Sofia.









Soon we were off to the Grand Bazaar which you will either love or hate. It's enormous and filled with thousands of shoppers and guys who will do anything to sell something to you. Luckily we went there with a purpose i.e. to buy a Persian carpet. It was a extraordinarily fun experience as we had researched the art of haggling. We were escorted to the carpet shop where we sat down and were served tasty apple tea. The carpets were presented to us for over an hour, with all the skills required to make them and the quality exaggerated. After much talk and arms thrown up in the air, we haggled our dealer down to exactly 20% of the original price. This, he said, was because he liked us so much and would never duplicate as long as he lived ... Off we went with our exquisite 100% silk Persian carpet and all the attached legal documents.








Inside the enormous carpet shop

Our carpet...









Off we went for a cruise of the Bosphorous and some Palace sightseeing.

While waiting on the Pier we were swamped by the over-friendly street animals who were anxious for a pat or a scratch.





Our first stop was Dolmabache Palace which was the center of power for the Sultans after they tired of Topkapi Palace. It was also the residence of the revered President Ataturk until his death.


mosque outside the palace





The gardens of the palace...











Once inside I managed to take a few pictures until the guide told us this was frowned upon. The Palace is as beautiful and extravagant as any I have seen in the world. One can see how it basically bankrupted the country. If you go to Istanbul you absolutely have to make time to see this wondrous creation.






The famous crystal staircase.





With regret we finally left and continued our boat tour along the enormous river.




Turkey making sure they're battle ready... we saw a submarine sailing up the river the previous day.








The smallest of the Ottoman palaces in the city.





That night we went for dinner at yet another stunning restaurant, Pasazade Ottoman restaurant. The food was delicious and the service was pretty good too.