MENU’s Aegean Odyssey. Day 4 Istanbul

A morning walk through the streets to catch a bus  to the edge of the Bosporus,  past the shoe shine men outside  the New Mosque  (new is relative; they started it in 1597)  with all the commercial activity in the streets. This is Lokum or Turkish Delight. A nursery on the outside of the Spice Market with a huge assortment of plants and seeds Inside the spice market and through, in search of a seller of lamb Kebab recommended by Batur Durmay of Asitane En route, stopped at a dealer in semi precious stones. A ball of quartz and a huge rock of amethyst. Lynne bought an ammonite fossil necklace Beads in all colours We looked up and down for Batur’s recommendation and couldn’t find it So we settled on this one, selling beef  Lynne was annoyed because he served the biggest (expensive) portion without asking what we wanted So we wandered through the lanes, looking at the displays of spices lokum By a fountain in front of the new mosque, we found a bench and sat down to eat the kebab. It was good A sculpture of a seller of street food, which is everywhere in Istanbul All the tram stops and Metro stations have these machines  with which one can replenish one’s Istanbulkart travel pass Entering the Topkapi (pronounced Topkahpuh)Park Beheaded sculptured which we took to be Roman A cat who found the perfect bed in an antique basin Walking through the park to the palace entrance where we joined the throng and queued to buy tickets to the palace museum and the harem The Sultan’s council chamber with magnificent ceiling decoration and wonderful details Then to the clock museum with amazing timepieces, poorly lit, crafted from precious materials This Viennese clock crusted with jewels A verandah of the palace and a long queue to see the famous jewels An ancient plane tree Beautiful stained glass and wall decoration everywhere A view over the Bosporus and a bronze door in a marble wall Turkish ship A589 with an interesting history. Launched in 1943 as salvage tug USS Safeguard, she had a distinguished career in World War 2, Korea and Vietnam before being sold to Turkey in 1986








































































































© John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus 2015

[Author: John, Lynne Ford]


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