Visiting Istanbul, the crown on a year of rehabilitation. in My new life, a book

I came home on Tuesdag with a bit of extra colour due to the Eastern sun.
What a difference; temperature was down from above 20 to 14 degrees with heavy showers. Yet, the sun was in my heart. Istanbul was a fantastic destination and we enjoyed our holiday very much.

We stayed in a very reasonable priced apartment in a street where also the locals lived. It is situated in the old city at walking distance from the touristic highlights: Aya Sofia, Blue Mosque and many other Mosques maybe less famous but worth visiting too, Grand Bazaar, Spice Market, several other markets for fish, fruit, vegetables or whatever. I didn’t mention Topkapi Palace, well known but we choose other things to visit. Then I still forget the Bosporus, that connects the Sea of Marmara to the right and (unseen) the Black Sea to the left. I like to see the ships sailing to unknown destinations. Cargo ships, very small and larger fishing boats, luxerous cruising ships, an endless number of ferries for crossing the strait to the Asian side of Istanbul or for visits to the islands in the Sea of Marmara.

That first day we went out for our meal and afterwards found a gem of tranquility.
Michael wanted to see the Blue Mosque at night; it’s illuminated. I said yes although I was a bit tired. Unfortunately I also needed the bathroom and therefore we had to go back before we were there. First we discovered a small churchyard, a space below a building. And then the minaret of a smaller mosque. Can we have a quick look son asked. That’s where we found the tea garden, next to the mosque. We stayed there for almost an hour talking quietly and watching the cats who at last felt safe enough to let us touch them. We drank tea for one Turkish Lira per cup, 35 Euro cents. And I used a Turkish toilet for the first time, with thanks for having a stoma.. ;-)

There are many posibilities for transport in the city if you don’t want to walk. We choose a cheap one. For 4 TL you can buy a token to take the tram. We’ve used it several times, once to the modern part of the city across Galata Bridge. What I liked most was our voyage sailing the Bosporus to where the Black Sea begins. The ferry stops at several locations both at the Europian and Asian side. We left at the last stop to climb to the ruins of a Byzantine fortress at the entrance of the Black Sea.