We arrived at the apricot hotel in the area of Sultanahmet, Istanbul at about 10pm arfter a short flight from Amman and a longer taxi ride from Istanbul Attaturk airport. At the front desk and greeting us with a smile and excellent English was Goksel, and he was there again in the morning as we ate breakfast to talk us through a suggesed itinerary. With 6 rooms in this great little hotel, he proved to a valuable asset for our stay in Istanbul and beyond.
The Apricot Hotel
View from Hotel
We welcomed Istanbul immediatly into our hearts. With all the exotic touches of an eastern country but with the quaint familiarities of the cobbled streets of England or Paris.
We visited the Blue Mosque (not blue at all), the Hippodrome (No hippos in sight) and the Topkapi Palace Museum ( no sculpted hedges to see!) on our first day.
Blue Mosque ( its only really blue on the inside - they should call it the "Mosque that looks similar to most other Mosques but is quite blue on the inside and is packed to the rafters with Tourists")
On the second day in Istanbul we caught a tram up to the royal palace , then the furnicular to the Taksim? square and walked down to the Galata tower for the best views of the city.
View from the Galata Tower of Istanbul and the sea of Marmara
Across the Galata bridge we found the most beautiful little Mosque called ...
Rüstem Pasha Mosque - Its also quite blue on the inside... but off the tourist path! The tiles are amazing.
amazing tiles of the Pasha mosque
We then meandred our way back through the spice bazaar then on to the Hagia Sofia Museum - trying to avoid the masses of crowds we found there in the morning.
Spice Bazaar ( Bizare because its hard to find the spices amongst every other possible thing you could think of selling)
Hagia Sofia - A long religious history on this site - Church, Mosque, Alter of Sacrifice etc etc
The interior included a mix of Islamic and Christian influences with Gold Christian Mosaics the most beautiful remaining feature.
I felt this post was a little askew...
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