Firstly, we took some back streets we had not been along before, and secondly on Sunday everything is closed. The streets were eerily quiet apart from the odd stray cat, and occasional shop owner sitting on their stool all alone.
Back to the main road, we went via a Turkish Bath that Helen is interested in trying. Armed with a pamphlet we continued to the bus. We were on the first ride of the day at 10:00am, and as the streets were so quiet the drive through the city was unimpeded. We past many sights we had already seen until we crossed the Galata Bridge. For a while it seemed the same then eventually we came to the new part of the city which is all clean smooth roads, fancy hotels, glass buildings and green grass. But look behind the facade and the majority of the city is still quite ramshackle and dirty.
Crossing back over the Golden Horn, the ride continued along the side of the Golden Horn to near the end, then headed along the city walls.
The city walls are most impressive, in a state of disrepair now but incredible how long they are. They are solid too; thick and high like a castle but they go for miles!
Once we reached the seaside, the road was jammed with a line of trucks miles long, all at the standstill, queuing to drop a load of dirt/rubble/concrete fill into an area of reclaimed land we understand is part of the Marmary Project to construct a new tunnel across the Bosphorus Strait. The ride slowed down significantly for the remainder of the journey.
We were back by 11:30pm. In hindsight the tour was a bit disappointing and only mildly interesting. The route was long, but few points to get off the bus and not much there at each place. The bus seemed to pass the best views and photo opportunities without stopping and seemed to stop (stuck in traffic) when not much to see.
We sat in the square under a tree and I did something I've been meaning to do since the day we arrived, that being to try some corn from a street vendor. They steam the corn and optionally char it over charcoal, I went for the char option and enjoyed immensely!
The day was getting really hot so we returned to the hotel stopping along the way for a cheap lunch at McDonalds. Here they have a large outdoor seating area upstairs all under umbrellas, very civilised. There are many wild kittens here lazing in the shade and enjoying having people share their leftover Chicken McNuggets. Very cute!!! At the hotel we chill out and wait for the day to cool down a bit.
Eventually we head out again around 5pm by which time it's cooling off. We head back to visit the Mosaic Museum which is a low-key setup showcasing mosaics unearthed and restored as best as possible. Includes a massive floor mosaic which must have been backbreaking to create.
We decided to take another ride on the Hop On Hop Off bus, using our day ticket, the last one leaves at 6pm we were told. We arrived at 5:45pm and got great seats upstairs. The company, being keen to maximise their income, waited until the bus was full of paying passengers, so we didn't leave until about 6:40pm! We took delight in people watching from above, certainly saw some interesting happenings.
By now the Istanbul traffic was very heavy and the city bustling. This made the ride slow. I hoped to get some nice photos in the evening sun and while the views were attractive, photography was difficult as the bus always stopped in the wrong places and booted it past the views. Anyway I managed to get a couple of nice shots to share with you.
The bus didn't arrive back until gone 8:00pm. By now it was dark however the square was still full of people. Very nice atmosphere around the city with families having picnics on the lawn and cooking using make-shift BBQs in the park, sometimes by digging a hole in the lawn and filling with charcoal!
I got a nice night photo of the Blue Mosque, then we headed up the road for a cheap-ish dinner (where we ate two nights prior) and tried a dessert shop across the road which was most pleasing.
Tomorrow we check out of our hotel and get a ride to our cruise ship at midday. From now on, internet connectivity will be more difficult so blog entries will be intermittent.
Thanks for reading!
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