Day 1 in Istanbul

Arrived in Istanbul's Ataturk Airport exhausted after 9 hours in flight but the sea breeze was blowing and the sky was so blue.  A guide from the Picasso tour company was waiting for us with a shuttle bus and took us into the city.  The Opera Hotel was waiting for us!  The hotel was small and elegant.  We (those of us who flew out of JFK airport in New York city) arrived several hours ahead of the rest of the tour group so there was an extra afternoon for exploring Istanbul.

Our hotel was near Taksim Square (in the new European section of Istanbul) and the major shopping district, so I took off for a walk around the area.  Istanbul is a city of over 15 million people and the square was packed with pedestrians and vehicles.  They even have special taxis, called dolmus, which are small vans that wait at the curb until they are full.  they don't head to their destination until enough people have climbed aboard!

Istiklal is the main shopping street.  Very little traffic (delivery trucks) and many people.

The Turks are proud of their metal work and this gate to a government building is a good example of some fine details and decoration.

These are some of the older buildings form the era of the Ottoman sultans.

Istanbul video

The side streets are very narrow.