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Istanbul!
April 2-11, 2011

Storks (? - not completely sure) in Gülhane Park outside Topkapı Palace.

Cat and big cat in Gülhane Park.

Crow in Gülhane Park. Smaller than the crows we're used to seeing, and with a grey costume.

Stork flying in the trees in Gülhane Park.

Aaron walking the streets of Sultanahmet

The tram at Sultanahmet.

Cat of Sultanahmet...

Strangely red monument to Atatürk.

Iscatbul.

Our first glimpse of the cats.

Back of Topkapı Palace.

Back of Topkapı Palace.

Me, a cat and the Hagia Sophia.

Aaron and the same cat in the park.

View north of the Galata Bridge from an outdoor cafe outside of Topkapı Palace.

View of the Bosphorus and Asian side of Turkey.

Tea and lunch. We were not charged for feline company.

A cat companion at the park cafe.

Aaron peeking from behind an ancient sculpture in the garden of the Archaeology Museum.

Cat company at the Archaeology Museum.

Cat-headed sculpture at the Archaeology Museum.

Houses built right into the walls of Topkapı Palace.

A glimpse of this street.

Walking the cobblestone streets during call to prayer.

Me in front of the Hagia Sophia.

The Hagia Sophia.

Call to prayer from the back of the Hagia Sophia.

The Blue Mosque.

Me in back of the Blue Mosque.

A typical Turkish Kebap and sweets store.

... and awesome Turkish guy.

Our 5th anniversary dinner on the Galata Bridge...

Anniversary dinner.

Me at the lower level of the Galata Bridge after dinner.

Fishermen on the Galata Bridge upper level.

Basilica Cisterns.

Gives you goose bumps...

Creepy and magical...

Me in the fiery darkness...

Us...

Aaron.

Medusa sculpture on the foot of one of the pillars.

Coy swimming in the water.

Istanbul at night.

A snippet of a street protest near the University.

The north end of the Galata Bridge (crossing the Golden Horn). An amazing fish market and commuter ferry stop.

Galata Bridge

Clever street art.

The Galata Tower. As expected, I went all the way up to the top and had a panic attack from the heights. But Aaron made it all the way around the terrace.

View of Atatürk Bridge and Fatih from the Galata Tower.

View north of the Galata Tower.

View of a charming side street and stray dog from the Galata Tower.

View of the old and the new from the Galata Tower.

View of Sultanahmet and the Galata Bridge from the Galata Tower.

The south end of the Galata Bridge: 2 minutes of Istanbul life.

6 seconds of a crowded Istanbul underpass.

View of a window washer from the Galata Tower.

Turkish school children posing for a picture at the base of the Galata Tower.

Satellite dishes and crumbling shacks - Galata.

The remains of an old Jewish bath house in Galata.

Video of these remains.

View of the Asian side of Turkey (Üsküdar). HUGE antennas on one hill (along with a gigantic Turkish flag) - have no idea what they are.

Dolmabahçe Palace, where Atatürk died... Bosphorus to the right with the Bosphorus Bridge (connecting Europe and Asia) in the background.

The changing of the guards in front of Dolmabahçe Palace. There wasn't anyone around but us - so glad I had my camera!

The changing of the guards

Guards at Dolmabahçe Palace.

Çırağan Palace, now a 5-star hotel.

Me in front of portraits of Atatürk on Meclis-i Mebusan Caddesi.

A Turkish public toilet. OK, it looks weird at first - but honestly, it's less gross than sitting on a public toilet seat. And yes there is toilet paper.

Men praying on prayer rugs outside a mosque in Ortaköy. The Bosphorus Bridge (connecting Europe and Asia) in the background.

View of the Asian side of Turkey (Beylerbeyi) from Ortaköy.

Adorable Aaron at the base of the Bosphorus bridge.

Ortaköy is known for it's stuffed baked potato guys. Before we could say "Hayir" ("no") he had every single topping piled on...

Adorable kittehs in Ortaköy.

Fish stand in Ortaköy.

Lunch at a restaurant in Ortaköy

Aaron feeding a toasted cheese sandwich to a kitteh.

Those white shapes are jellyfish that float up to the surface on the Bosphorus when a big wave comes to shore.

Me and a tattered window in Beşiktaş on Meclis-i Mebusan Caddesi.

There were photos of Atatürk all up and down Meclis-i Mebusan Caddesi. And awesome looking houses on top of the wall that also contains a beautiful park.

An awesome sultan sculpture.

Poster advertising the band concert in the park (Beşiktaş). We just happened to be at this park taking a breather when everything started - what a treat!

These guys warmed up the crowd of 50 or so who had gathered.

The bands await their chance to play.

An unexpected marching band performance in Beşiktaş

This is team Bulgaria (the others are Romania, Turkey, Russia and Ukraine).

Getting lost on the twisting, turning, cobbled streets of Istanbul.

Egyptian Spice Market

Istanbul Sirkeci Terminal (last stop on the Oriental Express), complete with a Nightmare on Elm Street - esque sculpture of Atatürk protruding from the surface.

This restaurant (Oriental Express Cafe) was so beautiful, and we had it all to ourselves. The waiter wore a full tuxedo. This is in the Istanbul Sirkeci Terminal train station. The bread was served with olive oil that had a very thin layer of green olive paste at the bottom. Wonderful!

Oriental Express Cafe

Oriental Express Cafe.

This guy was part of our hotel room view - a frame maker across the street.

Turkish workers in action.

Just some ruins from the Byzantine era, that's all. These are everywhere.

Lazy cats in front of a mosque in Fatih.

Video of these cats.

Aaron in a park in Fatih.

Sculpture of Mehmed II riding a flying horse through half an arch with sultans intellectualizing.

Awesome sultan sculpture with awesomely sculptured Turkish man.

Chickens in the park!

Park in Fatih with wall relics in background.

Constantine wall intersecting with Atatürk Boulevard.

PSIKIYATRIST

Aaron admiring the new instrument (a ney) he bought.

The restaurant we went for lunch - built into the Constantine walls, near the Süleymaniye Mosque in Fatih.

Video of this restaurant.

Restaurant floor.

Coca Cola - a bubble floating in the Haliç with a background of ancient history.

Weirdest and possibly funniest picture of us ever.

Cat dinner company. "It'll be mine soon. Aaaaaall mine."

Finished Turkish casserole.

Turkish tea.

The delightful, cat-filled park we spent all our nights at, steps from our hotel. (Hagia Sophia in the background).

Us in the park at night

Us with the cats in the park at night

Breathtaking nighttime call to prayer from this park

Tulips in the park by the Sultanahmet tram stop.

Lady making crepes in the window of the restaurant. Delicious, potato and spinach filled crepes.

Lunchtime in Sultanahmet - crepes, doner kebaps and tea.

Video of this restaurant

Gloria Jeans coffee in the Istanbul airport.

The ride to the hotel from the airport.

Our wonderfully empty plane home! Though the flight was 10 hours and 45 minutes, it was the best flight I've taken. Turkish Airlines is awesome.

TAN HOTEL - the best hotel on earth.

Breakfast at the fabulous roof top lounge.

The rooftop lounge.

The fantastic, fresh spread we got for free every morning... plus omelettes or eggs to boot. I absolutely LOVED the yogurt they had here - I have never tasted anything like it anywhere.