Istanbul

Yesterday was another sea day for us while we cruised from Santorini to Istanbul. For something fun we did a wine tasting and enjoyed the ocean views. 

Today was our first day in Istanbul. As the ship pulled into port around 6:30 this morning we could hear the "Call to Prayer", the haunting melody confirmed that we were no longer in a part of the world we know. 

DH and I were up earlyish for breakfast before we began our all day by foot exploration of the city. We saw all the highlights of the city including the Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, the Hagia Sophia and the Grand Bazaar.

We wandered streets, ate street meat for lunch and have now returned to the ship for a cocktail and some time off the feet. 

All together we figure it's about a 10-15 km day of walking. Istanbul is a unique and very large city of approximately 13-14 million people. It seemed that no matter where we walked the city was just busy.