Istanbul, Turkey - 8/16/14

Istanbul…. Was interesting… I have to say on the trip I think it was my least favorite. The city was really big and dirty. The pollution around it is worse than when you fly into LA. 

Best photo i could take of the Blue Mosque. 

View of the European side of Istanbul from the bridge to the golden horn.

Istanbul is half in Asia and half in Europe.  We went and decided to get lost on our own in this city, which meant we aimlessly wandered around the Golden Horn which houses Topeki Palace, Hagia  Sophia and the often photographed Blue Mosque.

Random cool tree in the gardens near Topeki Palace

We only went into the Hagia Sophia on the trip since part of the Blue Mosque is closed because of unrest and there are religious events that happen on Fridays. (below are all photos of the Hagia Sophia)

I wanted to go into the underground Cistern which is a vast underground reservoir built by the Romans but we did not have any Turkish lira to pay for the tickets.  We did quickly go through the Grand Bazaar but there were just way too many people.

Grand Bazaar