Gate of Salutations....Sultan Suleyman l's signature
Entrance lagi Topkapi Palace....siap ada security check
2 of us at the palace ground
The tilework at the entrance to the throne room
The throne room from far
Blooming flowers
Infront of the treasury
Ornamental fountain in front of the palace's library...posh
Iftariye pavallion....with views down to the Golden Horn
Circumcision pavillion
Outside pavillion of the Holy Mantle
Baghdad pavillion...built by Murat lV
Entrance to the forbidden Harem
Imperial Hall of the Harem
Courtyard of the concubines
Salon of the Valide Sultana
Apartments and courtyard of the favourites....8 in total okay
Paired pavillions...for the crown prince
Fountain of Sultan Ahmet lll
Traditional wooden house
Roof top view of the restaurant
Having lunch
The starter....mezes....I didn't like it
Shepherd chicken kebab
Enjoying lunch
Sultanahmet square
Haghia Sophia
Blue Mosque
View inside
The mosque ground
Hippodrome
The Egyptian Obelisk
Macuna....Turkish lolipop
Enjoying the sweet
Shopping
Dolmabache Palace
Bosphorus Bridge
Scenic view of Istanbul from Pierre Lotti hill
Attartuk Aiport
I know it's only about 3 pm and I am supposed to be at work....actually was scheduled to a teaching this afternoon....punya laa rush from theatre back to Llanelli for the teaching.....sampai2 was told that the session has been cancelled. Geram betul....so here I am. Went to Turkey on the 15th March....this time with Kathy aje....took a flight from Manchester.....naik Turkish Airline and the journey took about 4 hours. I enjoyed the flight....firstly the interior was nice, clean and new....seat turquoise in colour and leather....and we had in flight meal which was delicious. Arrived at Attartuk International Airport about 8 pm and took a cab to our hotel kat the Sultanahmet area....not bad for a 3 star hotel. Freshened up and went wondering around the hotel area.....which is only about 5 minutes walk to the Blue Mosque.....was really excited to try my new camera....geram and sedih pun ada jugak coz my first camera apparently could not be fixed.....jalan-jalan carik makan (as usual). Had dinner at a kebab house.....ordered the Turkish special.....really liked it but the portion was quite big for 1 person. The next morning, headed to the Topkapi Palace which is about 700 metres walk from our hotel. It was built by Mehmet II....if I am not mistaken and became his principal residence. The palace was later abandoned by Sultan Abdul Mecit I in favour of Dolmabache Palace. Chewah....can jadi tourist guide dah nie....hehehehe. I really enjoyed the visit.....amazed by the architecture.....not that I know much about it....a bit like Al-Hambra but unique in it's own way lah. We also took the guided tour into the Harem of the palace.....which cost about 10 Turkish lira....fairly cheap....if I am not mistaken it can only be visited if you take the guided tour....nama pun Harem maa. After spending about half day in Topkapi Palace.....we walked around the Hadgia Sophia.....but decided not to go in.....to be honest both of us don't quite fancy going into another museum.....so just took some photos. Had lunch at a restaurant quite opposite Haghia Sophia with the most significant roof top view of Sultanahmet area and the food was really nice.....a bit pricy but for the view it was worth it. Tak caya tengok the photos. I had shepherd chicken kebab and really loved it.....Kathy didn't quite like her meal....I think she ordered Iskander kebab.....the strong falavour of the lamb perhaps. Next destination was the Sultan Ahmet Camii Mosque or well known as the Blue Mosque. Blue coz its interior is mainly decorated with blue Iznik tilework. The Hippodrome was our next stop.....situated just outside the Blue Mosque and later we made our way to the Grand Bazaar.....shopping time. Rambang mata jugak when I first stepped into the Bazaar.....I think there were about 5000 stalls.....and seriously boleh sesat. The key thing kalau nak shopping kat sini is you really have to bargain coz prices vary and tak fix.....so kalau pandai bargain.....murah laa barang nyer. In general, Turkey is quite a cheap place to shop.....and there are loads of things that you could buy unlike Greece.....sama aje. Did a bit of shopping and the next day did a bit more shopping and took a cruise up the Bosphorus.....it took about an hour and later we went to a nearby hill called Pierre Lotti....named after a French writer who had spent his time writing there.....not that I've heard of him....the view was really nice.....took the cable car down.....much to Kathy's liking. Returned and went back to the Grand Bazaar for last minute shopping. Hhhmmmm.....I really enjoyed this trip.....lagi best compared to Greece and I will definitely recommend it. If I have the chance will definitely go back for the second time coz there were loads of things to see.....tak sempat nak cover everything in just 4 days.
