Dale & Laurel's Adventures: Istanbul

On our last day on the ship we did a cruise up the Bosphorus to a private museum - the Sadberk Hanim Museum. What a treat. http://vimeo.com/19061227
After disembarking, we made our way to the Lush Hotel - highly rated on TripAdvisor and it lived up to its reputation. The service was exemplary and they were very quick to accommodate. It is downtown Taxim, so very close to everything and the trams were very efficient.
While we were there, we met up with Dale's nephew Curtis and his wife Itir and their daughter Isabel. Itir's Mom joined us for lunch then we spent a lovely afternoon catching up. The traffic was unbelievable, but eventually we made it to Izzy's favourite park then had a light supper at a restaurant on the Bosphorus. We took the tram back to the hotel as the traffic was still heavy and Curtis and Itir could get Izzy home to bed. It was easy to believe that there are more than 13 million people in Istanbul!
Sightseeing included the Blue Mosque (Hans and Maureen did St. Sophia and the Cisterns) and the Archaeological Museum, then a quick lunch and on to the Grand Bazaar. We managed to get lost, but eventually found our way!
Topkapi Palace took most of the next day with a stop at the Spice Market on the way back to the hotel. Dale got very exotic in his choices, but has assured me that he will use them in his newly acquired role as master chef chez Erhart's!
Friday had Hans and Maureen off on an excursion to Cappadocia while Dale and I visited the St. Chora (Kariye) Museum. What beautiful mosaics and they depicted the whole biblical story. A bit hard on the neck looking upwards while we followed the audio guide, but absolutely stunning.
After the traffic earlier in the week, we were a bit apprehensive about getting to the airport, so we caught the bus a couple of hours earlier than necessary - especially when it arrived as scheduled and we got to spend the time wandering around the airport. Lots of time for people-watching though and it is a huge airport - lots of nationalities on their way to more exotic places. We headed back to Cyprus for a much needed rest!