Istanbul. The Galata Bridge and the Bosphorus.

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or some extricable reason, Lei and I were drawn to the area on and around the Galata Bridge which spans the Bosphorus where it meets the Sea of Marmara. We were there on two separate occasions and we spent at least 3 hours on each visit!

The Galata Bridge is nothing special to look at and neither is the part of the Bosphorus that it spans. In fact, the area around the bridge is crowded, congested, noisy and smells of car exhaust....and the view of the water is nothing to rave about. Yet, there's an vibrancy to the waterside atmosphere that sucks you into relaxing and simply taking it all in. We both found it to be a great place to catch the cool breeze coming off the beautiful blue water of the Bosphorus, to watch locals enjoying themselves and to breath in the intoxicating smell of fish being grilled by street vendors.

Istabul. Yeni Camii.

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t's only in a city with Istanbul's long history that can you call a monument that is nearly 500 years old, the "New Mosque"! That's how Yeni Camii ("Yen-ee Jahm-ee") translates from Turkish into English.

History
The construction of the mosque was begun by Valide Safiye, Queen Mother of Mehmet III, in 1597. After Mehmet III died, the building of the mosque dragged on for over 40 years due to water seepage, funding problems, embezzlement, and the death of the sultan, which temporarily shut down operations completely.

Six sultans later, Turhan Hatice, Queen Mother of Sultan Mehmet IV, took up the work and finished it in 1663.

Istanbul. Basilica Cistern.

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ery calm. That was the atmosphere I felt the very moment I descended into the Basilica Cistern. Lei and I paid it a visit just before lunch today.

The Basilica Cistern which is known in Turkish as Yerebatan Sarnıcı ("Yera-bah-tan Sar-nuh-juh") is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that still lie beneath Istanbul. Built in 532 AD by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, the cistern is located within walking distance of the Aya Sophia.

Istanbul. The Grand Blue Mosque.

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he Blue Mosque is its popular name, Sultan Ahmet Mosque its proper name in English and Sultanahmet Camii ("Sool-tan-ah-met Jam-ee) its official name in Turkish. However you choose to refer to it, it is a spectacular mosque. On the outside, its six slender minarets and cascading domes distinguish it from all other mosques - not only in Turkey but around the world but it is the 20,000 handmade ceramic Iznik tiles that line its interior walls that gave it its popular name.