Hustle, bustle, and tranquility.

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y second full day in Istanbul started out with a lot of hustle and bustle and ended with a smidgen of tranquility.

After breakfast, I made my way back to the Grand Bazaar following my instincts since the maps I had were pretty much useless. At the Bazaar, I did my souvenir shopping - fending off one shop keeper after another! I finally managed to get the gifts that I had wanted to bring home with me. One thing good about coming during off-season - the prices are far more reasonable and the sellers more desperate to seal the deal so even though you still have to haggle, it's a lot easier.

Taksim.

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hen I was reading up on things to do and see in Istabul, Taksim was always mentioned. Taksim is a neighborhood on the European side of the city known for its restaurants, shops and hotels. It is considered the heart of modern Istanbul and for some reason, the tourist books encourage you to visit the place so I put it on my itinerary.

I decided to head to Taksim after my visit to the Dolmabahçe Palace because according to the guidebook, I could get to Taksim via funicular from the Kabataş tram station. Exiting Dolmabahçe, I walked back towards Kabataş. For the life of me, I could not see the funicular - I was expecting to see an above ground cable car. Following the signs, I was led underground instead. Huh?? I bought my token and followed the signs to the funicular. Where the heck is this funicular? A single train came, it said Taksim on the front, the doors opened and so I got in. Am I in the funicular? Maybe, we start below ground and somehow surface. Nope. Less than five minutes later, the train came to a stop, the doors opened and everyone exited. The sign with an arrow pointing to the right said Taksim Meydanı ("may-dah-nuh" which means "square in English"). The crowd was going in that direction so I followed suit.

Ottoman Opulence. The Dolmabahçe Palace. Part 3.

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fter touring the the Selamlık and the ceremonial halls, I exited the Palace on the side of the building that fronts the Bosphorus.

Ottoman Opulence. The Dolmabahçe Palace. Part 2.

The construction of the Dolmabahçe Palace was commissioned by Sultan Abdülmecid. The European style Palace was built between 1842 and 1853 at a cost of five million Ottoman gold pounds - the equivalent of 35 tons of gold. The Palace served as the official residence of several Ottoman Sultans in the 19th and early 20th centuries. With the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the early part of the 20th century, the Dolmabahçe Palace remained empty till Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the first president of Turkey, took up residence there. Atatürk stayed in the palace until his death on November 10, 1938.