2011 SYRIA - JORDAN TOUR
 April 12, 2011 Tuesday Istanbul
The pictures are submitted by Meli Seval

Click here for Antakya & Aleppo                              
Table of Content    Syria tour Itinerary     Home page   Syria 2011 group journal  
We met at Spektra Hotel at 09:30. There was a lot of hugging and kissing.  Nothing was really planned for the day. We quickly talked about the options. Carole and Elisabeth wanted to visit Chora Church. Mary Kay and Marilyn wanted to shop for Carpets. Micky, Jim, Micheal, and Mark wanted to walk the Byzantine walls.  Every one got what they wanted to do. We all met at  the wonderful restaurant in Zeyrekhane.
For dinner Micky and Mary Kay wanted to try  MEKAN restaurant at Istiklal street in the 19th Century quarters of the City. We took the tram, the funicular to Taksim and walked through the pedestrian way. The dinner was excellent. our old friend  Bill and his six year old daughter joined us for the dinner. We took the tunnel and the tram back to the hotel. We have a very early departure tomorrow.

  Some chose to go carpet shopping while the rest walked the back streets of Istanbul and met the driver in Balat.

We all ended at Zeyrekhane restaurant for a feast of Ottoman food in a great historic ambiance

  The pickles, pomegranate salad and the leak balls were among the favorites for the vegetarians. Those of us who could not do with out meat had a plenty of choice from  Zeyrek kebab to Manti.

The antiques used as the decor gave  a warm feeling in this 800 ear old stone building
The view from the terrace was like a summary of Istanbul. Over looking at the golden horn, one can see the towers and   
minarets dominating the sky line of  Istanbul


 

 The renovation of Sulemaniye mosque was recently finished.
The face lift was more than it should be.  The 16th Century monumental building was built to honor the Ottoman Sultan, Suleyman the Law giver, who reigned between 1520 until 1570.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our hotel was off the road from the tram.
It was very elegantly decorated. Unfortunately we
will have only several hours here since
our wake up call will be at 02:30 AM tomorrow


The evening was ended at the Mekan Restaurant on Istiklal street 
We used every public transportation available in istanbul

Click here for Antakya & Aleppo                                  
Table of Content    Syria tour Itinerary     Home page   Syria 2011 group journal