Istanbul Day 1

As I've already been scolded by my youngest daughter because I haven't posted anything since we've been here, I thought I'd better get busy and provide an update on our travels and let you all know that we're alive and well.

Surprisingly, given the closure of JFK only hours before, our flights from Portland to New York and then from New York to Istanbul were on time with no delays whatsoever. We arrived in Istanbul @ 9:30 AM Tuesday (11:30 PM Monday PDT) and got to our hotel by 11:00 AM. Our hotel, the Sultanhamet Palace, is practically next door to the Blue Mosque (one of Istanbul's primary sightseeing sights) with a lovely garden courtyard in the front. We have a room with a balcony and views of the Blue Mosque. The only unusual feature of our room is the bathroom/shower fixture (I've included a picture). The first time Rich took a shower, he totally flooded the bathroom! I did a little better, but there was still WAY too much water everywhere. I think we're going to resort to doing it the Turkish way by filling the basin with water and using the silver bowl to pour water over us.

Istanbul's sights and sounds are enchanting and I love the foreigness of the muezzin's call to prayer as it reverberates throughout the city. Our first night's dinner, on the third floor terrace of a small Ottoman restaurant located in the heart of the Sultanhamet (recommended by one of the MANY carpet salesmen in this area) was perfect. We watched the sun set behind the Blue Mosque and listened to Turkish music from the square below.