Exploring Istanbul

Istanbul is so rich of history and culture!More importantly , it is a history not far from us, but one which impact on our lifes .It is a history which was taught in our schools.I never imagined , when going to school and being taught about Constantinius the Great, that I will one day walk on the same soil!
My first impressions of the Turkish people is that they are very hospitable .Unfortunately it is not always easy to communicate due to language barriers.However,with a few gestures , one is easily directed:-) The food is great! But more about that later.
The first few days I visited the "must see " historic sites such as the Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque and the GrandBazaar.It is an experience I find difficult to express in words.
As all of it was so impressive , I will devote a few posts to it and in this post just talk about the Topkapi Palace .

When I stood in front of the palace the movie 300 came to life through many things .I mean , when you watch these movies one always wonder..did it really happen?well, I can say, having visited Turkey, yes, it did!For the sake of brevity and not to overwhelm you too much I will mention a few things.The different gates where people were allowed to enter ,selectively, and the its different courtyards where the ceremonies took place .The gate of Salutation which opens on the Divine square where ceremonies for the Sultan's accession to the Throne took place.

One is so overwhelmed when you stand there that you just want to saty and put 'real people' dressed up like then..and just watch them!

The one which I found most interesting (and amusing)though very strategic is the fact that only deaf and dumb people were appointed in the sultans Private Chambers.This makes a lot of business sense!I will remember next time I get a High job:-)

The Treasury room, is indeed a treasure:-) You must see it!!!Unfortunately we were not allowed to take pictures in that section.The most interesting , and I guess most important piece in the collection is a diamond called "the Spoonmaker's diamond".It is 86 carats!!!it is huge..apparently a spoonmaker found the diamant and did not know what is was...he sold it for THREE Spoons:-)Yes apparently he did.But it is good that he did , otherwise I would never had the privilege to see such beauty:-)I cannot explain to you how beautiful this piece is ..it is breathtaking...!

The final most important moment on that visit was when I could stand on Europe and take a picture of Asia...that was ...wow...I have stood on the border of two countries many many times...but never was I so privileged !I had to capture the moment ..so that you can see I was there:-) with Asia behind me..and the Bosphorus Strait separating the East from the West!

I hope you enjoy this journey with me so far..and the only thing that I so wished when I was here, was that I could share this with my loved ones.This is a must visit for any person , most importantly I wish our children , when they make pots of money,will find time to visit Turkey.