Topkapi Palace

Day 1 with the whole group (who arrived an hour late and with my roommate luggageless). We had a great day despite little sleep for all. The Topkapi Palace - occupied by many of the Ottoman Sultans through the centuries. A phenomenal view of the Bosphorys Straits (separating Europe and Asia) and the Maramara Sea (part of the Adriatic). Sitting on a hill it also receives a lovely breeze. The Harem was the most amazing array of rooms and luxury - tiles and tapestries, baths, fountains, and apartments all exquisite in design and detail. We were there for 4 hours and could have easily stayed longer, but they closed at 6:30. We then went to eat and discovered we are NOT very good at ordering our food...we got twice as much food as we thought we ordered....just because someone can say hello and may I help you, does not mean they understand anything you really say! Tomorrow we go to the Byzantine (Christian) ruins still remaining in the city - Hagya Sofia, Roman aquaducts and cisterns, the hippodrome ruins, and more. Pictures not posting due to their large size, so I have to figure out how to resize without Adobe Premier or just post on either webshots or Picasa....It's late - I may try tomorrow. BTW - my roomate is also a middle school teacher in a private school. I think we will get on well.