Istan-bullish on Turkey

While there's a big-time bear market in the US, we are quite Istan-bullish on Turkey so far (yes, I'm going to milk that pun for a while). Those of you who have been here know what I'm talking about....to those of you who haven't been here, put it on your must-see list immediately. Here are some of the highlights so far -- two of the main sights, the Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque, are awesome. The Aya Sofya was built in 537AD as a Byzantine church, served as the Eastern Vatican for 900 years, was converted into a Mosque when the Ottomans conquered the Byzantines in 1453, and was turned into a museum in 1934. Rick Steves calls it 'one of the most important and impressive structures on the planet.' Here's a picture of the two of us in front of it.

The nearby Blue Mosque has become one of my favorite buildings to look at. It was built in the early 1600's and remains a functional mosque today. Here's a picture of Pallavi in front of it.

Also, water plays a big role in the history and culture of Istanbul, as the main part of the city lies at the confluence of three bodies of water (does that make Pittsburgh the Istanbul of the west??). We took a day-cruise up the Bosphorus Strait, a 19-mile strait which separates European Istanbul from Asian Istanbul and also connects the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea. It was a fun boat ride with some breathtaking views. Here's a picture of Pallavi on the boat (she's the one who looks like the unibomber) and picture of the two of us with the Black Sea in the background.

Adding to the good times here in Turkey are our friends, Annie and Mike from Jacksonville. We're thrilled to be traveling with them and look forward to borrowing Mike's travel iron. Here's a picture of the four of us in front of Aya Sofya.