Istanbul, Turkey
19 May 2012
We joined the excursion group to visit the Blue Mosque and St. Sophia. The tiled Mosque was once the largest dome in the world and is now the third largest behind the Doma in Florence and the Vatican's St. Paul's cathedral. We spent the afternoon in the Grand Bazaar. If you are looking for rugs, jewelry, leather goods, trinkets, Turkish Delight, scarfs, watches, t-shirts, jerseys, or souvenirs then you have found the right place. They are less aggressive than the Egyptians, but still irritating.
I did find a beautiful cotton scarf that will be great for cool evening at the theatre. We really liked Turkey. It is a secular country, rights and freedoms are not restricted by religious law.