I went to Turkey in October. As a big fan of historical architecture, I reveled in the world famous Sultan Ahmed Mosque, the Yeni Cami (the New Mosque), and the Hagia Sophia. Topkapi Palace was amazing.  Unfortunately, there was a lot of rain that day. We didn´t get to see everything. Supposedly, it would actually take several days to see everything at the palace. Being in Istanbul was like a dream. The people are so warm even though I was oftenly stared at. I suppose people of East Asian descent are a rarity. The food is so wonderful. I could not stop eating. Lamacun, pide, borek, iskender kebab, etc. It was a non-stop eating festival for us. My fiance often boasts about his first love being the Bosphorus. Although, I was jealous for a while I understood what he meant after taking the boat couple of times on it to reach the Asian side. It was gorgeous and so relaxing. (I wish crossing the Bosphorus was part of my daily commute.) Taksim Square is so awesome. They are so many places for shopping. I especially like the clothing at Koton. The quality is really nice. We also visited Bursa, the former capital of Turkey. On the way, I saw the country side. The center of Bursa was bustling with people. Bursa has great restaurants that make iskender kebab. There are tombs located at the top of a hill of great Ottoman Empire leaders. I hope to go again in the spring. Until then, I can only reminisce...If you´re fascinated with Turkish culture, just reading about it won´t do you any good. Ya gotta go there!

What a beautiful post about Istanbul

And regarding ´Istanbul being your bf´s first love´, do not feel jealous about it. Istanbul is many people´s first love indeed..

And I have to add that "crossing the Bosphorus was part of my daily commute" in the past..

 A nice place to be is in the Topkapi Palace gardens, sit at the little tea cafe and take in the view across the Golden Horn, the Marmara sea to your right and the view up the Bosphorus towards the first Bridge.  Beautiful

Two visits to Istanbul and a little peice of my heart is there

I would say the place around Topkapi palace is too touristic for me.

I would recommend to have an quick lunch in kanlica http://www.pbase.com/silversword/kanlica and a Turkish coffee in one of the cafes there..

Again, very close by, Hidiv kasri´http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide..6k2jgrfjcFf0FWoL

Lovely view down to Bosphorous and a great ottomani cusine in the building itself..

Further down anadolu kavagi..http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/pb/1bbdd2/..fresh fish and raki..It is a beautiful fishing village..The best way to go there is with the daily bosphorous trips..

And for the nights..try cicek pasaji in Beyoglu..http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Çiçek_Pasaji

I want to be there NOW

 I would normally agree, but there was no one else in that garden!  It was February, cold and wet.

Talking about Istanbul and commuting through the Bosphorous reminded something:

I wonder if there is still have the same fun in these days but I saw several times when I was traveling from Eminonu to Beykoz..

There used to be this ferry taking off from Eminonu at 17:00 and then would stop in every single ferry stop till Beykoz. 

All those people who worked in Grand Bazaar and around that area would take that ferry..

And there used to be the same ferry everyday..They would hide the raki glasses at the back in the red fire equipment box..And the first group would hang up a plastic bag and they would put half raki half water in it..

They would open a little hole above the level of raki and when you pressed your glass into the bag just below the  hole, raki would be pouring like it was coming from a tap..

And then from other places like besiktas, other would come with all sorts of food..

And they would drink and have fun the entire journey (which was 1 1/2 hours to beykoz). I think it was the cheapest but the best restaurant in the world with a great view at that time of the day..

And it also shows how creative my country´s people are

I have forgotten my heart in Istanbul. I think the Bosphorus stole it!!

My fiance couldn´t believe how much food I was eating when I visited Istanbul.  On the way to the Grand Bazaar and the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, I ate a fish sandwhich. Breakfast was eaten not long before which consisted of tea, bread, cheese, and olives. His mom makes her own jam. Honey is served with the wax still in it. That´s amazing. It gives the honey a much more natural flare. The fish sandwich was from an outdoor cafe near Galata Bridge where the fish is grilled directly on the boats. It was so delicious. My fiance was in disbelief over the fish sandwich after we just had breakfast. Then, we stopped at a pastry shop in the touristic area. I ordered coffee, aþure, rice pudding, and tiramasu. At this point, he had to call his mom to tell her what a pig I was. The more he thought about the more concerned he became. He asked, "How am I going to support your eating habits?" "You´re going to get really fat!" During a vacation, it´s perfectly normal to eat with a healthy appetite...   Aaaaahhh....wait for me Istanbul, I will be there again soon.......

i visited istanbul last summer.. and it was a great visit... everything was amazing... Roads Mosques people transportaions palaces everything everything.. i would like 2 come back.. but i have no money

hehehe Istanbul is great but the worst thing in this visit was the  weather.. God it was 2 hot...

but u will not feel this because of the Beautiness of this City...

i vistied sultanahmet blue mosque its huge but its great.. they were so creative..

Topkapi Sarayi... its the best... i wonder how many years they spent to bulid it ? its great and the gardens were so green and great...

but for Dolmabache  palace...  no words can describe ... i loved this place so much..

the Bosphorus i want 2 come back...

ah ah i forgot the food... so much tasty...

the transportation is cool too

OOOh turkey I LOVE U

I´ve taken a lot of trips! Even before I met my current boyfriend

So if anybody needs information on busses, ferries or domestic flights, I have enough experience!

I´ve stayed in Istanbul,  Kusadasi (a lot!!!), Antalya, Kemer, Marmaris, Balikesir, Tobali (near Izmir) and Side. I´ve also had some shorter trips to Alanya, Izmir, Dalyan, Selcuk (Ephesus) Bodrum, and I´m sure I´m forgetting some places...

I would like to go more to the east sometimes, or at least start with the middle of Turkey. As a foreigner most of the time you get stuck in the west

My last trip to Turkey wasn´t very interesting, just a week´s visit to my boyfriend to arrange some visa stuff in Kusadasi. Only interesting thing was that I didn´t tell him I was coming so I had to take the bus from Bodrum airport to Kusadasi myself. I enjoy going with the bus in Turkey very much. It seems very safe for a young woman on her own, and I feel very comfortable.