Cosmos Tour of Turkey
Checking in early for the Cosmos tour I thought would be a problem but no, I was shown to the room booked for the night. I thought I was in seventh heaven after the conditions of the past week! A four-star hotel complete with air conditioning, clean and comfortable beds, and a big room!! The wifi there just for me.
Having time on my hands I was soon off exploring a part of Istanbul I hadn’t seen. The Istiklal St is the most popular street in Istanbul if the crowds are to be believed, approximately a 1.5 km pedestrian shoppers paradise. From the big business names to the tiniest street seller.
It didn’t take long to find it as all roads seem to lead there! I spent several hours there wandering from shop to shop, looking for clothes, trying them on and adjusting mentally to the size of the clothes which were obviously too small, must be a Turkish thing because none of the clothes fit! The fact that I’d possibly added weight from all the Turkish food never occurred to me.
Having mentally adjusted to the larger size made it easier to shop. I checked out the underground for the second oldest subway in the world. The tram service to Taksim Square interesting and slow enough to enjoy the experience. As I had spent most of the preceding week in the Sultanahmet district, it was a real change to be in the more modern part of Istanbul of Beyoglu District.
I went to the top of the Galata tower, one of the oldest structures in this part of Istanbul. Built in the mid-1400’s it was the tallest building for some centuries. The view outstanding over such a beautiful city. The lift was the easy way to the top for which I was thankful. Getting back to the hotel, I was pleased to meet the lass, I would spend the next fortnight of the Cosmos tour sharing the room with. A twenty-something Australian girl from Perth.
Soon after we went back to the street to shop and look around for a place to have dinner. We ended up having a massive baked potato filled with all sorts of fillings that you chose from a selection. Allowing enough time to get back to the hotel for the tour meeting. A gathering of all the people taking the Cosmos trip around Turkey with us. A welcome drink of unknown ingredients proved to be fairly tasteless but certainly looked good in pink and yellow.
Having been informed of all the need to know stuff about the tour we retired to our rooms for the night, ready for a six-thirty wake-up call. Breakfast at seven, coach departure at eight.
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