Just out Shopping

Now this is what you call a busy street! Istiklal Caddesi is the main shopping street in the Beyoglu district of Istanbul and today it was absolutely hooching. At first I thought it was the footie crowd heading to watch Galatasaray but in fact it was just a huge swath of humanity out to pillory the shops. Boy, the police were ready for the football though; there were bus loads of them and the buses looked like something out of a Mad Max film!

We've done a ton of walking today. Visited the Blue Mosque (third time lucky) then a fantastic underground cistern built in Constantine's day; seems the Persians didn't use it because they preferred running water to stagnant water! Then a wander through the Spice Market, over a bridge across the Golden Horn that was end to end anglers and up the hill to Beyoglu. Another walk and a tram got us back to a very nice beer terrace. And it was much needed too.