Making our way around Istanbul

Well, things have been quite busy around here!! I can't believe I've only been in Turkey for one week because I feel like I've done so much already. Work is moving along quite nicely but I really live for the times that we get to play!

Thursday night I went to dinner with my aunt, uncle, and cousin. I hadn't seen them since July so it was good to catch up! They also gave me some great recommendations for things we can do on the weekend. You'll notice in the picture of my cousin and I that when I say I have an unusually large head, I mean it.

Friday night a few of us went to dinner at Sahan which is a delicious restaurant that I've actually been to a few times before. The food was as good as I remember it and they brought a flag for each of the countries that we were representing to the table! As you can see we have quite the multi-cultural group on this trip!
On Saturday we got up early and went to the Grand Bazaar. I was very proud of myself by getting the group over to the other side of Istanbul by finding the right boat. Then we walked to the Grand Bazaar following road signs and frequently asking for directions. The Grand Bazaar is one of my favorite places in Istanbul. You could probably spend hours in that place and not see everything.
After that we walked to the Spice Market. We had lunch at a restaurant called Pandeli. I was told that Al Pacino once ate there too but I can't confirm this. Here is a little blurb I found on the restaurant.

"Pandeli first opened his restaurant in Eminonu in 1901. Ottoman stone and turquoise tiles adorn the walls and floor as they did hundreds of years ago; the views of the Golden Horn from the windows and the calls to prayer from the mosques nearby; and the sights and smells of the Spice Bazaar outside make the atmosphere here almost magical."

Below is a picture of the Spice Market from inside the restaurant.

I'd never been here before and it's a smaller version of the Grand Bazaar but it also has TONS of spices. They had your usual cinnamon and saffron of course and then some other more unusual ones as well. They also had Turkish Delight and other desserts that I took the liberty of taste testing several of.


When we left the Spice Market, it throws you out right next to the New Mosque (or I call it the new mosque because that's what it's name translates to). Afterward we went to Mado for some ice cream to wrap up our day. As we were heading back to the docks to catch the boat, we noticed that there was a huge crowd of people on one end of the dock. It turns out the Prime Minister came to Istanbul and they were seeing him off! That was kind of exciting even though we didn't actually get to see him.
The rest of the team headed back to the hotel and I went to go meet up with some family. I got to see my cousin's new apartment. I also got to try a different type of Turkish ravioli which I confirmed is delicious. It's not easy doing all this taste testing but someone has to do it, right?