This morning we arose from our below street-level hotel room and climbed the many, many steps up to the terrace for breakfast. It is a glorious day, and we enjoyed our bun, cheese, olives, tomatoes and yogurt, while watching the ships pass on the Bosphorus .
Joining hundreds of tourists, we visited the Hagia Sophia, built is 532 AD. It was a church, then a mosque and now a museum. It's pretty much the finest house of worship in the Christian and Muslim worlds. After a quick bite to eat on a park bench in front of the Blue Mosque, we lined up for tickets to the Topkapi Palace. Doug and I each took a different line to see who could be the first to buy tickets. My line was slow, so I didn't win, but I had a great conversation with a woman my age from Cairo. We agreed on many things including World Peace and had a thoroughly pleasant visit.
We really feel like we are in another world. Doug was wakened at 5am by the Call to Prayer; we are overwhelmed by the energy and numbers of people in Istanbul (15 million) and are seeing new ways to measure quality of life.
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