Turkey

Language- Turkish

Hello- Merhaba

Good bye- Gule Gule

Thank you- Tesekkurler

Currency- Turkish Lira

Istanbul, Turkey– (November 2010) we only had a day here and there was so much to see and do- Istanbul is an old city- dating back thousands of years- divided by the Bosporus strait- half of Istanbul is in Asia and the other half in Europe- there is so much amazing food from Domas to Pide (Turkish pizza) we ate a lot of Doner Kabab (swarmas) cause they were amazing in Istanbul – the places we went was the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia & Grand bazaar

Blue Mosque– our hotel was right across the way from the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia so that made it easy – the room was crazy small though and the shower head was right over the toilet- the Blue Mosque is still a place of worship so you must cover your knees and shoulders- and women need to cover their head- it is free to go inside but donations are appreciated- we accidentally stood in the worship line which was so long and thought we would not make it in before they closed- but someone let us know and there was actually no line to get in

Hagia Sophia– this mosque is right across the way from the Blue Mosque- it is stunning and worth the visit – it does cost money to enter but it is worth every penny- I was very wowed

Grand Bazaar– the shopping in Istanbul was amazing! Such beautiful lamps and plates not to mention all the spices! We did find it all rather expensive so barter away! we also did get a chance to check out the Bosphorus strait and all the ferries

We found Istanbul to be very kid friendly- there is a fountain in front of Hagia Sophia and lots of kids playing – also so beautiful at night