Posts Tagged ‘Istanbul’

Around the World – Day 11 – Nalan & Jatin Wedding Reception

Sunday, May 24th, 2015

All Dressed Up for Nalan and Jatin's Wedding
With Errin and Dave at the Reception Hotel

Delicious Food
Delicious Food!

Nalan and Jatin - Happy Newleyweds
Nalan and Jatin

Finally, the moment had come! Time to attend Nalan & Jatin’s Wedding Reception. We met with Errin and Dave in the lobby and waited for the festivities to begin. We were greeted by Nalan’s younger sister, Handan, and it was wonderful to see her. She introduced us to her husband and some of the family. We met, briefly, with Nalan’s parents and I got the biggest bear hug from her Dad. There were lots of pictures being taken of the family, so we were snagged by Nalan to be in a couple pictures. She looked like a princess!

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Around the World – Day 10 – Istanbul Self Guided Tour (Part II)

Saturday, May 23rd, 2015

Hagia Sophia on Beautiful Spring Day
Hagia Sophia on a Beautiful Spring Day!

Dennis and Clare in "Cistern of Philoxenos"
Cistern of Philoxenos

Dave and Errin in the Grand Bazaar
The Grand Bazaar

Bosphorus Bridge
Bosphorus Bridge

We had so much fun with Errin and Dave on Friday, that we all decided to repeat the process. Lots more walking, must-do-sights, and to top it off, a fantastic cruise on the Bosphorus River!

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Around the World – Day 9 – Istanbul Self Guided Tour (Part I)

Friday, May 22nd, 2015

Massive Turkish Flag
Nearing Election Day in Istanbul

Group Picture at Valens Aqueduct
At Valens Aqueduct with Errin and Dave

Group Picture Above Istanbul
Near Pierre Lotif Cafe. What an amazing view of Istanbul!

Panorama of Istanbul

On Friday, we joined up with Errin and Dave for a whirlwind tour of Istanbul. We were fortunate in that they had done their homework and lined up a super itinerary of must-do-places to see. It was our 2nd time in Istanbul, so the bucket list was not as massive as the first visit. Istanbul is a wonderful city for exploration and we were blessed with a fantastic, clear day!

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Around the World – Day 8 – Seoul to Istanbul

Thursday, May 21st, 2015

There aren’t any pictures from this day as it was spent almost entirely on a plane. We flew for almost 12 hours from Seoul, South Korea to Istanbul, Turkey. The flight was uneventful; we watched several movies and slept. Upon arrival, we hailed a taxi to the hotel. The ride took 20 minutes.

We got to the hotel super early and so we napped in the lounge while they prepared our room. Once our room was ready, we went for a walk for lunch. When we got back, we met up with Nalan and Jatin, and lots of Jatin’s relatives. It was a nice bonus to see them! As we wrapped up the hasty visit, Errin and Dave arrived from the airport and we agreed to meet up with them for dinner.

For dinner, we all went to a well known Turkish Seafood place over by a marina. The taxi drove us over there and brought us back…so that was super convenient. The food was nice and we had a fantastic time.