Потрясающие выходные в Стамбуле! Amazing weekend in Istanbul!

Suddenly I really wanted to go on vacation, but, alas, there was no way to go on a long journey, neither physical nor material. Decided to go somewhere for the weekend. And then an offer from Only Tour "Weekend in Istanbul" caught my eye. My husband and I have already been to Turkey more than once, but rather along the beaches, and here is Istanbul (a city of contrasts, as everyone remembers from Soviet times & # 61514; ). It’s not far to fly, there are a lot of sights, the program is very rich and the price seemed very attractive, so we decided. So... In order: The hotel was chosen by "Lady Diana", 4 stars. It fully corresponds to its stardom, which is rare for Turkey. The rooms are new, although not large, cleaning daily, even the linen was changed every day, without any tips. On the very first morning, we felt the color - at 5.30 - a call to prayer, but in Istanbul you can hardly find a hotel where these chants would not be heard. Of course it woke up, but then we fell asleep again. In general - not annoying. We had breakfast on the terrace with an extraordinary view of the Bosphorus and the Sea of ​ ​ Marmara. The food is excellent: fruits (a lot), cheeses (also a lot), several types of bitters, sausages. Breakfast is very varied - for 3 days have never been repeated. Another advantage of the hotel is its location - everything is within a radius of 300 meters: Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Top Kapi Palace. In general, the hotel is excellent, and it will definitely not spoil your impressions of the city, but on the contrary. But let's move on to the most important thing - the city itself. We often travel and have been to many places, and I’ll say one thing for sure - we didn’t get such impressions in Rome, nor in Barcelona, ​ ​ nor in London. Istanbul is something! We arrived on Friday afternoon, looked around at the hotel, and since the program included a free day, we ran to the city at a run to watch. First, a chic park with fountains, beautifully trimmed shrubs and trees, magnificent flower beds and a wonderful view of Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, then wandered in the old city, and then circled the shopping streets. We returned to the hotel late in the evening, terribly tired, but happy like children after the fair & # 61514; On the second day after breakfast, we went with our guide on a sightseeing tour of Istanbul according to the program: 1000 and 1st night, then we looked at the Yeni Jami mosque and went to the boat. A walk along the Bosphorus is beautiful and futuristic. The realization that you are right between Europe and Asia, and along the banks of you there are ancient fortresses from the times of the Ottoman Empire, evokes awe. Then we climbed Editepe Hill, located in the Asian part of the city. This is one of the highest points in Istanbul (a wonderful and very picturesque view). After we were driven over a huge bridge and we ended up in another part of the city. We examined the Topkapi Palace Complex and the treasury - I won’t say it’s breathtaking, but some of the exhibits are certainly amazing. The embankment closer to the Topkapi Palace smoothly passes into the Ataturk Park. Next - Hippodrome, Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia. Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque are really very beautiful buildings. Hagia Sophia is considered one of the most beautiful and important buildings in world architecture, the former main temple of Constantinople. The Blue Mosque (in fact, it is called the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, the Blue Mosque was nicknamed by tourists) was built almost a thousand years later, it has 6 minarets, which at one time caused a scandal: no mosque should have more minarets than a mosque in Medina, which had 5 of them. Therefore, the mosques in Medina added a couple more. Sunday morning, we sincerely thought we had seen everything, but it was not at all  . As usual, after a hearty breakfast, we were met by a guide and we went to see the Patriarchate, the Mosaic Museum in the Chora Church and the Dolmabahce Palace. I won’t talk about them in detail - the information is in any guidebooks. I can only say one thing - it's better to see it once! On Sunday we flew home in the late afternoon. I felt tired - even for some 3 days and so much information, so many impressions....for 2 weeks of vacation and that has never happened so much, but it was worth it!! ! I want to say a huge thank you to the staff of Only Tour, for such a well-designed program, for such a wonderful hotel, for everything went clearly, without any overlays, and we just had to enjoy such a luxurious vacation!