This morning they were putting banners up in the park between the Blue Mosque and the Aya Sofya getting ready for the start of the Turkey Auto Rally which was flagged off this afternoon. Even though Istanbul has a population of close to twenty million, when you are staying in the old city it has the feel of a small community. My hotel is a short half block away from the prison that was featured in the movie "Midnight Express" but it is now a Four Seasons Hotel. The Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya are a block away. I have photographs in a gallery around the corner and a behind a friends carpet shop a block away there is a hole in the ground that goes to the Byzantine Palace that at one time was a mile square and is just one layer of history on which the city has been built over.
This morning I just walked the neighborhood and this afternoon walked down to the spice market where in the large square the Tulip Festival is in progress. The Banners indicate the pride of the city. In addition the the Tulip Festival and FIA auto rally there in an international film festival and some ballet thing going on.
No comments:
Post a Comment