I figure I should check in at Ataturk Airport (Istanbul), and see if my lost bag has surfaced or not. After a 20 minute ordeal, and them telling me that I had already picked it up (obv not true!), my bag was located. I checked the contents, all still there, and hopped a taxi for the W Hotel.
Mark was waiting with baited breath. The W Hotel is wonderful here in Istanbul. Very modern, but with elements of the history of the city as well. A quick unpack, shower, and we decide to hit the town!
We are going to meet up with Eric & Marianne and some other friends in the Bebek section of Istanbul.
After a quick street snack, a Dukkan burger for Mark, and a nutella, banana, and strawberry covered waffle for me, we meet up with Eric & Marianne finally! So happy to see more familiar faces and start the weekend wedding celebration.
Our first stop of the night is a lounge/bar named Chilai right on the Bosphorous River. A beautiful view out over the river, and Asia is only right across the bridge. Such a unique position to be in the world, straddling two continents. We meet up with more cousins and family in town for the marriage festivities. A fun few hours here and we are ready to relocate.
Reina, the "hottest club in Istanbul", was our next stop. And HOT it was. Full of glitteratti and all the pretty people, we only upped the percentages once our group arrived! The club is also situated right on the waters of the Bosphorous River, but this time right underneath the bridge crossing to Asia. It's a beautiful spot to be spending our first night in Istanbul.
Some late night munchies from a street vendor right outside Reina, mussels right out of the shell prepared with breadcrumbs and rice. Definitely a different but popular late night snack (think the equivalent to NY pizza after a night of partying). But this wasn't enough. A cab ride to a nearby car-wash/food stand for some kind of kebab...apparently its THE late night greasey food spot. So we did it. By now its dawn (mosque minaret photo attached.), and we are growing weary .
Back to the W for a good nights sleep in their "heavenly beds". If you consider a "night's sleep" 2.5 hours! We have scheduled a full day city tour for Saturday, and they are picking us up at 08:30. Not the wisest decision in retrospect, but a necessary one as our time here in Istanbul is short.
See you in the Blue Mosque...
(P.S. - this is the first blog from the laptop. Will try and do better with the photo sizing, formatting etc. First time on a pc in about 1 week. Feels good!)
No comments:
Post a Comment