Vicky would not have approved how we did our first day in Turkey. There was no itinerary that we stuck to, nor did we visit any of the museums or mosques. We instead meandered our way around town to explore to get a lay of the land.
Since our Airbnb is right off New District’s Iskatlal Street, a major pedestrian shopping street, we decided to walk around the area. Unfortunately, not much is open at 8AM, but we managed to find a breakfast place that serves Turkish egg dishes.
The entire meal came out to be 37TL, about $5, which gets you a breakfast muffin for one person back home. The egg was slightly bland for me, but it did its job.
On our way back to the apartment, I decided to get some baklava for breakfast for the next few days seeing how not much is open early in the mornings.
You can take the tram across the bridge, but then you would miss the little things you’d see along the way.
Once across, an underground tunnel at the foot of the bridge led us to the plaza where the spice market is located on the left.
Our walking route was determined by what we wanted to eat, and our next stop was Sehzade Cad Kebap.
Of course not everything was a value, as we overpaid for our fresh pressed juice.
We continued to wander aimlessly and saw signs for Sultanahmet Square which is where Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern, and the Blue Mosque are, but opted to hold those off until Thursday when we can dedicate all day to. We ended up going to the Grand Bazaar.
Decision time. Take the tram back or walk across the bridge? Walking, of course, even though we were spent. We spotted a dolphin breaching as we were midway across the lower level of the bridge – again, one of those things we would have missed had we taken the tram back. This was totally unexpected, as I’d only seen dolphins in the ocean before, not in a metropolitan setting.
What goes up must come down, and the opposite holds true. This meant climbing uphill to get back to the apt after crossing the bridge.
Nap time lasted 2 1/2 hours for me, and I almost didn’t want to get up for dinner, but told myself that I would regret it if I didn’t eat.
Iskatlal street is hopping in the evening.
Food has been good so far, and the amazing part is the fact that we spent a little over $40 all day for all 3 meals plus the baklava. Who else can beat this other than Vietnam? But I’m partial to Turkish food.
FIRE'd @ 47 
Jealous!!!! Spice market looks awesome!
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It was, but much smaller than I had expected.
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