Places to see in Istanbul!

Someone asked me in a comment the other day about places to see in Istanbul for two days. Now, as uncomplicated as the question may sound, it isn’t that easy to answer someone for the simple fact that people like to see different things. I had to do some research first so I could give her a diverse choice of places to come and see when she comes here.

The first of all places to see in Istanbul I’d suggest anyone who comes here would be the famous ‘Grand Bazaar’ in Istanbul. This bazaar is in existence since the year 1460 and is still as vibrant and alive as it was then! This vibrant bazaar boasts over 3000 little shops where you can buy anything from jewelry to handcrafted Persian rugs. Anything you can ever imagine is there to buy. Most on offer being authentically Turkish made and quite affordable. If Asian spices is your thing, you just need to follow your nose and you’ll find row after row of aromatic spices of all kinds and varieties imaginable.  Handmade crafts are so many you’ll need a whole day just to go through all of them! Traditional Turkish dresses and ancient arts and crafts are everywhere in this Grand Bazaar! After being here for almost 16 years now I have not had the energy or strength to go through the whole bazaar as it is just too huge and such a wide variety of ornaments, food, jewelry and nick-knacks that one can never see it all in just one day!

This popular bazaar has an overwhelming number of tourists each year, numbering over 400,000 on any day of the year!

The next of places to see in Istanbul or rather places I’d suggest is the world famous Sophia – formerly a Church in the 17th century and the blue Mosque built in the 12th century and still in use today! Istanbul also boasts with a variety of museums with things dated as far back as BC! Museums from art museums to war memorabilia from different centuries are fascinating to see if history is what you love!