Things I loved about Istanbul

Interesting architecture;
Narrow streets with cobblestone roads;
Cafés on every corner;
Quaint shops everywhere; and
Mosques on every street;
The night view from our hotel room.

Istanbul's Grand Bazaar

Since the plane was late taking off (darned charter flights) we only had a few hours in the Grand Bazaar before it closed for Eid. The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is one of the largest covered markets in the world and is comprised of more than 58 streets and 4,000 shops. We tried to make our way through the walkways to see all the jewelry, gold, silver, pottery, spice, leather and carpet shops we could. Being well trained in the art of shopping by my mother, I was successful in purchasing a few items which will remind me of this trip in years to come. I could not stop taking pictures of the Bazaar’s painted ceilings!

We have arrived in Istanbul!

The charter package offered a hotel on the Beyoglu side of the Bosphorus so we booked the flight only and arranged our own accommodation in the Sultanahmet area. We stayed at the Stone Hotel and requested room 402 as the Lonely Planet recommended. Above are pictures of our view. The weather was a nice change from Dubai so we had the windows open the whole time - the mosque being right outside our window provided a wake-up call, albeit way to early. Our only criticism to the hotel is their choice in very tacky bedspread - "criticism" is a bit harsh - amusing is more like it. Oh, and I think a shower curtain may be a North American thing.

Happy Birthday Heidi!

For as long as I can remember I have wanted to see the Blue Mosque in Istanbul. Therefore, visiting this city on my noteworthy birthday was very special for me. It was the end of Ramadan in Dubai and for those who followed by blog last year know that this means an Eid long weekend! I found a special charter package for Istanbul and signed up as soon as I got the okay from my financial advisor (a.k.a. Barry). Once the damn plane took off - Sultanahmet here we come!

A Gift

This is kinda hard to explain. In this picture there is coal, three different kinds of wood from different parts of the world (...I forget where exactly) and a podium thingy to burn the wood and coal together.

In the Middle East people like to burn the wood in their closets so their clothes (usually their dishdasha and abaya) take on the smell of the wood - the wood smells super nice! Wood ranges in price and the smells are very different from one to the other. Stores and shops (both in the mall and souk) tend to burn it like incense outside their stores to draw people inside. The three types which were chosen for me all smell great. Thank you Omar!

Stop? Yield?

Is it just me or can this sign be easily misinterpreted? Am I yielding or stopping? I think it must be my choice.

This is a sign close to our apartment in the Marina.

Lisa - This blogs for you!

My friend Lisa says she only ever sees these take-away containers on TV and movies – never in ‘real’ life. Needless to say I thought of her when I got take-away from the Noodle House. Lisa, this blogs for you!

A Trip Up The Mountain

Took a road trip to the city of Al Ain. Main attraction is the mountain Jebel Haffet. After seeing the sun go down on the mountain, we had dinner in Al Ain before heading back to Dubai. We were in the middle of the Arabian Desert, had dinner at an Italian pizza place, the pizza was made by a Jordanian and was served to us by a Filipino. The UAE is definitely multicultural. The pizza rated high!

Tallest - Burj Dubai

Today the Burj Dubai became the world's tallest skyscraper. It now has the tallest architectural top of any building at 512.1 m height and with 141 floors.

Records:

Tallest skyscraper to top of spire: 512.1 m (Taipei 101 - 509.2 m)

Tallest skyscraper to top of roof: 512.1 m (Taipei 101 - 449.2 m )

Most habitable floors: 141 (Sears Tower / World Trade Center 110)

Vertical concrete pumping: 512.1 m (Taipei 101 - 439.2 m)

Don't Google - Blackle!

Interesting...

For those worried with energy consumption and all its downsides. When your screen is white, be it an empty word page, or the Google page, your computer consumes 74 watts, and when its black it consumes only 59 watts. Mark Ontkush wrote an article about the energy saving that would be achieved if Google had a black screen, taking in account the huge number of page views, according to his calculations, 750 mega watts/hour per year would be saved. In a response to this article Google created a black version of its search engine, called Blackle, with the exact same functions as the white version, but with a lower energy consumption, check it out: http://www.blackle.com/

While you're at it, change your Word page to blue (under your Options/General menu) - saves energy and its easier on the eyes.

Golf At Al Hamra

Todd and Barry golfing at Al Hamra Fort in RAK. Can you see the mountains in the background? Barry thought this was a really great course and felt seriously pampered. The cart was equipped with a GPS system, a club cleaner, ball cleaner, cooler with bottled water and at the end they got their clubs cleaned for free.