It's a lovely day in the neighborhood...

This will never get old. The colors!!

 I love our neighborhood. We are located in the 'new town', which has had many names since it has been inhabited since at least the 5th century BCE...which doesn't seem so very new until you consider that they found ruins from 6000 BCE on the other side of the Golden Horn. So, in our side of town you see the various iterations of conquerors--tons of hotels are still called "Pera", which is the Greek word for across (leave it to them to be so very original!). After the Genoese and Venetians took over, they built the Galata Tower (in 1348), and so the area was also called Galata.  Today our district is officially called Beyoğlu.  If you read any guidebooks about Istanbul, you'll find that they call this area the entertainment hub of the city.  These pictures don't exactly do it justice, but they do capture some of the flavor. Although the neighborhood is beautiful at any time, I especially like it when the sun is going down...I love how the sun changes the colors of the buildings, and how the light is reflected in shop windows. Words I learned today: Camii (mosque), portakal (orange), elma (apple), suyu (juice).  Cognates I'm grateful for: asensor, porsyion, pahket (this last one means 'to go' at a restaurant). Tomorrow I'll let you know more about food and shopping, as well as tell you about my self-guided tour through the Old Town. Until next time...xoxo.

The camera store did a great job with their window.

A camera store dedicated to Lomos. For real.

Storm trooper, please wear a bow-tie!

Nothing like graffiti advertisements to get your point across.

More sun.

Sun...flowers...in late September. I'll take it!

I love the wooden windows.

The minaret of a little mosque around the corner from our place.