last day in Istanbul

Fred and I are really good at taking a city by storm.  We are also really good at calling in an audible.  We decided that four days in Istanbul was the perfect amount based on what we had seen and wanted to see so we made a small shift.  We decided to leave a little earlier and spend a day and two nights in Vienna before going to Slovenia.  Our last day in Istanbul was perfect.

We got up and walked down the winding street of Beyoglu down to Karakoy for breakfast.  The street was just starting to wake up.  The juicers had already stacked up their fruits.

The lanterns were hung.

The buildings stood as tall as they stood probably centuries ago.

People were already climbing up the tower.

And selfie sticks were ready to sell.

Breakfast was at Namli Gurme Karakoy.  We had walked by there the first day but couldn’t figure out how to get in.  We knew it was food galore but just ignored it and kept going.  Glad we came back.  This place is an oasis of delicacies.  Beautiful breads.

Jars of food.

Olives of course.

EditHoney.

Cheese.

Meat.

And of course the counter to order your breakfast.

Perfect way to start the day.  Eggs with a little feta and tomato on top.

Our next stop was to journey to the neighborhood of Nisantasi.  Definitely one of the most exclusive neighborhoods.  We were set on seeing Armaggan.  A store that is like Takishamaya in Japan.  Ends up that the one store is near the Grand Bazaar which we had seen on Sunday and it was closed that day.  The store in this neighborhood is for VIP’s only who make reservations.  We walked in and poked around but didn’t stay.  Super high end Istanbul style.  Alas.

Instead we went to Dirimart Arts, a gallery I wanted to see.  The artist showing was Pelin Kirca and the exhibit was called In Bloom.  Drawings connected to Alice in Wonderland.

Here is two of them.

Beymen a high end fashion store is one that we stopped in to as well.  Then it was time to return to our hotel and get ready to go on our journey.

In all the traveling we have done I have never seen a lounge like the one that Turkish Airlines has in Istanbul.  It is insane.

Pool table, movie room with a popcorn machine, marble bathroom, variety of different restaurants, carts that come around with desserts and chefs.  Truly incredible.  There is a map just so you know where to go.

We arrived in Vienna around 7 and headed out to dinner at Meierei.  A beautiful restaurant located underneath a very fancy one, Stieireck located in Stadtpark.

The building is beautiful.  Didn’t get a great picture in the night but it is very modern.

Back to the hotel to charge up for our one day in Vienna.