Istanbul, Turkey | 3 Days

Hey everyone! We have arrived in Istanbul, Turkey for spring break and it's been amazing so far. I am with one of my best friends-Bella, which is my first time being on holiday with a friend making it so much fun. The weather has been pretty bipolar with rain, sunshine and wind, however we are heading off to the beach in Bodrum tomorrow for some sunshine (hopefully). Istanbul is such a beautiful and unique city with so many stunning mosques, buildings and architecture. Also, we've visited 2 different continents whilst still being in Istanbul...this is because there is a river between two sides of the island splitting the European side with the Asian continent. Anyways, I will be sharing with you some photos from the past three days here of sightseeing, touring the city, and 'candid' photos from within the hotel (and on-top of roofs) ;)

Day 1: Tour of Istanbul
We went on an 8 hour tour today with a private guide around Istanbul. I won't go on too long and let the pictures do the talking but we basically saw all the main mosques, Hagia Sophia, palaces and underground worlds.

Day 2: Boat Ride + Grand Bazaar
Today we went on a boat ride on the main river to get a spectacular view of the city, stopping on the Asian side of Istanbul for a huge lunch at Big Chef's. It was super good but we all felt SO stuffed after and rolled out of the restaurant. After a somewhat chilly ride we headed off to the Grand Bazaar which is a huge market of Turkish specialities and items with people yelling at you from all sides to buy their product. It's a really cool cultural experience and is entertaining when the sellers are trying to advertise their product to you. Then, we ate some more at a popular restaurant on the rooftop to see views of the area. It was a seafood restaurant which is not my favorite cuisine but I had some Grouper and even tried octopus (I don't recommend it).

Day 3: Spice Markets + Shops
It was a short day today because we left mid-afternoon to fly to Bodrum-an island in Turkey for another three days there. However, we still took advantage of the day, beginning near the tower walking down streets at little shops on the side of the road. Then, we found the main strip of shops and I purchased a few things at Bershka. After some shopping and looking at tons of shoes we went to Shake Shack for lunch and then headed over to the spice market. It was super crazy there and packed with everyone yelling and pushing trying to get through, but overall was really cool! Finally, we were off to the airport and to Bodrum for some sunshine and beach to end spring break.

Photoshoot on roofs, gyms, and cool areas of the hotel :)

Istanbul was such an amazing and unique city with so much to see and do. I hope you enjoyed looking at Istanbul through the computer screen and stay tuned for my next travel post on Bodrum xxx