Istanbul surprised us in so many ways; we were taken in by the cultural richness, the diversity, the magnificent mosques and – of course the food!

Last night, Ted and I went to a rooftop terrace restaurant just around our hotel for a delicious good-bye dinner. We got the best seats, overlooking the Bosporus, the narrow strip of water between Europe and Asia, and the magnificent view of the Blue Mosque.

Our dinner was a delicious vegetable and meat dish from Anatolia, that is baked in a clay pot. The waiter then gives it another good burn near the table, breaking the top of the pot and pouring the content on a hot serving dish.

Our very last adventure in Istanbul is an adventurous taxi ride to the international airport. 40 min, mostly on the highway with 90km/h, and our young driver is not only fiddling around with the radio, but uses 3, THREE cell phones simultaneously by texting and talking all the time while constantly switching lanes in dangerous maneuvers. Ted asks him to please stop that for safety reasons and the answer is: “yes, the international airport”. I guess our Turkish is not good enough 😬🚖😱🚖🥴🚖😳