Emperor Constantine made this city the capital of the Roman Empire in 330 AD. It was also the capital of the Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires, with architectural wonders from all of these eras. The city is a cornucopia of charming cobblestone streets, architectural wonders from these eras, a beautiful waterfront and a thriving modern metropolis. On our arrival, the taxi driver from the airport could not find our hotel, even with the map we brought (just like Rick warned us in the book!) We stopped a dozen times to ask directions, getting the scenic tour of the Sultanhament neighborhood. Zipping through these narrow, historic streets, all we could think of was: "we're here!!"

One of the first architectural wonders we visited was the church of Hagia Sophia (Aya Sofya), built by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century. The enormous dome was a marvel in its time, and was not surpassed until Saint Peter’s Basilica was built 1,100 years later. At one time, there was tons of gold within the church, but it was carted off when the city was sacked by Venetian “allies” in the fourth crusade.

Aya Sofia was turned into a mosque in 1453 (and minarets were added) and is currently a museum, undergoing restoration of its intricate mosaics. Inside is an interesting juxtaposition of mosaics of Jesus, Mary and John and signs with Arabic verses from the Koran.

The church/mosque/museum of Hagia Sofia, outside and in. Restoration work is still in progress.

Inside the Blue Mosque, looking up at the dome and half domes.

Sultan Ahmet Cami (the Blue Mosque) is another popular architecture destination. Built in the 17th century with 20,000 exquisite ceramic tiles and several hundred stained glass windows, the mosque has numerous half domes that support the main dome, giving it a bright, uplifting feeling. The nickname comes from the beautiful tiles inside, with blue being the dominant color. We visited between prayer services, first donning a head scarf. (Diane, not Bob.) We also visited the Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent, but most of it was covered and undergoing restoration.

"Sumptuous" is one way to describe the half day we spent at Topkapi Palace. Home, palace, treasury and the seat of government of the Ottoman sultans for 400 years, this complex includes numerous buildings, courtyards, pools, passageways and the Tower of Justice. Most of the rooms are adorned with magnificent Iznik glazed tiles.

Touring through the Baths, the Harem, the Court of Favorites and the Circumcision Room, we tried to imagine how beautiful this looked during the Sultan's reign, when it was also covered in intricate carpets.

In addition to the architecture, the treasury has some amazing displays of sacred relics and priceless artifacts. The Topkapi Dagger, the 86 carat Spoonmaker Diamond, and various other jewels, uniforms, medals and swords to drool over.

Before our trip, we watched the movie Topkapi to get a feel of what it would be like, but the movie doesn't do the palace, or the jewels, justice.

Topkapi Palace.

The Romans built several cisterns in Constantinople so the city would have ample fresh water to withstand a siege. One such underground reservoir is the Basilica Cistern. With 336 marble columns, each 30 feet high, it can hold 105,000 gallons of water. Why visit a big underground well? Actually, this is a fascinating, haunting slice of history, with a raised platform to walk on and subtle lighting. Before the platforms, it was the scene in the James Bond film From Russia With Love. The columns were scavenged from other sites being torn down for new building, and some are works of art in themselves, including the tears of Hercules and the Medusa heads used as pedestals.

The haunting and historic Basilica Cistern

The interior of one of the domes at the 4th century Chora Church. All of this art work is done in mosaics.

We roamed the winding alleys as we got lost in the old district. At times, we were definitely out of tourist land, but we always felt completely safe.

Not all Istanbul is history and cobblestones. North of the Golden Horn is the hip neighborhood of Beyoglu, where we strolled the pedestrian plaza of Iskilal Street. We also had dinner in Kadiköy, on the Asian side of the city.

Bob dining al fresco at a restaurant just off trendy Istiklal Street in the new district.

Anti-riot gear. A conference of the International Monetary Fund was in town. We did not venture north of Taksim Square, as there were some anti-IMF demonstrations scheduled, but nothing seemed to get out of hand.

No trip to Istanbul is complete without wandering the maze that is the Grand Bazaar. This covered building has over 4000 shops, and has existed for over 500 years (although it’s mostly for tourists these days.) There’s a section for gold shops and one for silver. Wood crafts, pottery, leather and clothing all have sections where the shops cluster together. (And a carpet section, of course.) And lots of souvenir shops everywhere. Bob didn’t think we could get lost in the Grand Bazaar twice, but he was wrong---with 58 streets and 22 gates, it's difficult to keep your sense of direction.

The bazaar can get crowded, but on our first visit it was 10 AM, and a fairly relaxed experience. We purchased an inlaid wood backgammon set, and a silk kese (a rough glove for body scrubbing, which we used later at the Turkish bath.)

The Egyption Bazaar or Spice Market is a smaller and less touristy than the Grand Bazaar. Although there are some tourist trinkets available at the Spice Market, it does indeed sell a lot of spices, as well as teas, candies, and dried fruits and vegetables. We bought some saffron, tea, star anise, and some Turkish Delight, then relaxed at a tea shop for a steaming cup of çay (pronounced "chai"), served in the traditional tulip glasses.

Piles of spices as well as hanging dried peppers and eggplant at the Spice Market.