Istanbul, Saturday 14 June, Day 52

First off this morning we visited the Little_Hagia_Sophia begun by the Emperor Justinian in 527.  The church was used as the model for San Vitale in Ravenna, which we saw, and as a practice run for Hagia Sophia.  It was converted to a mosque during the Ottoman period, and the mosaics removed. The walls are plastered and there are no images, but in a way that makes it easier to appreciated the space. Here is Anne, lost in wonder shortly after entering.

It was a very peaceful place to spend the morning. I think we will be going back there, which is easy because it is so close. Next we enjoyed a stroll around some of the local streets - I think we've explored nearly all the streets in our neighbourhood. The streets are very lively, kids running around, grannies sitting in doorways with babies, people shaking carpets out windows, people pushing round carts with fruit or various goods for sale, or just junk - maybe the last are the equivalent of rubbish removal services.

We had lunch in a great restaurant situated on the edge of the nearby park. Nice basic food, and the service picked up significantly when the televised World Cup game finished. Neither of us slept well last night and Anne wanted to rest her knee, so she stayed at the hotel while I set out to visit the Theodosian Walls built originally by Constantine the Great, and developed as a double line of fortifications by Theodosius in the 5th Century. They protected the city from multiple would be invaders for almost a thousand years. The story of Constantine XI and the fall of Constantinople is one that impressed me deeply when I heard it, and I wanted to go and see what is left of the walls and to pay my respects.

Getting to the wall, and then walking beside it, makes you realise what a huge city Constantinople must have been. I walked for around an hour and a half along beside the wall and traversed probably less than half. There are bits of wall that have been restored, bits that have been turned into very fine houses, bits where houses have been burrowed into the wall, bits where homeless people sleep, bits that are about to fall down or which have fallen down.

When I could see the water of the Golden Horn below I decided to call it quits, and managed to find my way back to the hotel without too much trouble. A bit muggy and overcast this afternoon and I was glad to be back in the air con and to see Anne.

We had dinner at a quieter restaurant nearby - a much more peaceful experience then last night and much better for the digestion. We ate attended by three cats, one of whom was very pregnant. A pretty cat and starving, poor thing. We gave her as much meat from our plates as we could without attracting the attention of the waiting staff. When we got back to the hotel we enjoyed watching the party on the roof of the sports club opposite. Lots of dancing and high spirits. I just hope they get tired soon.

We've been developing our agenda for the next few days and I am getting the hang of the public transport so tomorrow we are really going to get stuck into Istanbul.