We traveled from Plovdiv to Istanbul by bus – arriving there in the early morning. My flight out of Istanbul left in the afternoon, so I had about enough time for breakfast, three hours of Istanbul, a quick shower and a good-bye Turkish Tea – before making it to the airport and flying home.

Looking back, I used my three hours wisely, covering loads of ground – all of which completely incidental, as I hadn’t looked into Istanbul at all. From the hotel to the Topkapi Palace, on to the Grand Bazaar and via the New Mosque and the Galata bridge over to Galata and back.