New Year's in Istanbul

Protesters

View more photos 

Since we arrived late on a Friday afternoon, it took forever to get from the airport to our hotel.  On the plus side, this allowed us to see a lot of the city and its sights as we drove along the Red Sea and the Bosphorous. The Swissotel was very nice.  It had huge lobbies with windows that overlooked the Bosphorous and lots of people bustling around.  That was one of the things I loved about Istanbul - people were always out and about. That evening we took our first of several trips to Taksim Square, which is akin to Times Square in New York without all of the digital video boards.  It was raining a little, which was refreshing after living in the Middle East (although I hear that the rains are coming).  Even late at night, they were repaving the streets, so unfortunately the rain made mud which got all over the place.  From the taxi we could hear some kind of chanting and followed it to a protest, complete with torches and bullhorns and, of course, the riot police.  Even though we couldn't read the signs or understand what they were saying, it was captivating. From the Square, you can explore all kinds of little streets and alleys full of restaurants, cafes and shops.  We also found a few markets, selling everything from fish to candles.  But first we stopped to enjoy some street music.  It was a group of drummers putting out some pleasant sounds.  It surprised me that no one was asking for money, even between songs.