After Dubai, Istanbul felt like an old sweater with fraying cuffs and collar. It was comfortable. Even though I had never been there before, it was familiar in a way that many European cities are. There was a glorious hodgepodge of architecture ranges from the Hagia Irene, the first church built by Constantine I in […]
Turkey
Topkapi Palace was the primary residence of the Ottoman sultans in the 15th and 16th century. It isn’t a single building, but a sprawling complex of different pavilions separated by three terraced garden courtyards all connected with marble pathways and has an amazing view of the European and Asian sides of Istanbul. The interior design […]
Turkey
Note: In January and February there was a COVID curfew for everyone: 9 p.m. – 5 a.m. daily. For residents and citizens there is also a 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday curfew, but not for tourists. Which means some sites are open with very little crowds on the weekends. The original Hagia Irene […]
United Arab Emirates
Beyond the extreme rich and poor dichotomy that pervades the UAE, there is another extreme dichotomy – the landscape. For miles upon miles you are surrounded by glass and steel canyons on the Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, but if you exit the road and drive inland within 20 minutes you are surrounded by desert […]