Mehmet, the leader of our photographic tour of Turkey (www.fantasticphototours.com), took us on an afternoon walk around parts of Istanbul today.  We wandered around parts of the Grand Bazaar again, and then up a hidden set of stairs.  He talked to a guard, who at first insisted we could go no further.  As usual, Mehmet convinced him otherwise, and soon we found ourselves through a secret door, and up on the rooftop of the Bazaar.

The views were mesmerizing, and we couldn’t stop shooting more and more photos. This site was higher than any other location we had found to photograph the city skyline and the major mosques of the area, with views of the Süleymaniye Mosque, the New Mosque, Galata Towers, the Bosphorous and the Golden Horn inlet.

The path up to this hidden gem was down a corridor (upper right). As we were getting ready to leave, the guard showed us a side room with an ancient rusted weaving loom (center, plus lower left and lower center), sitting on a floor of broken tiles.  After leaving the roof, and walking back towards the street, we spotted a workshop making items to sell at the Bazaar.  Brass pots with typical Muslim crescent moon symbols were in various stages of production, and the workers welcomed us in to photograph.

After dinner, we stayed to see the night lights at the Eminönü Pier, on the European side.  As the sun set, the lights of the floating restaurants and vendor carts were turned on and we could enjoy seeing the colors of the busy waterfront, as well as the “blue” hour, which occurs shortly after sundown.