Turkey Part 2 = Topkopi Sultans' Palace



Thus begins a rather formidable but welcomed task to sort through a huge collection of random pix of our recent journey through the land, at least the principle city of the fabled Sultans of olden times, Constantinople which is the present megalopolis of Istanbul.  . .population nearly 13,000.000. I begin at their fantastic fortress residence Topkapi Palace high above the Bosporus surrounded by a beautiful park peopled by uncountable  numbers of fellow look-see-ers and the enthusiastic, "take-my-picture. what-is-your-name" students on field trips. In Islam the parks surrounding palaces and mosques represent a foretaste of a heavenly paradise on earth which features fountains, greenery and the 92 names of Allah in their mosques. There are no representations of the human figure such as are prominent in Christian places of worship inasmuch as this kind of portrayal  represent idol worship of the lowest order. Their"paintings" are unbelievably beautiful and intricate tiles which cover every inch of the walls, floors and ceilings. I will run out of superlatives in describing what son John and I saw. I will let the pictures speak for themselves without editorial comment, occasionally. 

                                                                    

                                                               

                                                             

                                                                  

           Rooms for the Harem (about 100) the word  in Arabic means forbidden.         

 Goodbye to Toplaki Palace. (Be glad I didn't send all pictures!!!!) 

John and I found later in the same day a mausoleum when about 300 years of Sultans went from theToplaki to these much more modest abodes.