先週の金曜日から今日、月曜日まではイースター休暇。会社も休みだけれどお店もほとんど休み。東京に戻って花見を楽しむというのが毎年の恒例だったけれど、今年はずっと行ってみたいと思っていたイスタンブールに行ってみた。エキゾチックな場所というくらいしかイメージがなかった場所。行ってびっくり。すごく素敵は街だった・・・有名なモスクや建築物・・・グランバザールを始めたくさんのバザール。でも一番おもしろかったのは街の様子。観光客も地元の人も混じってとにかく活気がある。天気にも恵まれて真っ青な空とそこここに咲く色とりどりの花・・・芝生のグリーン。海の青。店の呼び込み。おいしそうな料理のにおい・・・色鮮やかな陶器やランプ・・・そんな場所での写真撮影は盛り上がりっぱなし。ほんと楽しかった！
I had a wonderful Easter holiday in Istanbul. Since I moved to Helsinki, I had always flown to Tokyo to see the best time of the year, cherry blossom season but this year, I decided to spent the weekend in the country where I hadn't been to and wanted to go. I knew little about the country but had image of somewhere exotic. Indeed, it was exotic but it had much more than just exotic. Istanbul has all those famous mosques, museums and bazaars. But more than anything, I liked the lively streets and parks where there were a lot of people, both locals and tourists, shops and restaurants. Rather than spending much time at the famous sightseeing spots, I walked a lot and took pictures. And I am thinking about next time already now when I just came home : )