HAREM - Topkapı Palace

My trip to Topkapı Palace was entirely spontaneous. Of course I planned to eventually go, but the day we actually went, I had plans to go home from class, change out my ridiculousy hard to walk on platform sandals and go to the gym for some treadmill activity and a class in dance Oryental. However, it didn't take much arm twisting from Peter and Matt to get me to join them for a bit of sightseeing.
I wasn't really prepared for a trip to Topkapı in more ways than one. Not only did I have on shoes that made me live up to my mizmiz nickname, I didn't have my camera. These two are from Peter's camera... I stole them off his facebook account. (Do I really need to sign up?). Unfortunately, although he otook several pictures where the view was cut in half by red tape reading "HAREM HAREM HAREM HAREM ETC", he didn't post those. Anyway, I belive the above photo is from the outside of the harem which is supposed to be the best part (although Time Out Istanbul figures there is a largely overlooked church that is worth a visit). I am afraid I am not including history lessons in the Isanbul section of this blog, so wou will have to look up the history yourself if you want to know about these places.
And I love this picture (I took it) because when I look at it, I can hear these two chatting both in and outside of the Turkish language class:

Matt: Hey Peter, do you think I should go over to that girl over there and say, "Akşamlar, baby"?
Peter: Why don't you use one of these lines in Lonely Planet's Phrase book?
Matt: I know how to say, "I have pain in my popo."

OK. So that's not very funny, but they were both very funny over an Indian dinner on the rooftop terrace of a restaurant with the worst lassi I have ever tasted somewhere in Sultanahmet... at least the view was worth a bundle.