City Guide: Istanbul (2004)

Istanbul is the only city to span two continents. Previously known as Byzantium and Constantinople, it was the center of the civilized world for ever a millennium. Although no longer the capital of Turkey, Istanbul remains its biggest and busiest city. Traveller Estelle Bingham starts her exploration of the ancient city at Topkapi Palace, former home of the sultans and their concubines. She interrupts her sightseeing for a day to Gallipoli, the site of an infamous World War I battlefield. Continuing her journey around Istanbul, she visits the opulent Pera Palace Hotel. After some retail therapy in the Grand Bazaar, she ends her journey at the famous Blue Mosque.