Sultanahmet: It's Where You Want to Be.

Istanbul is big and crowded. While guide books may say less, inhabitants of the city cite 17-million souls (or more) who live within its over 2000 square-mile city limits, ranking it as one of the largest cities in the world. The city is on two continents -- Europe and Asia.  That means that part of the city is European and the other part is Asian. The Bosphorus is a waterway that divides the city and flows between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara. And somewhere in there is the Golden Horn, a horn-shaped estuary.

From what I think I know (which could be completely misguided), my grandparents lived in an area called Pera (the other side) of Istanbul. More on that later. 

Sultanahmet, where we stayed, is the "old city." It's walled (or used to be), and you can still see much of that very wall, ubiquitous to all ancient towns of this ilk -- sometimes long stretches, sometimes just parts -- nearly everywhere you look. The most famous sites of the town are right here - mostly walking distance from each other. You've got your Blue Mosque (or its official name Sultan Ahmed Mosque), your Hagia Sophia, your Grand Bazaar, your Cisterns and, the most dazzling of all,  Topkapi Palace.  There's the center park with its enormous fountain which lights at night and changes the color of the water every few seconds. The park sits on what was the ancient Hippodrome. Not to mention there are seemingly countless other city sites and museums. 

The touristy part of the city is immaculate. No trash anywhere. Lovely benches and fountains. Amazing panoramas at every turn. And the Blue Mosque is the most photogenic of all. If Disney or Las Vegas had an Istanbul street or hotel, it would look this perfect. 

I'm not going to bore you with any guide book history of Sultanahmet (though it is fascinating), but this is tourist central, to be sure.