Arrived in Istanbul, we are staying in an apartment on the Asian side in a town called Uskudar and we can see the western side from our balcony. The ferry from Uskudar over to the Western side is very frequent and takes only a short time. So far we have visited the Istanbul Modern, the Blue Mosque (closed for renovations) The Grand Bazaar (absolutely amazing shopping) and the Taksim area of Istanbul, famous for it's very beautiful shopping district. We are all enchanted with this incredible city and are very happy that we will end our vacation here as we have so much more that we want to see.