Part of Taksim Square, "the heart of modern Istanbul." This is also the area where protests are held. I got off the Big Bus Istanbul here as I was to meet a tour guide later at the Marman Hotel on the square.

I went into the Marman Hotel to use its facilities but all that greeted me was a huge X-ray machine like the ones in an airport. My tour guide told me that this is standard for the major hotels in this area as they need to check for bombs being brought into the hotels. I had coffee and some cookies at the Kitchenette and used their facilities.

Starbucks next door to the Kitchenette.

I had time before my tour to explore the square and to do some people watching. Turkey is a secular country with about 96.4-99% of the Turkish people Muslims. The split between women wearing Islamic clothing (head scarves, etc.) and those not wearing it is about 50-50. Most men do not wear Muslim clothing.

Young flower seller.

Taking your four dogs for coffee. The smallest dog got the seat.

I saw the man and his very well behaved dogs later walking from the square.

Hafiz Mustafa pastry shop, established 1864.

Faruk Gulluoglu, another pastry shop, established 1871. A stack of Turkish pastry.

Stacks of Turkish candy.

More pastry.

"Fast food" establishments.

Kebap for sale: "thinly cut grilled lamb basted in hot tomato sauce over pieces of pita bread and slathered with melted sheep butter and yogurt."

More kebap.

And, of course, a Burger King. McDonald's was close by.

Advertising a movie theatre.

Flower sellers.

These flower crowns are for the tourists.

The Republic Monument, commerating the 5th Anniversary of the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. By Italian sculptor Pietro Canonica, 1928.

The figures on the monument are the founders of the Turkish Republic.

Kemal Ataturk, the father of the modern Turkish Republic, is the center figure. Other figures are Mikhail Frunze, a leader of the October Revolution, and Klument Voroshilov, a marshall of the Soviet Union. The presense of the latter two commemorates the military aid given by Vladimir Lenin during the Turkish War of Independence in 1920.

The other side of the monument depicts Ataturk at an earlier period, seen by the clothing on the figures.

Close-up.

Everyone is on their cellphones.

Some hooked on their cellphone and others just watching the world go by. The streetcar goes up and down the nearby pedestrian street.

A woman walking with her much more colorfully dressed daughter.

Two Turkish women.

Two more. Many of the older Turkish women wear long coats and head scarves.

Two very different Turkish women outfits.

Long skirt, long coat, head scarf, and handbag.

I am now with my Istanbul Food and Culture Tour guide named Gulay. I am the only one signed up for the tour, so I have my own personal guide. We are walking down the Istiklal Caddesi, a 3 kilometer pedestrian street that is a center for shopping, eating, and entertainment. . Many people walking on the street at 1 p.m. on a Wednesday afternoon. Gulay told me that Turks love to walk, and even if they only have 5 minutes to walk, they will walk. It relaxes them.

A street vendor on the Istiklal Caddesi.

My very sweet and informative tour guide Gulay. She is an artist who hopes to further her studies in LA.

Inside a Turkish pastry/candy shop.

Very large pieces of Turkish candy. The one on the right looks like Turkish Delight.

We are starting the food part of the tour with dessert, which is perfectly fine with me. We couldn't finish it all so I got a doggy bag to take back to my hotel.

Turkish coffee. I discovered that if you have something sweet in your mouth then Turkish coffee doesn't taste as strong.

Gulay then read my fortune from the coffee grounds left in the cup. It was a good fortune.

The streetcar along Istiklal Caddesi. Note the children trying to get on the streetcar.

Close-up. From the girl's clothing, these are probably gypsy children. They seemed to be having fun getting on the steps and then jumping off them.

A pretty building.

A small shopping mall where you could buy most anything.

Fancy outfits.

Costumes, including a cowgirl one.

And very surprisingly an LA, California, tote. Made me feel at home.

A Roy Lichtenstein pop-art skirt. This one would turn heads anywhere it was worn.

The Cite de Pera, 1876.

Originally a hotel, now housing restaurants. It has a covered ceiling but you feel as if you are outside while you are inside.

Another view.

Portraits among the windows of famous people who have stayed here.

On a side street off the Istiklal Caddesi.

A fish market.

Our next food stop was at the Konak Kebap.

The kebap.

Bakers making freshly made pita bread.

Sauces, etc., to go on your kebap.

We sat at an upstairs table.

Our pita bread--oh, so delicious and BIG!

A tomato paste, humus, and something of yogurt to put on our kebap.

Turkish pizza to go with our kebap.

Our kebap plate and all this food just for the two of us. We had to take a doggie bag after we ate as much as we could. It was delicious.

Back on the Istiklal Caddesi, off the street, St. Anthony of Padua, the largest Roman Catholic Church in Istanbul. I was quite surprised to see women with head scarves entering the church. Gunay said that she sometimes goes into the church as it is a quite place for reflection. It also has pews which mosques and Orthodox churches don't have, so this church offers a place to sit down and rest and to think.

These look good but too full to try one. 1 TL is about $0.48 U.S.

I didn't want to carry our kepab doggy-bag around and Gunay had a class after our tour, so these stray cats got a welcome treat. Stray cats and dogs are fed by passersby in Turkey.

I wasn't too surprised to see a Fatburger here. This was a California chain until the late 1990s when it expanded internationally. I saw one in a mall in Abu Dhabi.

We are now on the music street.

The music street. I was here at night later when this street really rocks.

Sidewalk coffee.

A clown street musician.

Farther along.

Farther along.

An artist friend of Gulay who sells on the street. He makes jewelry using the technique he is showing.

His creations.

More of his creations.

But a very sad sight on the tour. This a Syrian family on the streets of Istanbul. Gulay told me that there are many Syrian families coming to Istanbul from the camps at the Turkish-Serbian border to try their luck in Istanbul. But they are not having much luck finding work--not enough jobs for them and they have a language handicap as they don't speak Turkish. The Turkish government gives them a small allowance, not it is not large enough to adequately provide for what they need.

The Galata Tower, 6th century. There is a restaurant on its 9th floor.

Near the tower is a small park for stray kittens where people can feed them.

Galay tried a couple of times to put this little kitten back into the kitten park out of harm's way, but the kitten liked the walkway much better.

An imposing building.

A wine shop. We only viewed it from its entrance as I was too tired and "stuffed" to have any wine.

We walked past this restaurant.

When he saw that I had taken his photo, he thought this would be a better pose than the last one.

Passed walking to the main street where I would catch the Big Bus and go back to close to my hotel. However, the place where we thought I would be able to catch the bus wasn't the right place, I took a cab back to my hotel. Okay since taxi prices are not high in Istanbul. It was a very enjoyable tour.