We are back in Istanbul after an early morning departure from Cappadocia.  We got to see the launching of the hot air balloons before we left.  It is quite a sight.  There are at least a hundred launching within a sort time frame around dawn.  Not something we chose to do.  In addition to the cost and the crowds, we have also seen how previously fertile fields have been made into huge parking lots for the balloons to land, all over the region.  Another instance of the chase for profits trumping more sustainable practices.  

The trip by plane to Istanbul was uneventful and we are back in the guest house where we stayed before.  The family who runs it are very responsive and we have learned that the exceedingly polite man at reception is a refugee from Syria, so I am glad they have found a way for him to work and live here.
It is much cooler here than on the Meditteranean or in Cappodocia.  We settled in and then got some breakfast around noon time.  Then we walked through the spice bazaar and across the Bosphorous and up to Taksin Square.  The streets are totally full of Turkish people walking with their families, as are the parks.  There are always festivals of one sort or another and many men fishing off the bridge in the Bosphorous.   We saw lots of jelly fish.  It's time to start thinking of gifts to bring home for friends and family, now that we do not need to carry all our possessions around on our backs.  Early to bed tonight as the day started very early.