Istanbul 1...

So, after an exhausting overnight bus journey to Heathrow and an early morning flight to Istanbul, I eventually got here about 1ish, such are the efficiencies of their public transport system that an hour later and I was checking in to my hotel.

I traced my jogging route to check that it is what I was expecting. It is but possibly a bit more busy than expected. And my God, the hills... Istanbul is supposedly built on 7 hills, like it's predecessor, Rome. It certainly feels like it. I think I just climbed every one of them.

After this physical tracing of my route for tomorrow's run, I found myself lost in a myriad of streets quite close to Sultanahmet. The area, I later found out, is Kumkapi and it's quite working class in feel with locals sitting out on their front step to sell their stuff. There's nothing like getting totally lost to help you find your way around.

After finding out where I was again, I made my way back to the hotel and managed to grab a good seat on their rooftop terrace. From here you have a wonderful panorama of the city; it's towers, domes and minarets.

First impressions of Istanbul are: it's certainly a melting pot. You have so many differe nt types living here cheek by jowl - Muslims and Christians, rich and poor, young and old, Asian and European. But whatever the differences, it feels really friendly and safe.