Istanbul -- Topkapi, lokum and Turkish baths

Through the centuries, the Topkapi palace has been legendary. Its harem and fabulous wealth tantalized the Western world -- what was the Harem like? How did the sultan actually live?
Topkapi served as the seat of Ottoman power from the time Mehmet the Conquer started to build it in 1453 until the mid 19th century when a far more Westernised palace -- The Dolmabahce Palace -- was built on the Europeon shore of the Bosporus.
To visit the Topkapi is catch a brief glimpse of a vanished world.
The To...