Gulhane Park

Our first day here in Istanbul we decided to just go for a walk and see the area around our hotel. Ten minutes later, we found ourselves at the entrance to a beautiful park! My history may be (ok, very likely) off but I believe that this was once a courtyard to Topkapi Palace which borders the park. We walked and waited here until they opened the gates to the Palace so of course we took pictures. Here are a few: