It took a while to soak it all in.
A brightly lit restaurant thoroughfare below an arterial bridge was bustling with a dinner crowd savoring on freshly-caught seafood. Restauranteurs and shop owners shouted their wares loudly, hoping to make a few last minute sales on that thoroughfare, while hundreds of fishing lines dangled from above, hoping to strike luck in the crowded waters of the Golden Horn in the heart of Istanbul.
It was the eve of Eid, the last day of fasting of the Holy month of Ramadan observed in the Islamic world. As is tradition during this month, the locals are out everywhere at sundown, feasting on local specialities to break the fast. The mosques all around had a festive atmosphere celebrating the Holy month. The promenade facing the waterfront was buzzing like a beehive, a veritable smorgasbord of restaurants, sweet shops, shopping malls, boat docks and travel agencies catering to locals and tourists alike. It took a while to absorb it all in, but I knew I had to hurry to capture the blue hour on the eve of Eid.
Istanbul
Turkey