Different Places

Walking down the main street off Taksim Square last night felt uncannily like walking in central Manchester. The same dreary drizzle, the same sneakingly insidious cold. Even the buildings looked the same. Different kind of music from the buskers, though. Their stirring performances garnered more audience participation. Prefer the music - and food - here.

One significant difference between the cities, though. We haven't seen any rough sleepers over here and there seem to be hardly any beggars. Hope this is because the less fortunate are genuinely taken of and not because the authorities find ways to hide them.