Istanbul – the City on two continents
It was Dan Browns book Inferno that finally made me book a ticket to Istanbul. Having seen the places in Italy and just been to Venice, it was great to follow the book around in familiar areas but when they moved on to Istanbul, I was lost, so I decided; now is the time to see the Galate Bridge and the rest of the famous places in the city. Although I spent 10 days, I really only got to see the typically tourist places and not even all of them. Istanbul is a big city with a lot of history.
Cities with a lot of water are always fascinating to me. I love going on boattrips to get relaxing and different views and Istanbul has plenty of water. Placed on both sides of the Bosphorus Strait, the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara there are many opportunities for boattrips. I did go on a trip almost to the Black Sea and there was plenty to look at on both sides of the Bosphorus Strait.
The European side of Istanbul is split in an Old and New city by the Golden Horn. Both sides have a lot to offer and both have historical places but the majority is in the Old city. I did not see a lot on the Asian side but I am sure, it is very intersting too in a different way.
Turkish delights.
Old City
The old part of Istanbul stil has a stone wall that dates back to the time the city was called Constantinople and capital of the roman Empire for a period. Inside the walls around Sultanahmet Sq. you find Hagia Sophia, The Blue Mosque. The entrance to the Topkapi Palace and the Basilica Cisterne. if you go there, be prepared for long queues every where to get inside unless you arrive early in the morning. At Topkapi Palace you can easily spend a full day, and you will have to que up for tickets a couple of times to see it all, but there are lots to look at and there are also some nice gardens and cafes / restaurants both outside and inside the entrance.
Old City is also where you find Grand Bazar and the Egyptian Spice Bazar which are both must see places.
Hagia Sophia (Aya Sofya) Current Building dates back to 532-537.
Today a museum but originally a Church in the Byzantine Empire and it has also been used as a mosque.
Blue Mosque – Opened in 1616
The official name is sultan Ahmed Mosque but it is called blue after the tiles inside
Topkapi Palace – Sultan Palace from 1465-1853
The Palace has been a Museum since 1924
City Wall and Basilica Cisterne
The cisternes were built in the fifth century and the official name is Yerebatan Saray. After a big renovation and cleaning, it was opened to the public in the current stage in 1987. From platformes, it is possible to walk between the beautiful columns and watch the many carpets that “patrol” the water.
The Basilica has been part of many films and mentioned in many books and it was also here Dan Browns Inferno found the final clues, so it was with great interest I went there. It is a very evocative and must see place in my opinion.
Grand Bazar and Egyptian Spice Bazar
Both Bazars are great places to shop with the locals as well as tourists but I find it very difficult to walk around and really see the place. Especially in Grand Bazar the shopkeepers are all over you as soon as you stop or just look a little too much. In my blog Traveling in Turkey you can read more about my issues with the turks.
New City
The main tourist attractions in new city are the Galate Tower and Istiklal Cadesi – a pedestrian shopping street. Many will also have heard of Taksim Square. Being the political center and the business area in Istanbul, this is where the political demonstrations take place a little too often these years. Although been called new city this part of the city dates back to the Ottoman Empire but it is here, you will find a lot of new glas buildings, skyscrapers, the Modern Museums and in the harbour you can see lots of activity including cruise ships.
Walking in Istanbul can be tough, as it goes up and down all the time but to get up to Taksim Sq, you can from two sides take a Funicular – an old a a new one. They are very short but when you have already done a lot of walking, they are very handy.
Galate Tower, Istiklal Cadesi
Bosphorus Strait
Istanbul are currently connecting the two continents with two bridges. Bosphorus Bridge is the first Bridge. The real name for the second Bridge is Faith Sultan Mehmet Bridge but it is primarily called the second Bridge. Currently a third Bridge is under construction and will officially be named Yavuz Sultan Salim Bridge. when finished, It will then be possible to cross the Strait just before it runs out in the Black Sea. All three Bridges are suspension Bridges and on my Boat trip we saw the pelotons for the new bridge on both sides. The Bridge should have opened in 2015 but when writing this, it is not yet finished.
In 2013 a Train tunnel “Marmaray” was opened between the two sides but as the name indicates the tunnel is through the sea of Marmara but a new road tunnel – Eurasia – crossing the Bosphorus, is planned to open in 2016. The traffic in the city is really bad so I am sure they all look forward to more bridges and tunnels.
There are a lot of nices places along the strait. On both sides there are castles, small harbours, beautiful houses and when the city stops there are small villages. We stopped for a little more than an hour in a small village, very touristed with lots of restaurants and short walk from a historical place called Yoris Kales – at the ruins of an Byzantine castle
Golden Horn
The Golden Horn can also be crossed by different bridges – by cars, trams, metro and by foot. This is where you find the famous Galate Bridge with a range of restaurants at the lower level. The current Bridge is from 1994, where it replaced the old Galate Bridge which had to be replaced because a fire in one of the kitchens ruined the bridge – it obviously did not put them off as the new Bridge is a replication of the old one. The bridge is also a popular place for anglers and you will see fishing rods all alone the bridge.
A tour around the golden Horn is a nice tour. There are public parks on both sides and you can take a cable car to Cafe Pierre Lotti from where you have a nice view of the European side of the city and the Golden Horn (it looks like a Horn). If you don’t have time to see the rest of Turkey you can visit a miniature park with copies of buildings and places from the whole country.
Istanbul is a great city and I am vey happy that I finally got to see it. I really enjoyed my time there – or more correctly most of the time. There are some very agressive turks that do not understand NO and they are very annoying. When I came home, I was sure I had been to Turkey for the last time because of that but now after some time, I am not so sure. I would like to see the city again. A little later in the year with flowers and when everything is green. I still also have one more place in Turkey on my list – Cappadocia – so maybe I will go back. Istanbul is definitely worth a revisit and there are still a lot of places, I did not get to see this time.
This entry was posted in Destinations, Europe, Middleeast, Tyrkey
