Where East Meets West
Istanbul is an exciting, labyrinth like city that oozes culture and history from its original Byzantine and Ottoman Empire eras. The city has sandwiched together ancient, crumbling stone buildings against typically modern glass fronted shop façades. Many of these can be seen along Istiklal Cadddesi, one of the main pedestrianized high streets of the city. However, walking down Istiklal is an experience in itself. Put aside the pavement road-rage and simply go with the flow like a large school of fish moving upstream. The crowds were swarming 24/7, like being on Oxford Street in London on the last weekend before Christmas Day, but thankfully without the panicked rush we seem to have adopted on British shopping streets.
The pace of life in Istanbul is very relaxed. Time and care is taken to watch the world go by and observe the city’s dozens of street cats sauntering around. All the whilst nursing a cup of traditional Turkish tea served in a small clear glass, typically with 2 lumps of sugar – and I thought the British were known for being the teapots.
First and foremost, to play tourist in Istanbul, it is essential to go to the Sultanahmet neighborhood to visit the Blue Mosque, Aya Sofia and Basilica Cistern. These can all be done in a one-day visit, as they are a short walk from one another. Despite guidebooks and tour guides recommending you to visit the Cistern early to avoid crowds, it was just as amenable to spontaneously try the queues mid afternoon during the week. Naturally there are going to be tourist groups, but the magnificent architectural spectacle of the underground aqueduct is totally worth the 10-minute wait on the street for the feasible 10 TL (roughly £3) ticket.
When visiting the magnificent Blue Mosque, note that women need to wear a headscarf and trousers/long skirt, as it is still a practicing place of prayer. The Blue Mosque gives a real sense of the strong religious heritage that envelops the city when you are surrounded by the breathtaking architecture by Mehmet Ağa. He wanted to create the same wow factor on the outside of his mosque that can be found on the inside of the Sofia. The sense of pride the people of Istanbul have for their rich historical culture can be felt amongst foundations where the mosques are built, so take your time to meander between the sites in Sultanahmet and linger for the prayer calls that will echo between the minarets across the Hippodrome as you imagine the historic, gladiator like performances that occurred around your feet thousands of years ago.
To absorb more of the opulent aspects of Turkey, it is worth taking a trip to the Spice Bazaar and Grand Bazaar, perhaps towards the end of your trip to spend your last remaining liras. It is an ideal place to buy little souvenirs and token presents as well as chuckle with the stallholders who will switch their charm on for us tourists. However, if you are not a confident haggler, it could be worth your while making your purchases along the street markets leading up to the Bazaars, as they are typically cheaper.
To see the city from alternate points of view, it is worth taking a lift ride up the ancient Galata tower, located at the end of Istiklal, for a birds-eye look at the beautiful horizons spiked with numerous spires of mosques and traditional buildings. Or on the other hand, take a ferry trip up the Bosphorus. The most flattering time of day to take the ferry up the river is around dusk so as to appreciate the city as it comes to life when the sun goes down and the city lights turn on. There are stunning views of the up-lit mosques and palaces along the shorelines and hilltops, with the echoing of prayer calls bouncing off each other as the sun sets. Be sure to take care when walking through certain areas at night, as in recent times the city (much like many other major cities like London) has suffered a little civil unrest.
Another short and cheap ferry ride away is the Asian side of the city. There is a different atmosphere across in Kadaköy but it gives an insight into the natural Turkish life. Away from the hustle and bustle of the European half, the Asian side is less familiar with tourists (so be mindful they may not be used to having their photograph taken and English is certainly non-existent in restaurants), it is worth a morning trip to wander the streets and soak up the authenticity of daily life. For the younger generations, there is an area known as Moda which provides a somewhat arty/hipster part of town with quirky shops and jazzy street performers.
The food in Istanbul varies from delicious traditional Turkish meat dishes to fresh fish sandwiches by the docks, cooked straight from the water on the boat. When in the maze of the Grand Bazaar, try hunting out the small restaurants in pokey alleyways to rest your feet and fill up on a traditional köfte casserole or wait to find daylight again and treat yourself to a chicken or doner kebab from the street corner. Turkish are typically hospitable to foreign guests, so if you are vegetarian (vejeteryans in Turkish) they may whip up something personal in the kitchen for you – so long as you don’t mind playing a bit of vegetable potluck. Unless you like your sour fruit juices fresh, be sure to not make the same mistake as I when ordering lemonade, which I naively assumed would be a Sprite like refreshment, but was presented with a homemade lemon juice drink that certainly cleansed the pallet!
Istanbul is a fabulous long weekend city escape full of history and will offer you a spice of life and spark to return home with.
