City break in Istanbul at Sultanahmet
By any standards, Istanbullus are proud of their city. And since you can hardly walk down a street in Sultanhamet without falling over some Byzantine or Ottoman relic they do have a few things to boast about.
But there’s more to Istanbul than antiquity and I was determined to get to the heart of the reputation of this mighty metropolis. Although I was initially unsure about Istanbul as a family holiday destination, it was the presence of my small daughter that was the key.
Within half an hour of arriving she was being called princess and offered the hand of the waiter’s brother’s son in marriage.
Ancient monuments
In the ancient Aya Sofya (Hagia Sophia) she scuttled around on the smooth stone floors and climbed up and down a hundreds-of-years-old wooden platform while we admired the still beautiful frescoes under the might dome.
The Blue Mosque is only a few hundred metres away but quite a contrast in terms of atmosphere and upkeep. The littel one enjoyed the thick carpet, lying on her back and gazing up at the lights and beautiful tiles.
There is a lot to see at the Topkapi Palace and you should allow a whole afternoon. Beyond the spooky harem, the sumptuous apartments, and the eye-popping jewels, the most beautiful structure is the very last you reach after the many courts and gardens. The delicate decoration of the pavilion and romantic views across the Bosphorus to the Galata Tower on the Golden Horn under a dusty apricot sky is matchless.
On Divan Yolu, the main thoroughfare of Sultanhamet, we all enjoyed delicious stuffed aubergine and the ubiquitous bulgher wheat rice salad at Bayan 2 restaurant, before raiding one of the many patisseries for a sweet bite.
Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia in Sultanahmet Istanbul Turkey
Istanbul or Rome?
I wonder if you’ve been travelling too long when you feel compelled to compare every new destination with another place but I did often feel in Beyoglu that I might be wandering the streets of some western European capital.
From the excitement of the youthful population thronging a main drag lined with gem after gem of art nouveau architecture, to the antique tram ding dinging its way down from Taksim square, this district has something for everyone, as well as the most glamorous kebab shops you’ll ever see.
There are pretty arcades with antiques, jewellery and bric a brac, and the regeneration of historic Levantine buildings in the streets off Istikal Caddesi is good to see.
Gulhane Park is a beautiful sight in autumn; kick your feet through the leaves and enjoy a pot of tea and a dish of pistachio ice cream overlooking the Bosphorus in the tea garden below the walls of the Topkapi Palace.
Bazaar ‘til you drop
Near the Grand Bazaar a man sits in the window of his rug shop, completely surrounded by great piles of kilims like an Arabian night. Inside the largest enclosed bazaar in the world it is all glitz and gold and souvenir trinkets but still men sit passing the time of day on low stools; prayer beads dripping from their fingertips and tea delivered in little glasses on a silver tray.
Through the haberdashery quarter porters carry huge loads, bent double with their leather backpacks on the streets leading upward to the Suleymaniye mosque, its interior still shrouded for restoration.
Or head down through the street of Christmas decoration shops to the fragrant delights of the Spice Bazaar. Here you will find scoops of apple tea, towers of nougat, dishes of chestnuts, tubs of Turkish delight, pyramids of spices and baskets of dried flowers.
Across the Golden Horn in Beyoglu join the throngs of young Istanbullus surging down Istikal Caddesi from Taksim square, enjoying the shops, eateries and entertainment.
Crossing continents
Touching down on the Asian side of the Bosphorus is not always on an Istanbul city break schedule but it’s well worth the visit once you get past the noisy traffic of the waterfront. The ferry ride from Eminonu is a pleasure in itself.
The streets are festooned with russet-coloured grapevines in autumn and there’s nothing touristy about a wander through the street markets and funky cafes with the locals.
Turkish shopkeepers take great pride in their displays and in the Kadikoy district you will not fail to be impressed by the carefully-arranged stacks of giant broccoli, shiny shoals of fish and piles of grapevine leaves.
We had a fabulous meal at the fashionable Ciya Sofrasi, which specialises in delicious mounds of baked pilaf fragrant with almonds and raisins; the delicately spiced house kebab; and black mulberry sherbet beverages. For dessert you can’t go past the baked pistachio cream of the Dough Plies or the melt-in-the-mouth Teleme cream figs.
One final mosque
Deep in the back streets of Sultanhamet is a small mosque that is inexplicably missed off many Istanbul itineraries. We had the Sokollu Mehmet Pasa Camii to ourselves, apart from the elderly retainer, and a peaceful sense of spirituality pervades that is missing from the great domes of the city.
The high quality Iznik tiles and original painted wooden ceiling panels complement the graceful dome by Istanbul’s premier historic architect, Mimar Sinan.
The heart of the city
Sitting in the park that separates Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque, long shadows are cast by cypresses across lawns strewn with yellow plane leaves. Rusty chestnuts line the avenue and the cacophony of competing muezzin cries fades.
Passersby stop to chuck the cheeks of my little daughter, smiling as they imitate her baby babble. In the restaurants fellow diners turn to make friends; an old man trying to make her laugh by showing her the sugar cube held between his teeth as he sips his tea.
She danced to traditional Turkish music on a bandstand off Divan Yolu and grinned at the shoe-shine man. And everywhere she was welcome; the centre of attention with both men and women.
Beyond history and culture, today it’s the warmth of her people that make Istanbul great.
Natasha von Geldern
More information:
Natasha stayed at the stylish Midtown Hotel, which is centrally located in a pleasant street just off Taksim Square, at the top of the district of Beyoglu. Midtown Hotel is a member of Special Hotels of the World. For more information or to book please visit the website or call 020 7380 3658.
Pegasus Airlines flies daily from London Stansted to Istanbul's new Sabiha Gokcen airport from £39.99. A shuttle bus runs hourly from the airport to Taksim Square for around £6.
Natasha used Rough Guides’ Istanbul, an erudite, comprehensive guide to the Turkish capital.
(TravelBite.co.uk Tuesday, 15 Dec 2009)
Finding perfect reading solace in Sultanahmet Istanbul
In Sultanahmet, one can find several locations including shops and cafes storing a very good collection of English books. Not just shops, one can also enjoy reading even in numerous hotels and hostels as they too, maintain at least one small shelf for catering to their reading milieu.
Book Shops or (turkish Sahaflar)
No wonder, it is quite normal to see many tourists in Sultanahmet enjoy reading their favorite books while sipping hot coffee or tea in those leisure moments. The variety of books available for reading is not the usual tourist guides for the new visitors to this city of Turkey. In fact, the books are available in different fields of study, be it literature, history and so on. The list seems to be endless and certainly mind blowing.
Another good thing about the books available in Sultanahmet is that a large number of books are in English language. That’s something interesting and inviting for the visitors from English speaking countries. Istanbul has many bookshops and bookstores selling English-language books, with many of them being about culture, art and history. The covers of the books are elegant and glossy likely to catch the fancy of any passerby potential buyer. And many of these books demand long hours of serious reading. The books, whether non-fiction or fiction, are all priced at quite affordable rates. So, none of the British or even the American tourists will miss to grab a copy or two for them.
The city of Istanbul has also several of the popular literary and classic works on sale and also with Turkish translations. So, it is quite common to find many Turks holding Tolstoy in their hand or even the mysteries of the mysterious Agatha Christie.
Several hostels and hotels prefer to keep a shelf booked for the books of various varieties, probably those enjoying a wide readership among the hotel guests from various corners of the world. Among the books in the hotels include the ones left by the tourists most of which are often gothic thrillers or romances. These books are good enough to provide entertainment to any causal reader relaxing on a hotel terrace or even during a long journey on a plane back home.
Sahaflar Carsisi- The Old Book Bazaar-----
As you walk along the west side of the main street of the famous Grand Bazaar, you will come across a series of stalls and shops selling new as well as old books in different languages. Many of them have books in English language and can be bought after a bit of bargaining with the shopkeepers.
Sahhaf (Book Shop) ---
While talking about some of the good shops for getting books, there is one named Sahhaf. It is just about a block away from the famous Divanyolu Cad, just next to DoRemi, a store selling musical instruments. Here, one can find several English books in the shops apart from the books in other languages including French, Spanish, German and Arabic to cater to a wide variety of tourists from the world over.
Konya Pension Bookstore---
This bookstore is located at Akbiyik Cad., Terbiyik Sok., No. 15. As you walk down the stairs from the famous Konya Pension on the noisy backpacker’s street, you will be amazed and delighted by the huge variety of volumes of English-language books, about 4,000 in numbers. To help the visitors decide about which books suit their pocket, a list mentioning the price of various books is displayed on the wall. The books are arranged according to different categories. For example, you can find travel books, best sellers, novels, fiction, non-fiction aptly displayed in different sections for the convenience of the visitors. And the novels have been displayed in shelves in an alphabetical order by the author. You can reach here either through the gift shop upstairs or through the outdoor stairs.
Java Studio---
Java Studio is one of the best known places for browsing books of splendid variety. Located at Cankurtaran Mah., Dalbasti Sok., No. 13. Near the Arasta Bazaar and the Blue Mosque, just across the small street from the Hotel Blue House. This bookstore, in its tastefully furnished lounge, stores and displays exquisitely wide variety of used books and even some books offered at a bargain of two for one. Sounds interesting, isn’t it?
Book exchange in Istanbul---
In Istanbul, the Istanbul Book Exchange has been established only recently by a small group of expats having interest in literature. It involves a monthly meeting of people having keen interest in literature or reading. As compared to a book club where a member has to devote his time in studying a specified book or books on a chosen subject so as to discuss related aspects with the members in the meeting, the book exchange’s sole aim is to talk and do business of books. It does not involve any fees or charges nor is there any pre-established rule for exchange. So, whether you have many books or even no book at all, with book exchange, you can always take at least one book or even two books. However, it is good if you bring something (of course, a book) along with you.
The meeting of Istanbul Book Exchange is held on the third Sunday of every month at the fixed time of 1’o clock. The venue of this meet is fixed to be the FPPP (Kucuk Aya Sofya Cad., No. 39A, just two blocks towards south of the famous Arasta Bazaar, Sultanahmet). The café usually remains closed on the afternoons of Sundays; however, the chef does offer a small menu for those members of this book exchange who want to have lunch. If you, too, want to share your interests and ideas with the like minded literary minds of this book exchange, you are welcome to join this group. Just email your details at the address--- expatturk@gmail.com.
How can one forget to mention a quotation by a renowned writer, Emily Dickenson, who once said that books are a convenient way to take us back to our homes even though for a matter of few hours only.
Turkish Hamam – A Dip Into The Golden Past
Whether you are visiting Istanbul for one day or for few days, your visit is simply considered incomplete without experiencing a visit to the traditional Turkish baths at Istanbul.
If you mistook a Turkish bath for a spa, then, you need to take a second thought. This is because a Turkish bath is much more than an hour of scrubbing, sweating and messaging at any spa. It is much more romanticized and exquisite experience not to be missed by anyone visiting Istanbul. Men and women, young and old, rich and poor, all were free to visit the traditional hamams. The tradition of Turkish baths (commonly known as ‘hamam’) has been passed on from the Byzantines to the Ottomans and is alive even in the modern Istanbul.
Among some of the most prominent Turkish baths is the Cemberlitas Hamam. Located in the heart of Istanbul, this hamam is just at a walking distance from the Grand Bazaar and the mosque. This hamam was built in 16th century by Mimar Sinan who also designed the Suleymaniye Mosque of Istanbul.
Like all hamams, this hamam too has different section for women. A plastic sign at the entrance of the hamam reminds women to walk bare feet and wrap a towel around their waist. Unlike other traditional baths in Istanbul, Cemberlitas Hamam is open till midnight. In hamams, men message men and women message women in the separate sections.
Another bath worth visiting in Istanbul is the Cagaloglu Bath located just near the Underground Cistern in Cagaloglu. In 1741, Sultan Mahmut ordered for construction of this hamam so as to generate revenue for his library and the famous monument of the time, Hagia Sofia. This hamam happens to be the last hamams built in the city before Sultan Mustafa III gave orders for banning construction of any hamams in 1768 to meet the city’s increasing demand for wood and water.
Cagaloglu Bath has a pool with dressing rooms and a waterjet in the middle of the pool. The bath has a marble platform surrounded by cubicles meant for bathing. This bath is open from 8 am till 10 pm for women while men can visit this bath between 8 am to 11 pm on all days of the week.
A visit to a hamam will not just relax your body but will give you an aesthetic pleasure which cannot be explained in words but only experienced. The masseuse will ask you to lie flat on your stomach and will cover you with foamy soap from head to toe. Then, she will gently scrub your back and then begin the same procedure on your front. The whole procedure will leave you calm and stress free.
The traditional institution of the Turkish baths sheds light on various aspects of the Turkish life and brings together different dimensions of the society’s culture.