Ayia-Sofia, the Blue Mosque, the Top Capas Palace, the Galatian Tower, the Rumeli Hisar fortress, the underground tank Yerebatan and the Bani Chamberlitash, of course, are worthy of visiting them first of all … But what to do if you are already in Istanbul in the second, third, fourth-and so on-once? Do not worry, you will not have to miss this city.
So, what can you do in Istanbul when the minimum program is already exhausted?
To begin with – meet the sunrise
It doesn’t matter whether you spent the night in the clubs of the Street Takiklyal or simply performed a feat and stood either light or dawn … The most suitable places for meeting a new day – the Sultanammet Square and the coast of the Bosphorus.
The Sultanannet is located between Ayia-Sofia, the Cistern Basilica (Yerebatan), the baths of Roxalan and the Blue Mosque (aka Sultananmet Mosque). In the afternoon and evening, there is a crowd. But at six in the morning – this is a very romantic place. If you settled in one of the hotels or hostels on Akbiyuk Street, which is located next to the Sultananmet, be sure to get up early at least once, you won’t regret it.
But on the shore of the Bosphorus, the dawn is best to meet in the Findykes Park, which is located near the Kabatash pier. Here you can go down from Taxim Square along Mobusan Street or arrive on the T1 tram from Sultananmet. Sit on the bench on the embankment and check if those who say that this is the best view of the Bosphorus and the Asian part of the city.
Interesting excursions from local residents in Istanbul
Make a cruise on the Princess Islands
Since we were at the pier Kabatash, we must use this to go from here to the islands. The Turks call them just islands (adalahs),
And the Europeans gave them the name of the Knysevs, because in ancient times here they contained in the bliss and in the bliss of the children of rulers, who, alas, did not shine the throne offset. Many of them were quietly sent to another world here. Later, the rich inhabitants of Istanbul began to build suburban villas on the islands.
A group of nine islands, of which only four inhabited, is located in the Marmary Sea, an hour’s path on a ferry from Kabatash. The passage of the back and forth is 15 lire (250 rubles). One ticket can be visited by all four islands, making a stop with an inspection of attractions on each of them, and after continuing a walk on the next ferry. For comparison, an organized tour of the Princess Islands costs about 70 lire (1200 rubles). True, lunch is also included in this cost.
And yes, this point of the program, whether you will go yourself or with an excursion, you need to devote all day.
Climb into an alternative underground tank
Visiting the basilica tank with her Must See – the head of the gorgon jellyfish turned upside down, of course, no one canceled, but … if you have a tight money (entrance to the tank – 20 lire (340 rubles) or you do not like tourist crowds, then you will certainly need to visit the underground tank, disguised as the Nakkas carpet store. It is, however, there is no smaller size, it has no water, it has no water. But the entrance to it is absolutely free.
Tell them that you are in the tank. They will immediately lag behind you. Go down to the basement (from there, calm, pleasant music comes, so you will find it easy) – and you are in place. Most likely, besides you there will be no one there, even sellers from the store upstairs. Even in the midst of the tourist season.
Eat a sandwich
One of the popular tourist attractions is eating a balyk-ekmek, sandwiches with fried mackerel in small streetgies at the Galata bridge. Sandwiches are deftly and quickly coated directly on floating shelves, and visitors, sitting down at the tiny tables for a while, season these delicious sandwiches with lemon juice from special bottles and send them into their mouths. The cost of such a sandwich is 6 lire (100 rubles).
By the way, on the Galata bridge you can rent a fishing rod from local fishermen and catch some sardinka or mackerel yourself. Then take it to the nearest restaurant and ask to fry on the charcoal.
Go to the walls of Constantinople
For some reason, many do not do this, but in vain. A stunning view of the old Istanbul opens from the walls. There are no prohibition signs and fences here, and, therefore, you will not violate anything, although caution will not hurt: the stone stairs are almost steeply. The walls of Constantinople are in a dilapidated state, but still make a strong impression. To evaluate the scale of these fortifications, you can ride along them along Baylerbey Street on any city bus, which are quite a lot. But the best place to climb up is a section of the walls next to the Church of the choir.
Look at the keys to hell in the Kari Museum
The church of the choir, it is also the Kari Museum, it is also the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in the fields – the only place in Istanbul where the early Christian frescoes of the XIV century were preserved. After the Turks captured by Constantinople, the frescoes were covered with plaster, and the Church itself, like many other Christian temples, was turned into a mosque. In 1948, during the restoration work, frescoes were discovered, and the world -famous museum was made from the mosque. Frescoes really fascinate. It is especially curious to look at the castles and keys to hell broken by Christ, when he went down there to free the Old Testament righteous and Adam with Eve. The entrance to the museum is 30 lire (500 rubles).
See the golden gate with your own eyes
It was to them that the prophetic Oleg nailed his shield when, at the beginning of the 10th century, Tsargrad captured. They are located in the southern tip of the Constantinople walls, almost on the very shore of the Marmara Sea and are part of the seven -waisted castle (unit). The castle was built by the Turks. The state treasury was stored here and high-ranking foreman-prisoners were kept. It is best to go here on the metroelectric Marmaray (Marmaray) to the KazliceSme station. By the way, if you go the same way on the same train, then you can ride under the Bosphorus.
But today it is impossible to go through the golden gate (Altyncapa): according to legend, the future Christian liberator of Constantinople will enter the city through them, so the Turks prudently laid them with brick.
The entrance to the seven -tan castle is paid – 5 lire (84 rubles). Inside, you can inspect the cameras painted with prisoners and a variety of torture tools, and from above, from the walls, observe the barges floating along the marble sea to the Bosphorus and vice versa.
To visit the top floor of the Jaylan Intercontinental Hotel
And see Istanbul and Bosphorus from a bird’s height. In the evening you can sit in a restaurant here, but it is better to come in the morning when there is no one, even waiters. The hotel is located near the Taxim Square, in the center of the party area Beyoglu, and if you are not constrained in the means, and you prefer the present in antiquity, then you can’t find a better place for housing. Only the number needs to be asked higher and be sure to look at the Bosphorus.
Turn into a giant in the Park “Miniaturk”
See all Istanbul at once and at a time. And not only Istanbul, but all of Turkey. All the main attractions of the city and countries are gathered in one place, on the shore of the Golden Horn Bay. There are more than a hundred miniature copies, a height of human growth: from the obligatory aya-sophia to the caves of Cappadocia. There is even the sacred city of Chanli-Urf and the ancient burial hill of the Nemrut-Dag, to which it will be difficult for an ordinary tourist to get. According to some indicators, the largest in the world is considered. In a specially equipped 5D cinema, you can make a virtual helicopter flight over Istanbul. Entrance – 10 lire (170 rubles). A bus 54 ht is coming from the square here, and a bus 41 ST from the Topkapi palace.
Try on the role of the French writer in Istanbul of the XIX century
The French naval officer Louis-Zhulian Vio is better known as the writer Pierre Loti, who created the genre of the “colonial novel”. In the second half of the 19th century, he lived in Istanbul and colorfully described that era and its customs. The writer got into the image of Aboriginal so that he even got an affair with a concubine from a harem of one Turkish nobleman, which he later described in the novel “Asian”.
Almost at the very end of the Golden Horn Bay is a cafe in which Pierre Loti loved to spend evenings. Now it bears his name, excellent Turkish tea is served here, and tourists come here to look from above at the golden horn.
You can go to the cafe Pierre Loti on foot by passing through a picturesque cemetery, or in a cable car trailer. The lower station of the lift is located near the Sultan Eyupa mosque and the ferry pier Ayup.
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Text and photo: Dmitry Rzhannikov
Photo for Preview: Shutterstock.com
