Istanbul – is located at once in two parts of the world – Europe and Asia. Representatives of the five greatest empires – Persian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman fought for this city. Previously, Istanbul was the official capital of Turkey, and now it is considered the capital of the tourist.
Veronika Gordon moved to Istanbul recently, but already managed to love him and find out well. In this article, she will share her favorite places and useful notes about life in the city at the junction of two continents.
Which area to choose for living
Istanbul is a megalopolis with a 15-million population, therefore, for booking a hotel or apartments, choose the central areas of the city, where the main attractions are concentrated: Sultananmet, Eminon, Bayazit, Grand Bazaar.
Interesting excursions from local residents in Istanbul
Sultananmet -The calm area where the Topkapi Palace, Ayia-Sofia, the Blue Mosque, the Basilica Tank, the Roksolana Bath and the Archaeological Museum are located.
Quarter Sirkes Located just below Sultananamet towards the Bosphorus. This is a quiet area with a beautiful Gulkhan Park, from where a beautiful view of the strait opens.
The area is adjacent Eminoniawhere the pier is located – hence ships with tourists on board go on an excursion to the Bosphorus. Nearby is the Egyptian bazaar of spices – the second largest market of Istanbul after the Grand Bazaar.
IN Bayazite It is most profitable to change money, rent housing, and the area is relatively near the center.
Hotels:
Hotel 2* Antique Hostel – accommodation from 755 rubles/day;
Hotel 3* Kupeli Palace Hotel – accommodation from 2,780 rubles/day;
Hotel 3* Grand Peninsula Hotel – accommodation from 2,147 rubles/day;
Hotel 4* Acra Hotel – accommodation from 5 182 rubles/day;
Hotel 4* Hotel Sapphire – accommodation from 3,762 rubles/day;
Hotel 5* Fer Hotel – accommodation from 8,220 rubles/day;
Hotel 5* Ajwa Hotel Sultanahmet – accommodation from 16,427 rubles/day.
On the other side of the Bosphorus, is the area of Beyoglu, which is suitable for lovers of bars, discos and nightlife.
Galata – The oldest and most multinational quarter with a special charm. Walking here is a pleasure, besides, it is here that the cheapest souvenirs are sold. Get to the Galata Tower – the symbol of the city. At the top of the tower there is a restaurant and an observation deck, from which a magnificent panorama opens on an ancient city. Tip: go to the tower early in the morning, as you will have to defend a rather big queue later.
Not far from Galata is a quarter TaxiWhere the movement does not freeze even at night. Hotels in this area are especially popular with tourists who come to Istanbul at work.
Hotels:
Hotel 2* Bunk Hostel – accommodation from 961 rubles/day;
Hotel 3* Hotel The Pera Hill – accommodation from 2,528 rubles/day;
Hotel 3* Pera Luna Residence – accommodation from 3,890 rubles/day;
Hotel 4* Mr Cas Hotel – accommodation from 5,669 rubles/day;
Hotel 4* Mercure Istanbul Taksim – accommodation from 6,325 rubles/day;
Hotel 5* Dar Sultan Hotels Galata – accommodation from 6,095 rubles/day;
Hotel 5* The Galata Istanbul Hotel – accommodation from 7 830 rubles/day.
What you need to know about if you are in Istanbul for the first time
- Going for a walk around the sea, take a bun or bread with you to feed the seagulls that will fly after the ship.
- Do not photograph praying people without their permission – this is prohibited by law.
- If you plan to often go by taxi, download the Bitaksi application, where you can find out the exact cost of the trip in advance. If you catch a taxi on the street, then you better sit down to taxi drivers whose counter is screwed on top, where the mirror is, and not from below. The one from below can be “twisted” – you will reach the double cost.
- Just in case, keep cash and bargaining money with you, because in some historical places they do not accept payment by card.
How to save in Istanbul
I advise lovers of museums to buy the Museum Pass Istanbul, which will allow you to go to museums without a queue (and in a high tourist season you can wait for entering the museum for more than one hour) and that you will be able to save significantly with it. The card, valid for five days, costs 185 lire (2,323 rubles).
Museums in which the Istanbul museum card operates:
1. Cathedral of St. Sophia.
2. Palace of Topkapi and harem.
3. Archaeological Museum.
4. Museum of Mosaic.
5. Museum of Turkish and Islamic art.
6. Museum of the History of Science and Technology in Islam.
7. Museum of the choir.
8. Galata Mevlevi.
9. Palace Yyldyz.
10. The fortress of Rumeli Khysar.
11. Fethiye museum.
For trips in public transport, buy Istanbulkart – an electronic travel card to pay for trips to the subway, tram, bus, metro -bus, vapura (small boat) and funicular. It costs 6 lire and can be replenished for any amount. If the cost of one passage is 4 lira, then on the map – only 2.30 lira. Istanbulkart is sold in special machine guns next to stops, at the airport, in newspaper kiosks.
If you plan to be calculated by a card in Istanbul, then before the trip you make a cashback on your bank card.
On Sberbank’s cards, by the end of the year you can shoot lira without a commission in Deniz Bank. Converting rubles to dollars is carried out automatically.
To see the whole variety of Turkish sweets and taste them for free, go to the Misir Carsisi market, which is located in the Eminonian area – here sellers will hunt you.
Where to eat
Breakfast. For breakfast, go to Saryer – the quietest area of the city with a beautiful coast, from where the fishermen go to the sea every morning. Look where the Bosphorus Strait ends and the waters of the Black Sea begin.
Breakfast at Lokma (Yahya Kemal Cad, 12), Les Ottomans Hotel (Muallim Naci CD, 68) or Hisar Café & Restaurant (Yahya Kemal Caddesi, 26), and then look at the same market markets, where they sold fish, which swimming in the morning in the morning. Sea.
Dinner. In the Sultananammet area, go to the restaurant on the roof of the Seven Hills Hotel Hotel (Tevkifhane Sokak, 8), from where an excellent view of the Bosphorus, Ayia Sofia and the Blue Mosque opens. Be sure to try shrimp with vegetables and Turkish coffee. For lunch, you can still choose the Ulus Cafe drowning in greenery (Besiktas, Adnan Saygun CD, 71/B). It is better to book a table in advance and ask with the first level (that is, closer to the Bosphorus) – the influx of tourists there is huge.
I advise you to climb the restaurant of the Intercontinental Hotel hotel (Taksim, Asker Ocagi Cad, 1) with panoramic windows from which you will see the whole of Istanbul.
Dinner. In the evening, the Turks, as a rule, do not have dinner tightly, but choose establishments where you can drink tea or coffee and eat ice cream. For this, network cafes are perfect – Mado, Divan, Alaçati Muhallebicisi, Saray Muhallebicisi, Kahve Dünyasi, Simit Saray, Happy Mones, Midpoint.
That you should definitely try from Turkish fast food
Make your opinion about freshly squeezed fruit juices, fried chestnuts (Kestane), boiled corn (Misir), bells with sesame seeds (Simit).
Simit (Simit) or gverek – A butter of a bread ring covered with sesame seeds. Prepared in various variations, for example, with cheese or nutella.
ISLAK HAMBURGER. – A hamburger with chopped meat and a large amount of sauce.
Kumpir (kumpir) – Baked potatoes, cut into two halves, with butter, cheese and various fillings of meat and vegetables. Be sure to order sausages and Rus salad (mayonnaise salad with potatoes, carrots, peas and pickles).
Tavuk Pilav (Tavuk Pilav) – Rice with butter and chicken breast.
Dürum (dürüm) – A variant of our shawarma: thin slices of meat, cut off from a rotating steers, wrapped with vegetables to Lavash. Sometimes the molten Turkish cheese is added. It can also be with chicken, lamb and liver.
Tantuni (Tantuni) – The same thing as the Doryum, only with beef. Serve with yogurt.
Kokorech (kokoreç) – Fried spinning lamba gutted on a spit. Submitted in the form of a sandwich or just with a side dish.
Chi-Köfte (çig köfte) – Vegetarian sharp cutlets from bulgur, tomato paste and olive oil. The most suitable drink for this dish is Ayran.
Lahmadzhun (Lahmacun) – Turkish pizza with minced meat and spices.
Gözleme (Gözleme) – A flat cake with a filling inside, often with cheese and spinach.
Kagit Halva (Kagit Helva) – Caps with condensed milk.
Balyk Ekmek – Fonged fish fillets with onions, salad and vegetables, and seasonings were invested in halves of a loaf or lavash.
Dolma from Midye Dolma) – Mussels, stuffed with rice, currants and cedar nuts.
Pid (pide) – In shape, they resemble a boat of dough with minced meat or egg and cheese.
What else to do in Istanbul
The fastest and most comfortable way to see the city is to go on an excursion on a convenient two -story bus. You will be taken in the most interesting places and will tell legends and entertaining facts about the city.
Find the time to visit the girls of the tower (Kyz Kulesi), which is located in the middle of the Bosphorus and is one of the symbols of Istanbul. According to legend, the tower at this place was built back in 400 BC, when Athens fought with Sparta. Initially, the construction was wooden, burned many times when countless wars flashed, and managed to visit a lighthouse, prison, and a cholera epidemics, a restaurant, and concerts and exhibitions were held here. Now an observation deck is equipped on the tower, a restaurant and a cafe are working. It is best to come here in the evening shortly before sunset to see how the sun touches the horizon.
In addition to the embankment near the girl’s tower, you can spend the sun to sleep, standing on the Galata Bridge, on the embankment in the Kadikeri area or in the park on the hill of Otagtepe with a view of the Sultan of the Sultan Mehmed Fatikh over the Bosphorus. You will not see such sunsets in any other city-the sky when sunset becomes fiery orange.
For lovers of classic detectives, I advise you to go to the Sirkes station – the final station of the famous Vostochny Express train, arriving here from Paris. Sitting at the station, we can imagine that the famous detective Erkul Pauro or Agatau Christy, who was at one time looking for inspiration here for writing “Murder in the“ Eastern Express ”, was about to look out from around the corner. By the way, the author created part of the detective at the Palace Hotel hotel, which is located in the Taxim area.
In the Asian part of the city, visit the summer residence of the sultans – the Beylerberi Palace, built in the 19th century, with an interior in a traditional Ottoman style and an abundance of luxury.
In the suburbs of Istanbul, the city of Shile, tourists and locals drive for excellent beaches on the Black Sea and solitude. The golden sand, the gentle sea, in places bordering on the picturesque rocky cliffs, scattered along the coast of the ruins of ancient fortresses and charming seaside vegetation create invigorating landscapes.
The Adalara area in the Marmary Sea is an archipelago consisting of four islands: Buyukada, Haibeliad, Burgazada, Kynalyad. Any of them is successful for visiting because of its special atmosphere. The islands “breathe” differently and give calm and peace, the ability to buy and sunbathe, see ancient mansions with unique facades, flowering trees and horses with carts. I myself recommend taking a closer look at the island of Haybeliad. It is better to go here on weekdays. On the weekend, as in any other place, many tourists. On the islands you can only move on a bicycle, horse carts and electric vehicles.
