Istanbul, where to start?
First of all, this city is amazing! Hands down one of the most eclectic, vibrant and culturally rich cities I’ve ever visited.
While in Istanbul, we stayed at #bunk Taksim, located about 5 minutes walk from Taksim Square. Taksim Square is located in the heart of the city centre and happens to be the main transportation hub for the city. The metro system in Istanbul is very reliable and its routes cover the entire city. Our location was ideal for this reason since there is so much to see and do in Istanbul.
On our first night in Istanbul, we decided to walk around Taksim Square and the adjoining neighbourhood of Beyoglu. We wandered through very crowded streets lined with all manner of bars and restaurants. There are two things about this place that struck us immediately, the first being the amount of people out and the bold, aggressive approach of the men who work at getting you into their bars or restaurants. They will do whatever it takes to get you to stop in front of their establishment, short of grabbing hold of you and physically dragging you in. At first intimidating and then comical. Whatever their methodology it always starts with “Lady, can I ask you a question?” And is usually follows up with, not a question, but more of a statement meant to entice you like “rooftop terrace”, “cheapest beer in Istanbul”, “good prices”, but never an actual question.
On our first night we stopped by Mado for some rice pudding, Turkish coffee and Turkish Delight, followed by a beer at one of the many bars offering a rooftop terrace (nearly every bar in Beyoglu has one). I have been a fan of rice pudding for as long as I can remember, as my memere Genier used to make it every weekend and it kicked ass. However, this Turkish rice pudding was on a whole other level. It was richer and creamier with less rice and more pudding, finished in the oven with a nice golden crust and topped with a bit of rose water. Simply delectable. Not to be outdone, the Turkish Delights were almost otherworldly, available in a head spinning variety of flavours from pomegranate to pistachio to orange to rose water – complete with dried rose petals. Delicious and beautiful. I wanted to eat all of them! All of this followed by Turkish coffee, bold, flavourful and gritty.
The next morning we were off to Cihangar Khevlahti Evi for a traditional Turkish breakfast. Let me say that these people LOVE their breakfasts. The traditional breakfast we ordered consisted of 4 different types of cheese, eggs with sausage, a variety of breads, olives, salami, pomegranate jam, tahini, fresh honey and honeycomb, and salad. There was enough food for 4 people! We ate it all though! Only problem was that after gorging on this massive breakfast we realized we would be late for our free walking tour Emma had signed us up that morning and we had a 45 minute walk to the start point. It was a bit of a mad rush to get there in 30 degree heat. We arrived at the start point – ON TIME – and began to search for our guide. We weren’t able to locate them so we asked the tourist information people who worked in the park and they told us that this tour doesn’t exist. That it was just a scam. Apparently, they lure you to the square in this very touristy neighbourhood where they offer all manner of tours at a cost, once you arrive you’ll probably decide to buy one of the tour packages being offered. Well, not us my friends! We were pissed, of course, we literally half ran there in the heat to get there on time. So, after sculling down some water we toured the area ourselves.
We snapped photos of the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, also known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque, and started our own ‘self guided’ tour.
Our first stop was the Basilica Cistern, the largest of many cisterns below the city. It was built, by slaves, in the 6th century during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I.
Next up, Istanbul’s famous Grand Bazaar. Let me say this, it was most certainly grand. We could have spent the entire day exploring the maze of stalls with vendors selling everything under the sun from antique lamps, dried fruits, exotic spices and woven rugs. It was wondrously overwhelming. We must have been there for a couple of hours and didn’t even visit a tiny fraction of the place.
After spending the bulk of our day wandering around Sultanahmet exploring the many attractions we slowly made our way back to our hotel, but not before grabbing a bite at a small pide restaurant (of course).
We did stop at a different bar every night, and every single place offered a different experience from rooftop terraces with sweeping views of the city and live entertainment and that night was no different.
For dinner, we stopped at Durumzade, a kebap place which was featured on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. OMG, it was by far the most delicious meal of our trip so far AND it only cost us $7 each! Admittedly, we were questioning our decision to stop here as we made our way there. The street it’s located on can only be described as something out of scene out of ‘Taken’. The street was nothing more than rumble and our table was set up just outside the entrance to the place with old tires and piles of bricks strewn about. Regardless, the food was incredible. Anthony did not steer us wrong.
On our last day in Istanbul we hopped on the ferry to cross the Bosphorous and visit the Asian side of Istanbul, and by Asian side I mean the part of the city located on the continent of Asia. It as a pretty cool experience taking a short ferry ride and then stepping off in another continent. This Istanbul neighbourhood is referred to as Kadikoy. It has a very different energy compared to the very frenetic and crowded Taksim Square. The streets were much less crowded with cute little shops and sidewalk restaurants. We even found a nice park by the water where we napped for a bit. It was unbelievably quiet and so peaceful.
After a few hours in Kadikoy, we boarded the ferry again, this time making our way to Besiktas, a waterfront neighbourhood, this time located on the European side. We quickly discovered that it was very touristy and decided to walk to an area known as Ortakoy. A few people we met had recommended that we check it out. Ortakoy consisted of several small shops and restos, as well as a large outdoor market located along the waterfront. It was just as touristy as Besiktas but I rather enjoyed it because it was lively and eclectic.
After enjoying some food from one of the many food stalls, we made our way back to the hostel to freshen up before spending our final night exploring this amazing city.
Taksim square is a major landmark in Budapest and a central hub for the metro, it also happens to be a great place for people watching. We saw more crazy in that square and its surrounding than anywhere else in the city. On our last morning in particular while enjoying our final breakfast there we witnessed a man being kicked by an old lady then slapped (very lightly) by a random guy – he fled across the square bawling at the top of his lungs, without once looking back. We then spotted what appeared to be an attempted cat poisoning, followed by a fully naked man taking a bath in the fountain. No one batted an eye at any of this. Just your typical day in Taksim Square.
Istanbul is an incredible city, visit it if you have the opportunity, I know I’m grateful I did!
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