Istanbul: First-Time Visitor Trip Report
Mar 23rd, 2006 | 09:57 PM
#1
Original Poster
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 69
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Istanbul: First-Time Visitor Trip Report
I enjoy visiting historic cities, and this time it was Istanbul's turn to reveal its charms.
I booked my airfare/hotel via www.gate1travelcom. I've never been less than pleased with their services. I arrived in Istanbul from Los Angeles via London on British Airways at 9:45 p.m. and purchased my visa before heading through passport control and out to the meeting area, where my airport transfer was awaiting me.
I stayed at the new-ish Orsep Royal Hotel in Sultanahmet, on a narrow side street east of Sirkeci train station. Everything about the place was satisfactory, and I'd highly recommend it to folks looking to stay in this part of town. Staff were pleasant and helpful, and check in/out was smooth and painless. My room was small but very comfortable, with a decent-sized bathroom. The heat worked almost too well; but it sure was nice to return to a warm room after the chill of winter. The bed was especially comfortable, and the lighting was adequate -- a little on the dim side for my tastes; I'd call it "soft lighting." The thick windows kept out any calls to prayer that might have woken me up before I'd have liked -- jet lag was there to take care of that anyway.
The next day, Friday morning, I took advantage of my included breakfast down in the restaurant. A decent buffet of the scrambled-eggs-breads-cheeses-fruit-Wheaties-yogurt variety.
Strolled up Alemdar Caddesi, cutting up cobblestoned Sogukcesme Sokak with its refurbished wooden (or "wooden"?) houses/hotels and then over to the entrance to Topkapi. The guard there eyed me wearily and explained that it was too early to really go in to buy tickets, as it was only 8:15 a.m. Despite fears that there'd be loads of tourists by the time I returned at 9, I wandered off and meandered over to the Hippodrome and back, entering via the Gulhane Park entrance and cutting up to the ticket booth at Topkapi from there. And at 9...I was the sole person at the booth to buy a (10 lira) ticket. (There is certainly something to be said for winter travel when it comes to popular sites.) I dashed in past the Middle Gate and jogged over to the Harem, where I discovered tickets for the day's first tour wouldn't be on sale until 10. But the very friendly guy who was running the audioguide sales booth was happy to chat me up and discuss a variety of topics before I headed off to visit the remaining courtyards of the palace and snap some photos.
Returning to the Harem entrance just after 10, I was one of about thirty people who purchased a 10 lira admittance ticket for the tour. Our guide was fairly adept with English, and I found he was efficient without being too rushed, which was just my speed. I marveled at the variety and beauty of all the tiled-and-carpeted rooms.
Following the tour, I snapped some more photos and then started back to the hotel. (I much prefer paintings and sculpture to the type of objects d'art/religious artifacts/jewelry on display in the Treasury, etc., so I skipped those without a second thought.) Passing a travel agency with a sign advertising the Sufi Music Concert and Sema Ceremony (i.e., Whirling Dervishes), I popped in to purchase a ticket for the next evening's show at Sirkeci train station.
I decided I head to Asia for an hour or two, so I headed out to the ferry landings. Feeling hungry, I chose to grab a sandwich at a branch of Simit Sarayi. I had a ridiculously inexpensive (2.5 lira) but very good vegetarian sandwich, which I ate upstairs while watching the sea of people, trams, and autos careening about below.
The ferry ride was quick and the air very brisk. (I had apple-cheeks my entire stay, I'm certain.) Even the salt air and breeze couldn't completely eliminate the smoke from all the cigarettes passengers were puffing. (I'm about 95% convinced that Turkish children each enter the world carrying a lit cigarette.) Disembarking in Uskudar, I walked along the shoreline (dodging various roadworks and other potential hazards) until I had Kiz Kulesi just offshore across the way. I snapped some photos there before returining to catch the next ferry back to Eminonu. Oh, one of my favorite sounds is a Turkish person saying "Eminonu."
Jet lag really caught up with me in the later afternoon; I wound up napping from 4 to almost 7 before I got my act together and went in search of dinner.
Passing with reverent awe the beautifully floodlit forms of Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque, I eventually found my way to Magnaura Cafe/Restaurant, which I found seemingly by chance as one small winding lane led into another in the area south of the Blue Mosque. The atmosphere was very welcoming and friendly; my waiter spoke English quite well, and the decor was colorful, with interesting artwork. The food was good; I am a vegetarian and ordered a dish of grilled mushrooms and vegetables, which arrived sizzling hot. The tahini they served with the bread before the meal was wonderfully tasty. The food was quite filling, a good value for the 12.5 lira I paid for it (and the mineral water).
I have zero interest in bar/club nightlife, so afterwards, I returned to the Orsep Royal for bed.
Day 2 was mostly a walk through the Byzantine era, with a stop first to explore Aya Sofya. 10 lira and, happily, they didn't even make a face at having to provide the change for my 20 lira note. The interior did not immediately impress me as it might have -- there is floor-to-dome scaffolding that pretty effectively mutes much of the wonder. But the incredible mosaics are certainly not hidden behind anything, and I took time to really appreciate the artistry of the incredible examples in the south gallery. I was disappointed that there was no access to any of the Ottoman turbes adjacent to Aya Sofya.
Ah, but I did have access, upon exiting, to my very first tourist tout(s). A volley of "Hello Mister" x 3 and a couple of "What language do you speak"s and a "Did you enjoy your visit?" All of which I resolutely ignored. (I make neither visual nor verbal contact with anybody of the sort; seriously, I don't believe any of these guys is even worth the energy of a "No, thanks."
The Basilica Cistern was my next destination. A tad overpriced, I thought, at 10 lira, but a worthwhile experience, certainly. (Just hold the handrails going up or coming down! It's slippery and damp down there.)
From there, I took the tram across the Galata Bridge and alighted at the first stop across the Golden Horn. I followed the "Tunel" signage down under the busy street and emerged to where I was certain the underground funicular station would be, but I passed it by once as workers were painting and refurbishing the building the ticket booth and entrance sits below and there was no visible signage. Catching the cute little historic tram at the top, we started our trip up Istiklal Caddesi until coming to a brief stop by a formation of police. Apparently, there was a demonstration of some type just up ahead, and they were about to begin following it at a respectable distance. So that made for an interesting ride. Arriving near Taksim Square, I walked up to Zencefil Nature & Peace vegetarian restaurant. Again, all the waitstaff spoke English well. The food was okay -- I had a veggie lasagna that wasn't distinctive but was filling, which is what I wanted. I'm not a foodie, usually, just give me a decent meal at a good price. (In this case, it was around 10 lira.)
Istiklal Caddesi struck me as no more or less interesting than any of the other countless pedestrianized shopping streets in Europe, so I made a quick dash down to the Galata Tower for an impressive view of the city. But 10 lira? Overpriced.
Returning to Sultanahmet via the tram, I alighted at the Blue Mosque. I'd never visited a mosque before, so I approached with a bit of trepidation. Of course, there was nothing to it at all, just removing shoes and placing them in a shopping bag provided by the attendant and then carrying them into the mosque. I loved the feel of the comfortable carpets against my socks, though. The interior wasn't quite blue, as it was overcast outside, but it was impossible not to be duly impressed by the domes and tilework.
By 7:30 -- and having skipped dinner totally, as I wasn't at all hungry -- I was in my (plastic lawn chair) seat in the exhibition room adjacent to Track 1 at Sirkeci station. The "Whirling Dervish" ceremony was probably the highlight of this trip: what a wonderful expression of belief, utilizing such grace in movement, music. The only distractions were the tourists who insisted on taking FLASH photos of the ceremony despite the explicit request in the program that they not do so. Sigh. Anyway, I got a number of atmospheric images without utilizing my flash.
My third and final full day in town began with a walk over to the Archaeology Museums. And wouldn't you know it? The first clear day of the three is when I'm intending to be INDOORS all morning. Such is life. While I was impressed with a number of items in the collections of the Archaeology Museum and the Museum of the Ancient Orient, overall, I wasn't all that wildly impressed. But at only 5 lira, they are a very good value, indeed.
I'm something of a creature of habit, so I returned to Simit Sarayi for another sandwich and some tea before taking the tram up to the "Third Hill" area, which I very much liked because of the general lack of other tourists like myself. I basically followed the Third Hill and Suleymaniye walking tours found in John Freely's excellent Blue Guide to Istanbul, which included the luminous Sezhade Mosque complex and Aqueduct of Valens. And, whoa! Was Suleymaniye ever a revelation. You can have your interior of the Blue Mosque: the mosque of Suleiman the Magnificent is truly something to gape at, inside and out. Rather than return to my hotel via the tram, I returned to Divan Yolu and followed the tram tracks all the way back to the hotel, stopping to pause at a Blue Mosque view point as the call for prayer began to boom from every nearby minaret. Goosebumps!
To wrap up the visit, I had dinner at Magnaura again, this time with another equally charming English-speaking waiter. I was there early, and my other dining companions in the room overlooking Akbiyik Caddesi were also Americans. The penne arrabiata was plenty hot, let me tell you. I had to have ice cream for dessert despite how cold it was outside. There was just no other way to cool down, even with my two glasses of water. Heh.
My airport transfer was at the hotel right at 6 a.m., and the ride to the airport couldn't have been more surprisingly magical: a half-moon set in a dark blue sky just above the Yeni Camii and, soon, the sun rising in a huge orange ball as the minivan neared the airport.
I booked my airfare/hotel via www.gate1travelcom. I've never been less than pleased with their services. I arrived in Istanbul from Los Angeles via London on British Airways at 9:45 p.m. and purchased my visa before heading through passport control and out to the meeting area, where my airport transfer was awaiting me.
I stayed at the new-ish Orsep Royal Hotel in Sultanahmet, on a narrow side street east of Sirkeci train station. Everything about the place was satisfactory, and I'd highly recommend it to folks looking to stay in this part of town. Staff were pleasant and helpful, and check in/out was smooth and painless. My room was small but very comfortable, with a decent-sized bathroom. The heat worked almost too well; but it sure was nice to return to a warm room after the chill of winter. The bed was especially comfortable, and the lighting was adequate -- a little on the dim side for my tastes; I'd call it "soft lighting." The thick windows kept out any calls to prayer that might have woken me up before I'd have liked -- jet lag was there to take care of that anyway.
The next day, Friday morning, I took advantage of my included breakfast down in the restaurant. A decent buffet of the scrambled-eggs-breads-cheeses-fruit-Wheaties-yogurt variety.
Strolled up Alemdar Caddesi, cutting up cobblestoned Sogukcesme Sokak with its refurbished wooden (or "wooden"?) houses/hotels and then over to the entrance to Topkapi. The guard there eyed me wearily and explained that it was too early to really go in to buy tickets, as it was only 8:15 a.m. Despite fears that there'd be loads of tourists by the time I returned at 9, I wandered off and meandered over to the Hippodrome and back, entering via the Gulhane Park entrance and cutting up to the ticket booth at Topkapi from there. And at 9...I was the sole person at the booth to buy a (10 lira) ticket. (There is certainly something to be said for winter travel when it comes to popular sites.) I dashed in past the Middle Gate and jogged over to the Harem, where I discovered tickets for the day's first tour wouldn't be on sale until 10. But the very friendly guy who was running the audioguide sales booth was happy to chat me up and discuss a variety of topics before I headed off to visit the remaining courtyards of the palace and snap some photos.
Returning to the Harem entrance just after 10, I was one of about thirty people who purchased a 10 lira admittance ticket for the tour. Our guide was fairly adept with English, and I found he was efficient without being too rushed, which was just my speed. I marveled at the variety and beauty of all the tiled-and-carpeted rooms.
Following the tour, I snapped some more photos and then started back to the hotel. (I much prefer paintings and sculpture to the type of objects d'art/religious artifacts/jewelry on display in the Treasury, etc., so I skipped those without a second thought.) Passing a travel agency with a sign advertising the Sufi Music Concert and Sema Ceremony (i.e., Whirling Dervishes), I popped in to purchase a ticket for the next evening's show at Sirkeci train station.
I decided I head to Asia for an hour or two, so I headed out to the ferry landings. Feeling hungry, I chose to grab a sandwich at a branch of Simit Sarayi. I had a ridiculously inexpensive (2.5 lira) but very good vegetarian sandwich, which I ate upstairs while watching the sea of people, trams, and autos careening about below.
The ferry ride was quick and the air very brisk. (I had apple-cheeks my entire stay, I'm certain.) Even the salt air and breeze couldn't completely eliminate the smoke from all the cigarettes passengers were puffing. (I'm about 95% convinced that Turkish children each enter the world carrying a lit cigarette.) Disembarking in Uskudar, I walked along the shoreline (dodging various roadworks and other potential hazards) until I had Kiz Kulesi just offshore across the way. I snapped some photos there before returining to catch the next ferry back to Eminonu. Oh, one of my favorite sounds is a Turkish person saying "Eminonu."
Jet lag really caught up with me in the later afternoon; I wound up napping from 4 to almost 7 before I got my act together and went in search of dinner.
Passing with reverent awe the beautifully floodlit forms of Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque, I eventually found my way to Magnaura Cafe/Restaurant, which I found seemingly by chance as one small winding lane led into another in the area south of the Blue Mosque. The atmosphere was very welcoming and friendly; my waiter spoke English quite well, and the decor was colorful, with interesting artwork. The food was good; I am a vegetarian and ordered a dish of grilled mushrooms and vegetables, which arrived sizzling hot. The tahini they served with the bread before the meal was wonderfully tasty. The food was quite filling, a good value for the 12.5 lira I paid for it (and the mineral water).
I have zero interest in bar/club nightlife, so afterwards, I returned to the Orsep Royal for bed.
Day 2 was mostly a walk through the Byzantine era, with a stop first to explore Aya Sofya. 10 lira and, happily, they didn't even make a face at having to provide the change for my 20 lira note. The interior did not immediately impress me as it might have -- there is floor-to-dome scaffolding that pretty effectively mutes much of the wonder. But the incredible mosaics are certainly not hidden behind anything, and I took time to really appreciate the artistry of the incredible examples in the south gallery. I was disappointed that there was no access to any of the Ottoman turbes adjacent to Aya Sofya.
Ah, but I did have access, upon exiting, to my very first tourist tout(s). A volley of "Hello Mister" x 3 and a couple of "What language do you speak"s and a "Did you enjoy your visit?" All of which I resolutely ignored. (I make neither visual nor verbal contact with anybody of the sort; seriously, I don't believe any of these guys is even worth the energy of a "No, thanks."
The Basilica Cistern was my next destination. A tad overpriced, I thought, at 10 lira, but a worthwhile experience, certainly. (Just hold the handrails going up or coming down! It's slippery and damp down there.)
From there, I took the tram across the Galata Bridge and alighted at the first stop across the Golden Horn. I followed the "Tunel" signage down under the busy street and emerged to where I was certain the underground funicular station would be, but I passed it by once as workers were painting and refurbishing the building the ticket booth and entrance sits below and there was no visible signage. Catching the cute little historic tram at the top, we started our trip up Istiklal Caddesi until coming to a brief stop by a formation of police. Apparently, there was a demonstration of some type just up ahead, and they were about to begin following it at a respectable distance. So that made for an interesting ride. Arriving near Taksim Square, I walked up to Zencefil Nature & Peace vegetarian restaurant. Again, all the waitstaff spoke English well. The food was okay -- I had a veggie lasagna that wasn't distinctive but was filling, which is what I wanted. I'm not a foodie, usually, just give me a decent meal at a good price. (In this case, it was around 10 lira.)
Istiklal Caddesi struck me as no more or less interesting than any of the other countless pedestrianized shopping streets in Europe, so I made a quick dash down to the Galata Tower for an impressive view of the city. But 10 lira? Overpriced.
Returning to Sultanahmet via the tram, I alighted at the Blue Mosque. I'd never visited a mosque before, so I approached with a bit of trepidation. Of course, there was nothing to it at all, just removing shoes and placing them in a shopping bag provided by the attendant and then carrying them into the mosque. I loved the feel of the comfortable carpets against my socks, though. The interior wasn't quite blue, as it was overcast outside, but it was impossible not to be duly impressed by the domes and tilework.
By 7:30 -- and having skipped dinner totally, as I wasn't at all hungry -- I was in my (plastic lawn chair) seat in the exhibition room adjacent to Track 1 at Sirkeci station. The "Whirling Dervish" ceremony was probably the highlight of this trip: what a wonderful expression of belief, utilizing such grace in movement, music. The only distractions were the tourists who insisted on taking FLASH photos of the ceremony despite the explicit request in the program that they not do so. Sigh. Anyway, I got a number of atmospheric images without utilizing my flash.
My third and final full day in town began with a walk over to the Archaeology Museums. And wouldn't you know it? The first clear day of the three is when I'm intending to be INDOORS all morning. Such is life. While I was impressed with a number of items in the collections of the Archaeology Museum and the Museum of the Ancient Orient, overall, I wasn't all that wildly impressed. But at only 5 lira, they are a very good value, indeed.
I'm something of a creature of habit, so I returned to Simit Sarayi for another sandwich and some tea before taking the tram up to the "Third Hill" area, which I very much liked because of the general lack of other tourists like myself. I basically followed the Third Hill and Suleymaniye walking tours found in John Freely's excellent Blue Guide to Istanbul, which included the luminous Sezhade Mosque complex and Aqueduct of Valens. And, whoa! Was Suleymaniye ever a revelation. You can have your interior of the Blue Mosque: the mosque of Suleiman the Magnificent is truly something to gape at, inside and out. Rather than return to my hotel via the tram, I returned to Divan Yolu and followed the tram tracks all the way back to the hotel, stopping to pause at a Blue Mosque view point as the call for prayer began to boom from every nearby minaret. Goosebumps!
To wrap up the visit, I had dinner at Magnaura again, this time with another equally charming English-speaking waiter. I was there early, and my other dining companions in the room overlooking Akbiyik Caddesi were also Americans. The penne arrabiata was plenty hot, let me tell you. I had to have ice cream for dessert despite how cold it was outside. There was just no other way to cool down, even with my two glasses of water. Heh.
My airport transfer was at the hotel right at 6 a.m., and the ride to the airport couldn't have been more surprisingly magical: a half-moon set in a dark blue sky just above the Yeni Camii and, soon, the sun rising in a huge orange ball as the minivan neared the airport.
Mar 23rd, 2006 | 09:59 PM
#2
Original Poster
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 69
Likes: 0
Ay yi yi. I'm still jet-lagged enough that I hit Post My Reply BEFORE Preview My Reply. I apologize for any errors! For example, the link to Gate1Travel, of course, is www.gate1travel.com -- definitely time for bed. Heh.
Mar 23rd, 2006 | 10:34 PM
#3
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,224
Likes: 0
thanks for the report, I'll be in Istanbul for work in July -- I will have just a few extra days to sightsee. Did you fly to Istanbul from the West Coast for 3 days or was this part of a longer trip? I'm curious as to what went into your decision in using a travel agent -- did you find this was cheaper than doing it on your own or did you just not have enough time to do it yourself? People seem to frequently use travel agents when traveling to Turkey. While my work will book travel for me, I can usually book more interesting, nicer places for less than what they find -- so they don't mind when i do it myself. thanks for posting your report.
Mar 24th, 2006 | 09:06 AM
#6
Original Poster
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 69
Likes: 0
fishee -- I did indeed fly from the West Coast, and it wasn't part of a longer trip. This was my 26th trip out of the US, one would think I'd be savvy enough to realize that a 6-day special to Istanbul would be comprised of three travel days just to get there and back...but even veteran travelers can have a mental lapse, I guess. Heh. But the price with gate1travel was very good, even with the single supplement and additonal pricing of my L.A. flight (the trip was priced out of NYC). It just seemed handy to use gate1travel, as I'd used them on a fully escorted Egypt trip last year, as well as for when I booked airfare/hotel with them for an independent visit to Hong Kong in '04.
In the end, I think it was about the same as if I had booked the airfare and hotel myself -- probably a bit more, but I'm happy to give gate1 some business anyway.
worldinabag -- enjoy your visit, and do please post a trip report when you return!
In the end, I think it was about the same as if I had booked the airfare and hotel myself -- probably a bit more, but I'm happy to give gate1 some business anyway.
worldinabag -- enjoy your visit, and do please post a trip report when you return!
