Dear Folks,
unfortunately I did not had much time to dedicate
lately to my Blog, and this is a shame.
Still, I would like to share with you a Post
dedicated to one of my favorite cities, Istanbul.
It was in this city that I found my wife, so it will always be synonymous of love and romance.
Istanbul is the biggest city in Europe and one of
the biggest in the world. Its unique location, between Europe and Asia is
already a guarantee of a magic city, but there's more, much more.
Istanbul is also known as "second Rome"
because of its historical past as the capital of the Roman Empire of the East.
The city has always been important, first as Byzantium
(the capital of the Byzantine Empire), then as Constantinople (the capital of
the Roman Empire of the East) and then as Istanbul (the capital of the Ottoman
Empire).
The magic of this city can be observed while
walking thousands of years of history just in front of your eyes. Wonderful
monuments, wonderful views, friendly and welcomed local population, wonderful
food, wine, drinks and desserts.
If you go to Istanbul please start with a visit
to Hagia Sofia, it was for a thousand years the biggest Christian Church in the
world, after its conquest by the Turks it was then transformed into a Mosque
and since 1935 by the order of President Ataturk, it was transformed into a
Museum. A testament to what is a unique place that can be cherished by all.
A few meters from Hagia Sofia is the Blue Mosque,
a majestic, beautiful Mosque and for sure a must see. It is called Blue Mosque
because of its tiles decoration. Please bare in mind that half an hour before
prayers, during prayers and half an hour after prayers the Mosque is closed for
Tourists.
If you stand in the park between Hagia Sofia and
Blue Mosque you can observe that the Ottoman Empire adopted the Byzantine style
of the Orthodox Churches in the construction of all their Mosques, this can be
observed all over the city and in most Mosques, the result of this mix is
absolute beauty. Not far away from Hagia Sofia you can find the wonderful
"Cistern of the Cathedral", a magical underground world built as a
water reservoir during the Roman period. It’s a plunge into history, a James
Bond movie was filmed down there and also there's a chapter in the Dan's Brown
novel Inferno.
Few blocks up the road you will find the Gran
Bazaar. It’s like a Shopping Centre but bare in mind that it was built 500
years ago and it is still busy busy busy. There are some shops that are managed
by the same family for centuries. You can find anything there, it is not a
bargain as you might expect, because quite honestly they will profit from
Tourist and its rich currency but still it is a must of Istanbul. Close to the
Gran Bazaar you have some old Turkish Baths houses and in my opinion it is
another must of Istanbul. You will be in a bath house relaxing and thinking
that 500 years ago, in that very same place people were already enjoying the
very same experience. Also around the Gran Bazaar you can find place where you
can sit down, smoke Shisha and enjoy the amazing Tchai (that's Tee).
Top Kapi palace deserves a longer visit, but if
you are fun of world history you need to go and visit the palace of the Sultans
and how they have ruled a huge and rich Empire (Ottoman), the views from the
palace of the Bosphorous are breathtaking.
You can then go down to Golden Horn area by the
New Galata bridge, you have the New Mosque and next to it the Egyptian Bazaar
or the Spice Bazaar. Not far go and visit the famous Restaurant and Baklava
House Hamdi, the Turkish food is excellent and then finish with a Pistachio
Baklava, heaven.
You can then walk the New Galata Bridge and check
on the local fisherman’s. After you cross the bridge you can start walking
towards Galata Tower, another landmark of the city. Once in that area you can
walk the famous shopping street Istiklal and its Tram. It finishes in Taksim
Square a much loved area for the locals.
Istanbul is a vibrant huge Metropolis where old
and historical can mix with modern and huge, like the biggest Europeans
Shopping Centers, with huge modern Skyscrapers and amazing views.
There's a modern and hype nightlife, very modern
and probably not in our occidental image of a Muslim country. Beautiful bars
and discos, awarded restaurants are many and the choice is difficult.
I will suggest you to go and visit Ulus 29, its
one of the most awarded Restaurants of Istanbul, not cheap but also I believe
that the food, the wines, the service, the views are well worth the visit.
Please call beforehand for a reservation. In the same building you can stay for
late cocktails next to local hype young rich beautiful people and dance the
night away.
But Istanbul it’s much more, there’s so many
museums, you can also have a small cruise in the Bosphorous, visit the Fish
Restaurants in the Asian side, etc.
As a conclusion, do not trust Taxi drivers for
suggestions for a Restaurant, they might take you to isolated restaurants that
will give a menu with prices for rich Tourist and then you will have a horrible
meal and will pay much much money. Always take a taxi with a specific
destination and an address written in a paper so that you can show the driver,
communication bobble can be a huge problem. Also, even though Istanbul can be
considered an European city it is still a city outside the normal standards of
the Western standards, so if you are a woman do not walk alone outside known
streets and always be suspicious of local gents, better afraid than sorry.
Enjoy Istanbul, enjoy history and enjoy a wonderful
culture, its cuisine, its traditions.
Bon Appetit
Chef Gourmet Du Art
