Zipping and zigzagging in our taxi through a moody labyrinth of
backstreets in the Taskim and Beyoglu districts was a speedy and exhilarating re-introduction
to Istanbul. Mike and I had visited as fresh-faced twenty-one year olds more
than a decade before and at the time stayed in a hostel in the touristy Sultanahmet
district (as you do). Yet on researching via the trusty Lonely Planet, this time we opted for modern day Istanbul‘s Beyoglu
neighbourhood, across the Golden Horn on the European side and where the city’s
next generation prefers to reside. Istiklal Caddesi is the pedestrian shopping stroll
that runs downhill from Taskim to Tunel Square. An endless river of people and
faces, the boulevard pulsates all hours of the day and night, and its iconic red
tram somehow manages to part the sea of bodies as it plies to and from Taskim
Square.
Mama Shelter Istanbul
is the latest in a growing chain of new age hotels (also in Paris, Marseille,
Lyon and Bordeaux) catering to the youthful yet discerning independent and business
traveller. Ranging in price from 69 euro for a single-bed room to 149 euro for
a deluxe double terrace – when each accommodation offering morphs into the
next, this stylish yet fun loving and affordable establishment stood out in the crowd. Conveniently located a stones’ throw from Istiklal,
contemporary Mama Shelter is not yet a year old; oozes cool and exuberance
through its slick reception area, colourful brasserie and expansive rooftop bar
overlooking Istanbul’s mosque minaret-accented skyline. The rooms are small yet
bright, white and super functional, and the fluffy queen bed is the kind of
blissful comfort you wish you could replicate at home. Our sunny double
terrace, a corner room on the highest (sixth) floor, was perfect for morning
coffees or sunset beers – where we could toast Mike’s birthday, our first
wedding anniversary and reflect on the surreal last eight months at sea. Though
our favourite feature of Mama Shelter must go to the gracious and cheerful
young gents behind reception. Their welcoming and personal service was
refreshing and an invaluable asset to the hotel. Mama loves you!
The sheer offering of historical and religious monuments in this
great city is astounding and you need more than just a few days to do it
justice. Most key sights are conveniently located within the Sultanahmet
district on the European side of the Bosphorus.
To get there, we crossed the Galata Bridge lined
with local fisherman trying their luck in the murky Golden Horn waters far
below, ate customary fish sandwiches from the boats bobbing alongside Eminonu
wharf and passed all manner of street stall hawkers selling BBQ corn, BBQ chestnuts,
fresh-squeezed pomegranate juice and genuine fake watches.
Built in the early 1600s to rival is
grand neighbour, the Sultan Ahme Camii (or more famously: the Blue Mosque)
stills functions as a daily place of worship despite the long line of tourists
that file through the viewing area.
In respect of the religion and culture, female
visitors must cover their head, chest and legs (scarves provided if needed) and
all shoes removed.
Across the sprawling gardens, the somewhat haphazard additions and
extensions to the landmark Aya Sofya (or Hagia Sophia) monument tell a story of
a dramatic and volatile history. It was originally constructed in 537 AD as the
world’s grandest Christian church, until the Ottoman conquest in 1453 saw the Greek
Orthodox Church converted to a mosque. With incredible foresight Ataturk,
the first president and eternal father of Turkey, had Aya Sofya declared a
museum and today elements and symbols of Allah and Islam sit alongside images
of Christ, the Virgin Mary and his Saints. Intricate Christian mosaics that
were once plastered over and hidden from view when converted to a mosque have
been painstakingly chipped away to reveal the original intentions and are a
testament to Istanbul’s remarkable past. Walking into this awe-inspiring
building with its towering, seemingly unsupported dome roof and elaborate
decorations is one of those wondrous moments that truly take your breath away.
Seven Hills is a rooftop
restaurant perched between, yet just downhill of both the Blue Mosque and Aya
Sofya. This was the perfect spot to be precisely when the call to prayer, the broadcast hymn
to Allah, was bounced effortlessly back and forth between the two towering edifices.
A goose-bump inducing daily custom that will forever remind us of our Turkey
visits!
Disappointingly our mid-October visit to Istanbul coincided with the
national weeklong religious holiday Kurban
Bayrami (or Feast of the Sacrifice).
Most commercial districts, including the Grand Bazaar and Spice Bazaar,
were completely closed. Fortunately we experienced both markets on our previous
visit, although they had been a highlight and we missed the opportunity for
new photographs and hard haggling for souvenirs that we’d been holding out to
buy. Probably a blessing in disguise given there was barely a spare square inch
left in our loaded luggage!
We simply loved Istanbul the second time around and understand the
city has rejuvenated and progressed significantly in the past decade.
While densely developed there is little in the way of high-rise
construction, and with a growing number of rooftop bars and restaurants, it’s
easy to get elevated above the rooftops and admire evening Istanbul’s dusty
pink-red city skyline. Popular restaurant 360 is one such stop for metropolitan vistas with your cocktail, and Leb-i Derya just off Istiklal came highly recommended by
Mama Shelter for our joint birthday-first wedding anniversary celebratory dinner.
This stylish, moody rooftop venue dished up tasty share plates, both
international and contemporary Turkish mains and smooth cocktails overlooking
the twinkling lights of the city and its illuminated minarets. We couldn’t have
been any further from Fiji where we wed this time last year, but are thankful
to share another milestone in such a memorable location.
Sidestepping north off the main Istiklal thoroughfare quickly
immerses you in the crowded and electric Nevizade Sokak eating precinct.
Crammed with simple restaurants and meyhanes (tavernas), we could barely take
more than five steps without an attempt made to usher us to the first vacant
table and once seated could almost reach across the narrow laneway to the adjacent
restaurant. Come for the atmosphere, not the food. If there is still energy for
shopping – buy from fruit, spice or fish market vendors well into the night, or
for a nightcap with the locals – visit Beyoglu’s cay (tea) garden crowded with
students and young professionals playing backgammon, chain smoking cigarettes and ordering endless
cups of cay served in small glasses. This is sensory overload at
its peak. And as the Lonely Planet accurately states: “simply put, if you miss
Beyoglu, you haven’t seen Istanbul.”
The final stop on this short visit was fittingly a Beyoglu tattoo
parlour for Mike to collect two small, yet lifelong souvenirs of both our
Mediterranean summer escapade and a new nautical bond that we realize is now
firmly planted in our short and long term futures in one capacity or another.
Let’s just say we already know what we’d dream to do with our own retirements!
Istanbul – another for your must visit list!
