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Strolling Around Sultanahmet:
A Two-Day Program
  
First Day
After
breakfast go to the Topkapi Palace (closed on Tuesdays), opening its
gates at 9 am. To visit its most interesting Harem section, visitors
need to buy a further ticket after entering the Palace. Especially during
high season there are long queues at the Harem entrance and we recommend
that after entering the Palace you go to the Harem section as the first
thing in the morning and visit the rest afterwards. You can spend the whole
time until noon in the Palace and have lunch at Konyali Restaurant which is in the fourth courtyard of the Palace. (Archeological
Museum, situated in the Palace gardens, is an alternative stop on your
way out of Topkapi Palace).
In the afternoon you can visit the 6th century St. Sophia Museum
(closed on Mondays), the Byzantine Basilica Cistern opposite St
Sophia and the 17th century Blue Mosque the biggest and the most famous Ottoman
mosque in Istanbul. On your way back to the hotel through the Byzantine Hippodrome
you can stop by at the Ibrahim Pasha Palace housing the Turkish and
Islamic Arts Museum (closed on Mondays).
In about 10
minutes you can walk to the Covered Bazaar (closed on Sundays).
While strolling through the narrow streets of the market we advise you to
stop and take a rest in either one of the traditional or newly opened
trendy cafés in the bazaar . The one we recommend is the Fes Café, which has an
adjacent concept store selling soaps
and organic towels. Kasif’s shop Sofa,
outside the bazaar on the way to the hotel is full with beautiful old and
modern objects, antiquities and art pieces.
In late
afternoon you can have a good rest in the historical Turkish bath Cemberlitas
Hamam, at a 10-minute walking distance from our hotel.
 
Second Day
After
breakfast. walk in the direction of the Golden Horn to reach the Spice
Market (Egyptian Bazaar). After strolling in and around the market and
maybe also visiting the less popular Rüstem Pasha Mosque next to the
market to see some of the most beautiful Ottoman tiles from the classical
era, cross the Galata Bridge by foot
to the other side of the Golden Horn. On the other side take the
“Tunel” a two-station subway (one of
the oldest in Europe) that brings you up to Tunel Square at one end of the
pedestrian street “Ýstiklal Caddesi”
(also called Beyoglu or Pera). Walk until Taksim Square
(considered to be the center of Istanbul) and back, exploring as well the
side streets on both sides.
Special
points of interest are the café and bar scene in the narrow streets of Asmalimescit area, Orientalist
Paintings Collection in the Pera
Museum, Misir Apartment with
some of the best art galleries of the city (Galeri Nev, Galerist, Casa Dell’ Arte, Ura), the Flower Market, Cukurcuma area with interesting art and antiquity shops,
English-language bookstores Robinson
Crusoe, Homer and Pandora, the tiny CD shop Lale Plak,designer Umit Unal’s
clothing boutique Doors and the
jewellery design and souvenir shopTakil.
The neighborhood café Simdi is
a good place to rest.
On your way
back go into the old district Galata. to see this old neighborhood
around the Galata Tower
which is in a rapid gentrification process and is becoming home to an
increasing number of small designer and vintage stores and boutiques. Some
of them are in the small streets
around the tower, some others like the clothing boutique Bahar Korcan or the tiny jewellery
atelier Aida Pekin are in the
Serdar Ekrem Street. Finally you can
also take the elevator and go up to the tower to enjoy spectacular views of
Istanbul (breathtaking especially during sunset).
You can
return to the hotel either by taxi or by taking a tram at Karakoy station located not far from
the tower and get off at Sultanahmet station.
You might as well spend the rest of the evening in this lively area full of
restaurants, cinemas and bars, and catch a glimps of modern day Istanbul.
For live music at the end of the evening check the programmes of the jazz
clubs Babylon and Nardis (both closed during summer).
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