Our second last day in Istanbul started off with a minicab pickup for the Unique Istanbul tour, booked online with True Blue Tours.
As we had covered off all the main tourist sights in Istanbul independently as described in the previous blog post; we wanted a local guide to help us cover the less known attractions. Traffic is also hectic within the city centre - so in order to maximise the number of sites you can see over a short period of time; our recommendation is to book a tour. This post lists the sites we visited on Day 3 and 4 of this trip.
1. Cable car to Pierre Loti
A short cable car ride up to a hill where Pierre Loti, a French writer composed fictional stories about his experiences in Istanbul.
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| Looking down at suburban Istanbul |
2. Bosphorus Cruise
This cruise started on the European side and then briefly crossed to the Asia side to drop off passengers. We passed by the Rumeli Fortress - built by Sultan Mehmet II during his campaign to conquer the city.
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| Istanbul bidding for the Olympics |
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| Hanging out of the boat |
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| The Galatasaray FC yacht |
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| Rumeli Fortress |
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| Maiden's Tower |
3. Rustem Pasha Mosque
Famous for the geometric and floral tiles.
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| Very pretty interior |
4. Chora Church
Known for its Byzantine mosaics that depict the life of Christ and Mary.
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| Chora Church building |
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| The main dome |
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| Some parts of the mosaics have not been repaired |
5. Suleymaniye Mosque
One of the largest and most well- known mosques in Istanbul.
6. Kofte lunch at the Kybele Hotel restaurant
Had a very pretty Turkish lamp collection.
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| Lamps of all colours |
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| Kofte and potatoes |
Fish Market
After the tour, we were dropped off a the fish market, located outside the city walls. To pass time before dinner, we bought beers from the supermarket and drank it while sitting on the esplanade walls, people watching the locals and the oil tankers queuing to pass through the Bosphorus to the Black Sea.
The fish market is located in a square surrounded by a number of seafood restaurants. However, it was a bit difficult to distinguish between them and we ended up selecting one restaurant - Havuzbasi that looked busy and had an English menu.
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| Fish on display |
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| Entree of mixed seafood |
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| Grilled prawns |
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| Grilled local fish |
Afterwards we took a walk along the esplanade where fishermen were lined up for the evening's catch.
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| Small boats tied up along the esplanade |
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| Fishing for dinner |
Edebiyat Kiraathanesi cafe
The night was finished off with a sugar buzz, eating some local pistachio confectionary at the Edebiyat Kiraathanesi cafe, washed down with sweet apple tea. The cafe offered so many different types of products that the menu was printed in a bound catalogue that would make IKEA proud.
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| Pistachio milk dessert |
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| Apple tea and pastry |
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| Even more sweets on offer in the window |
Ciragan Palace Breakfast
The last day in Istanbul started off with a grand breakfast at the Ciragan Palace - part of the Kempinski hotel chain that had a helicopter pad in the front lawn. As a bit of trivia (courtesy of Wikipedia), the Sultan's suite at the hotel is billed at US $15,332 per night and is listed at number 14 of the World's 15 most expensive hotel suits by CNN in 2012.
Breakfast was an amazing buffet of options from different cuisines where we watched hotel guests arrive in their private yachts - a moment in a far-away world of luxury before our return to reality and flight back home to London.
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| Needing the coffee to wake up completely |
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| Wonder how much this room is at rack rate |
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| It would be nice to call this place home |
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| Jing waiting for his private helicopter |
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| While the rest of us wait to embark the private yacht (as if) |
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| Olie kicking his feet up and relaxing |
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