“Thursday Market” Strictly speaking the name of a short street linking busy Tersane Caddesi to Voyvoda (Bankalar) Caddesi, Perşembe Pazarı is also the…
“Gate of Torment” Considering all the fuss that was made about the Metro bridge across the Golden Horn, it’s extraordinary to think that…
“Kasım Paşa” Market: Sunday (Toprak Tabya Sokak, Küçük Piyale) Named after Kasım Paşa (? – 1543), one of Süleyman the Magnificent’s commanders who…
“Imperial Village” The main reason to come to the Golden Horn suburb of Hasköy is to visit the Rahmi M Koç Museum, Turkey’s…
“Cannon Gate” Not to be confused with Topkapı Sarayı, the Ottoman palace in Sultanahmet, Topkapı is the area around the “Cannon Gate” on…
“Palace with Iwans” Festival: 2 July (St Mary’s) Ayvansaray is the monument-rich and historically interesting corner where the old Sea Walls along the…
“Ballad” On the southern shore of the Golden Horn, Balat was once the heart of Jewish İstanbul and is home to the Ahrida Synagogue, one…
“Lighthouse” Old name: Petrion Festivals: 6 January (Tossing of the Cross for Epiphany), Easter (midnight ceremony on Sunday) Cramped and congested it may…
It’s one of those great İstanbul landmarks that every visitor to the city sees without necessarily paying it the attention it deserves. The…
“Wooden Castle” Across the concrete square beside the Mısır Carşısı (Spice/Egyptian Bazaar) in Eminönü, Tahtakale is the delightfully ramshackle area immediately to the…