“Mother-of-Pearl Island”
Old name: Terebinthos (Greek)
The smallest of the inhabited Princes Islands, Sedef is privately owned and can’t be reached by public transport although private boats for those with invitations do sail occasionally from Kartal. There are also some boats from Büyükada to provide the restaurants with diners.
Sedef is a place of tranquillity, of colourful flowers in spring and summer, of luxurious restaurants on the shore. But it was settled quite late in the day which means that it has little of architectural or historic interest to keep you entertained. Once round the island and you’ll probably be ready to head back to mainland İstanbul.
In a possible literary footnote, it is said that the street name Füsun Yokuşu provided the name for the heroine of Orhan Pamuk’s novel, Museum of Innocence.
