“Village of Ali Bey”
Once upon a time Alibeyköy, at the far end of the Golden Horn, was such a green and lovely part of İstanbul, watered by the Alibey river, that it was known as the “Sweet Waters of Europe”, a particularly popular picnicking area for Turks living on the European side of the city. Accounts written by 19th-century travellers often mention what a lovely place it was. Roll on a century, however, and development has not been kind to it. Most of the greenery has vanished beneath a thick covering of high-rise apartment and office blocks intermingled with flyovers.
Nowadays the only reason most people come to Alibeyköy is to use one of the bus services out of the Cep Otogar (Pocket Bus Station). To get here you take the tram from Eminönü that trundles along the shore of the Golden Horn – the bus station is the last stop after a journey of about 30 minutes.
As you pass the Alibeyköy Merkez stop, look out on the inland side of the road for a sculpture of a giant corncob. Why it’s there is an İstanbul mystery.
