A week in Istanbul - Part 4: Ortaköy, Beşiktaş, and the Bosphorus

One day we caught a bus to Bebek - on the Bosphorus just along the coast from Ortaköy. This was where the rich and famous lived or visited - we had never seen so many Porsche, Maserati, Bentley, and Mercedes cars in one place at the same time. We walked along the Bosphorus promenade back to Ortaköy. Here are some of the views of the Bosphorus 

The Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, also known as the Second Bosphorus was completed in 1988. It is named after the 15th century Ottoman Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror, who conquered Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453 from the Byzantine Empire

Views across the Bosphorus from Ulus Park in Ortaköy

For more views of the Bosphorus see Bosphorus

The Ortaköy Mosque - very impressive by night

It was originally built in the 18th century. Later, in the 19th century, the current mosque, ordered by Sultan Abdülmecid I and designed by architects (father and son) Garabet Amira Balyan and Nigoğayos Balyan in Neo-Baroque style, was built between 1854 and 1856

For more photos of Ortaköy see Ortaköy

Close to our apartment in Beşiktaş, we came across these gardens in the Ihlamur Valley

The Ihlamur Pavilion is a spectacular structure in Beşiktas. It was a popular picnic place in the early 18th century, when the vineyards here belonged to Haci Hüseyin Aga, superintendent of the Naval Arsenal 

Although this attractive spot became an imperial estate during the reign of Ahmed III (1703-1730), it continued to be known by this name until the mid-19th century. Abdülhamid I (1774-1789) and his son Selim III (1789-1807) frequently visited this park

For more photos of Ihlamur and some details of Beşiktaş see Beşiktaş

We had a super week - we will return - there is still so much more to see

A week in Istanbul - Part 3: The Princes' Islands

We took a ferry from Kabataş to The Princes' Islands - or the Adalar - they are an archipelago off the coast of Istanbul in the Sea of Marmara

During the summer months the Princes’ Islands are popular destinations for day trips from Istanbul. 

They consist of four larger islands, Büyükada ("Big Island"), Heybeliada ("Saddlebag Island"), Burgazada ("Fortress Island"), Kınalıada ("Henna Island"), and five much smaller ones, Sedef Adası ("Mother-of-Pearl Island"), Yassıada ("Flat Island"), Sivriada ("Sharp Island"), Kaşık Adası ("Spoon Island"), and Tavşan Adası ("Rabbit Island").

Our ferry called at the four larger islands

We saw some jelly fish

During the Byzantine period, princes and other royalty were exiled on the islands, and later members of the Ottoman sultans family were exiled there too, giving the islands their present name. They were taken by the Ottoman fleet during the siege of Constantinople in 1453

During the nineteenth century, the islands became a popular resort for Istanbul's wealthy, and Victorian-era cottages and houses are still preserved on the largest of the Princes' Islands

Our destination was Büyükada. As on the other islands, motorised vehicles – except service vehicles – are forbidden, so visitors explore the island by foot;  

by riding a bicycle (which we chose);

or in horse-drawn phaeton carriages which function like taxi cabs, also offering "round-the-island" sightseeing tours

The views were enchanting

There are several historical buildings on Büyükada, such as the Ayia Yorgi Church and Monastery dating back to the sixth century, the Ayios Dimitrios Church, and the Hamidiye Mosque built by Abdul Hamid II

For more details of The Princes' Islands see Princes' Islands

A week in Istanbul - Part 2: Kadiköy

We spent a couple of days on the Asian side of Istanbul. The pace and bustle was considerably quieter than on the busier European side.

We ferried from Beşiktaş to Kadiköy

and passed by the Maiden's Tower - a tower lying on a small islet located at the southern entrance of the Bosphorus strait 200 metres from the coast of Üsküdar. During the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the tower held a Byzantine garrison. Subsequently, the structure was used as a watchtower by the Ottoman Turks during the reign of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror

The tower was destroyed during the earthquake of 1509, and burned in 1721. Since then it was used as a lighthouse, and the surrounding walls were repaired in 1731 and 1734, until in 1763 it was erected using stone. From 1829 the tower was used as a quarantine station, and in 1832 was restored by Sultan Mahmud II

For any James Bond fans, the tower featured in The World Is Not Enough. It was also visible in the background in From Russia with Love

We travelled by tram to the smaller district of Moda

We saw the Fenerbahçe Stadium ...

... and this statue of Brazilian footballer, Alexsandro de Souza, commonly known as Alex. He was sold by Cruzeiro in 2004 for 5 million euro to Fenerbahçe and he became captain after the team's captain Ümit Özat's transfer to Köln. He scored his 100th goal in the Süper Lig for Fenerbahçe in November 2010. 

After Fenerbahçe's league title in 2010-11, Alex won the golden boot award with 28 goals for the season. On September 15, 2012, while Alex was still under contract with Fenerbahçe, a fan-funded statue of the player was unveiled in Kadıköy Yoğurtçu park

We also took the opportunity to visit another famous railway station - now sadly closed.

The Haydarpaşa Terminal of the Turkish State Railways is close to Kadıköy's centre, having served east- and south-bound international, domestic and regional trains until 2009.railways

Haydarpaşa Terminal was opened in 1908 as the terminus of the İstanbul-Baghdad and İstanbul-Damascus-Medina 

The decor in the entrance and booking halls were impressive

These trains are sadly going nowhere these days

Very close to the railway station we came across this cemetery which is run by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. This is the Haydarpaşa Cemetery and was established initially for British military personnel, who took part in the Crimean War (1854–1856). The cemetery holds also graves of Commonwealth soldiers from the two World Wars, and civilians of British nationality. This obelisk was erected in 1857 by order of Queen Victoria to commemorate those who died in the Crimea. 

The soldiers died mostly as the result of cholera epidemic in the first organised military hospital in modern history created by Florence Nightingale. A bronze plaque, attached by the British community in Turkey on the plinth of the Crimean Memorial and unveiled on Empire Day, 1954 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s nursing service in this region, bears the inscription:

"To Florence Nightingale, whose work near this Cemetery a century ago relieved much human suffering and laid the foundations for the nursing profession."

Gravestone for the soldiers from the 17th Lancers who fell at Sebastopol

Other monuments in the cemetery include a symbolic broken column in memorial of German Jäger officers who fell in the Crimea

There are just over 400 graves of military personnel from World War I, who died in Turkey mostly as prisoners of war or some during the occupation of Istanbul (1918 to 1923) after the Armistice of Mudros.

For more photos and details of our time in Kadiköy see Kadikoy