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