My impressions of Istanbul!
I immediately warn you that I studied at a technical university, and I do not pretend to a high style of presentation. Although I want to)) Istanbul is such a city, it makes anyone a poet, especially if you ride along the Bosphorus on a pleasure boat, or in the evening sit with a hookah somewhere in a cafe near Hagia Sophia... Although I ran ahead. I will tell you about my vacation in Istanbul in order. I will also try to be as useful as possible to those who have not been to this city yet and want to get to a completely unfamiliar place with at least some idea of Istanbul.
To begin with, Istanbul is not huge, but very huge. This is about people. Get ready for the fact that there are more people here than in Moscow at rush hour in the subway. And here they are all on the street. They say that twenty million people live here already. I think they're exaggerating. But there are sixteen or fifteen for sure! And now news number two: despite the fact that Istanbul is huge in terms of the number of inhabitants, it is territorially very compact. There is no contradiction here. I'm talking about Istanbul, which is necessary for tourists. These are the districts of Sultanahmet, Taksim, Laleli, and the Asian part, it is not in a hurry...
So, the first three can be well studied in a month, proceeding on foot. Especially Sultanahmet. By the way, I lived there. I rented a room in a small hotel that the Turks set up... right in an ancient building. After it was reconstructed and adapted to modern needs, of course. But it's still nice)) The hotel is called "Hali", I booked it on the Internet (a few words about the site through which I booked, read below) and I was satisfied with the stay. If you are going to Istanbul for the first time, then there is no question - you only need to settle in Sultanahmet. Why? Because all the sights that you will visit are located in this very Sultanahmet. Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Yeribatan (this is such a reservoir underground, with columns, it is VERY impressive), the Constantine Palace, which is now being excavated, the columns at the Hippodrome, the Hippodrome itself... It is clear that this is a standard set. But all this is a set of meaningless words only until you go PERSONALLY into this very Hagia Sophia to be surprised, whistle, and spend the whole day in it. As in all other "standard" attractions in Sultanahmet.
So, everything is clear with accommodation. The first time - only in Sultanahmet. Does this mean that I neglected the legendary Laleli? )) No, of course not. I wandered there out of interest. What can I say. . . The number of shuttles that hang out in Laleli is exaggerated in my subjective opinion. Of course, there are enough of them, but no one grabbed my hands with a request to buy something, and I looked at a couple of local mosques quite calmly, and saw many tourists who were just getting to know the city. As for crime, I don't know. But something tells me: if you don't intend to get drunk so that you can try to steal a girl from a hot local guy at a disco at night somewhere in a hotel on Laleli, nothing will happen to you. Absolutely calm tourist area, which has a little more outlets than Sultanahmet. That's the impression Laleli made on me.
Now Taksim. I got to him from Sultanahmet very simply in 15-20 minutes. I got on their tram and went to the final one, from where I went up the Tunnel (something like an underground metro, only a very short line). By the way, he did not mention how he got to Laleli. The answer is walking (10 minutes). I will return to Taksim. It's cool here. Istiklal is worth a look, and what exactly is on Isktilal - EVERYTHING. I would not say that the concentration of monuments of the ancient period - and it was this one that interested me more - is higher here than on Sultanahmet. But in terms of entertainment, Taksim burns. I spent two evenings there out of ten days spent in the city, and it was enough for me : )) In addition, I didn’t have much money with me, that’s why I booked the hotel on the Internet, which is cheaper than on the spot. I found the booking system by searching in Yandex, I chose the one above - TurkeyTps. ru. I read a lot of reviews online, and now, based on my experience, I can say that they did not deceive me, everything is great!
Most of the time I spent in two museums. Archaeological Museum and Topkapi. I'm not exaggerating. Archaeological - if anyone was (and who was not, I advise) this is such a three-story mansion (or rather, two, taking into account the faience pavilion) where there are as many antiquities as no museum in Europe could dream of. Antiquity, the Bronze Age, Egypt, weapons, ceramics, jewelry. . . For those who, like me in my childhood, were “sick” of history, this museum is a home. I literally spent one day on one floor. Went in in the morning, left at 5pm. There is no need to worry about me, there are tables and chairs just for such lovers of antiquity))
My second “home”, or rather, the third (if the hotel is considered the first) was Topkapi. This is a palace complex (on the territory of which, well, or nearby, the Archaeological Museum is located) where the sultans lived for 400 years. Over time, they moved, but, fortunately for tourists)) left everything in Topkapi. Well, almost everything. If we consider everything that Topkapi has seriously and without fools, this is for three or four days. Which I spent here, literally enjoying. Especially in the chamber of weapons (this is fantastic) and porcelain.
In addition, of course, there was an acquaintance with the evening Istanbul. Drinking coffee while looking at the Golden Horn is a very relaxing experience, believe me. And I am determined to indulge in it again next year.
