The New Istanbul: "If things were dusty 30 years ago, they are certainly glitzy now."

One of the days we took the ferry up the Bosporus to see the tulips at Emirgan Park. We were told tulips are not as good as previous years, but there were certainly very, very many. After a brief visit to the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, we took the bus to Taksim Square, and walked back to Saltanhamet. We had the same walk 30 years ago, but hardly anything is recognizable today. If things were dusty 30 years ago, they are certainly glitzy now.

As usual, our day starts with breakfast on the 6th floor.


Below are views from the ferry.














And we arrive at the Emirgan Ferry Dock after 45 minutes or so.


From the ferry dock it's a short walk to the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, located in the former residence of the Sabanci family










Tulip Festival - Emirgan Park. Not only are there tulips, but also many locals enjoying the nice weather + tulips.


















We rode the bus from Emirgan Park to Taksim Square where we found a bench with a great view of the Taksim Mosque and ate our lunch.


Then walked mostly downhill to Galata on Istiklal Avenue, checking out the architecture, and then across the bridge to Sualtahameth.


This is the Çiçek Pasajı (Flower Passage) arcade. Elegant.




The Art Nouveau Mısır Apartmanı (Egypt Apartment)


The Church of St. Anthony of Padua.




This is the ceiling of the very POSH Kubbeli Lounge in the Pera Palace Hotel. High tea is 80 USD per person. I was a little bit surprised they let us in just to look around - no tea for us. ;-)


The Art Nouveau Casa Botter, complete with Art Nouveau "heads".




Istiklal Avenue ends in Galata and we walked by the iconic Galata Tower. And down the photogenic Kamondo Stairs.




And across the legendary, vibrant Galata Bridge.

Turkey: Asian Istanbul

On one of the days in Istanbul we explored the Asian side: from Beylerbeyi Palace to the Camlica Hills to Kadikoy, and to Goztepe Park. Istanbul is a vast city, and every corner is vastly different. Next time, we'll stay away from Sultanhamet, maybe right in Kadikoy.

We rode the Metro under the Bosporus to Üsküdar, where the fishermen we out in force, then took the bus to Beylerbeyi Palace






Beylerbeyi Palace and the Bosporus Bridge








View from the Camlica Hills with the Marmara Sea (left), Golden Horn (center), and the Bosporus (right) all in sight. These views were not that far from the eye-catching Çamlıca TV Tower, third below.






Kadikoy, IMO, is the liveliest district on the Asian side. We had a tasty vegan lunch at Vegan Masa, then spotted some cool architecture before heading east to see the Tulips at Göztepe Park.








Outdoor Market


The Art Nouveau-ish Süreyya Opera House.




The front and rear of the very cool modernist Kadıköy Public Education Center is in the Moda neighborhood.




Fishermen and Nets at the Moda docks.


The tulips at Goztepe Park were amazing. Check out the video, first below, and the following photos. The park also had a great circular playground for kids, and benches for old folks to sit.