Istanbul

( 1 € = 1,92 TRY / 1 TRY = 0,52 Euro March 03

Entry /Visa
a visa wasn't required for the most western countries. But you need a passport, a national idendity card is partly accepted by booking a package tour with hotel.

Getting there
The budget airlines mostly land at the new airport Sabiha Gökcen 50 km out of town in Asia. The more central airport is the aiport Atatürk.
to and from the airport Sabiha Gökcen sgairport.com/havaalani/eng/ulasim/iett.asp
there are two bus lines starting from the terminal gate, which go directly to Taksim-Place ( 5 TRY) that is central situated in the quarter Beyoglu. From there to the Galata Tower is is only 1,5 km and one km more over the Galatarasay bridge to the quarter Eminönü (Hagia Sophia etc.). Fom the terminal gate departes also the bus No. E10 to Kadiköy, from where a ferry goes in half an hour to Eminönü (1,30 TRY). If you arrive at night take the night bus to Taksim place, which departs after each plane arrival.
from Taksim Place are Shuttle-busses until midnight to Sabiha Gökcen Airport (10 TRY).
Atatürk airport: in reach of the center in 30 min by tram
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Money
Currency is the New Turkish Lira, abbreviated TYR. There are no million notes any more (so far). In March 2008 1 € = 1,92 TRY / 1 TRY = 0,52 Euro (currence converter: oanda.com/convert/classic ). Money could be changed at the airport. Don't chage at home, the exchange rate will be horrible.

Accomodation
there were all kind of accommodation. I had a very cheap, but also dark and simple room near the Taksim Place in the Asya Hotel ( 20 TYR /night). Good if you only wish a bed for sleep. Calculate 60 to 70 TYR for a simple ordinary room.

Transport
Bus: is good, but you have to find out the system. A ticket is sold partly in the bus. You can buy a carnet for 5 bus trips for 6,50 TYR in tabac shops or at the ticket shops at bigger bus stops, there you can also easily ask, which line will go to your destination. There are also a tram, a metro line and some subways. The same as going by bus
Ferry: at the ferry stop at Eminönü you can buy Jetons for a transport to Üsküdar (1,30 TYR), Kadikoy or up the Bosporus.
Taxi: reasonable prices but not cheap. At night it costs 50 % more, but the price is a subjet to negotiation, most Turkey's take a taxi at night for the daylight tarif. Take care that the driver hasn't switched on the night tarif at daylight ( a flashed up red lamp at the taxameter shows the nighttarif).
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Food
a lot of fast food and Döner ( from 2 TYR). The Turkish cuisine counts to the world five best and compete with the French, Poland/German, Chinese, Indian Cusine. Fish is rather expensive, had to be sold soon and so waiters try to foist it to tourists. Sometimes you get a cheaper species of fish as you have ordered. Widespread in Germany, too. Ask for the price, if you aren't Bill Gates.

Entrance
the bigger museums like Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace (Harem 10 TYR extra) take a 10 TRY entrance fee. There are no reductions for students. Mosques are houses to pray for God and his prophet and have free admissions.

Shopping
a shopping paradise, but cheap brand articles are mostly faked products. Dont pay more as 5 Euro for a faked Rolex or 3 Euro for faked Parfum. You might get trouble in countries like Italy or France with this products.

Haggling:
In the Big Basar bargaining is expected. But the Istanbul people usually buy at other markets. Don't buy from the first day, get a feeling for prices first. I would discourage from buying carpets, which is surely overpriced. There is the problem of transport and I won't trust on the vendor, there are some black sheeps.
Thre is no rule for any good, how you is the first and how is the last price. Sometimes the first price is the 20 fold or more price of the last price, sometimes you get only a discount, which is less than half the price. Often there are fixed prices, very often at street markets, for example if shoes cost only 15 TYR or Parfum 3 TRY.

Security
Istanbul is quite safe, also at night. Turkish people are sincere (compared to other countries) and very helpful to strangers. But there are some black sheeps and criminal scams :

Basic principle: don't accept invitations or drinks from strangers and don't engage with prostitutes
( nothing happend me but many travel-guides are warning. I was accosted a lot to go to some party, what was obviously a scam)
1. frequent scam: invitation to a party. You enter the location and you have to pay for the first round, mostly a three figured bill. If you don't pay you are forced by knife to the next ATM
2. victims get unsconcious by drugs in the drink and are robbed .
3. Women are invited. If they don't accept sexual avances they are left somewhere in the boonies or worse raped and robbed
4. Prostitutes offer a discount price, then they doubt the agreement or performance. The quarter is against you and see 1.

The police is mostly on side of the tourists. Scams are not supported by officials.
Don't take any antiquites out of the country. Turkish courts also subsume pebbles from the beach as an offence of stealing Turkish cultural assets. Some weeks of prison and a fine of some thousand Euros was sentenced in some cases. If you are a minor, don't kiss girls of the same age. Underage boys kissing underage girls might expect some years of prison for sexual abuse of minors; in one case the judge even renounced the alleged victim's testimonial before court. But Turkey try to change their judical system to EU-Standard. Don't critisize the Turkish culture and policy. It's impolite and also a serious offence in Turkey.

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Highlights

Quarter Sultanahmet

Aya Sophia Entrance 10 YTL
Hagia Sophia early Christian mosaic click to enlarge
means "church of wisdom", The Unesco World Heritage was built in order of the Emperor Justitian by 100.000 workers in 530-537 A.D. The dome broke and fall in in May 558 A.D., it was reinforces and is now with a diameter of 56 m one of the world's largest. After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 A.D. by Sultane Mehmet II. Fatih (the Conquerer) it was consecrated into a mosque. In 1935 A.D. the Turkish leader Atatürk desecrate it to a museum.
Aside the monument itself the ancient christian mosaics in it are cultural gems.

Blue Mosque
Blue Mosque click to enlarge
built in 1609-1616 A.D. is called Blue Mosque because of its 20.000 and more mostly blue coloured glazed tiles or fayences produced by manufactories near Iznik. These factories were the only one, which were allowed to produce the tiles for that mosque, which caused some quality problems. The four thick pillars are called by the people "Elephant's feets" .

Yerebatan Sarayi Cisterne Entrance 10 YTL
antique water reservoir click to enlarge
gigantic cisterne built at times of Emperor Justinian (527-565 A.D.) The ceiling rest on 336 pillars, between them are planks, on which you can walk between them. The water was brought by the aqueductes of the Hadrian and Valenz. In the past was a basilika build above the cisterne. At one end of the planks two pillar pedestals are sculptured as a head of a Medusa. A scene in the James Bond Film "From Russia with Love" was shot here.

Hippodrome
there is nothing left from the antique Roman sport arena, except the 3.500 years old Egypt obelisk, which was brought there in 390 A.D. and the sculpture of a snake shaped pillar from Delphi. There is another obelisk from the 10th century A.D. and the gazebo "Alman Cesmesi" in Neobyzantic stile, a donation from the German Emperor Wilhems II. to the Turkish people.
Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts
Near the Hippodrom is situated this interesting museum. It shows a part of the Grand Vizier's former palace and some pieces from 3.000 years of Turkish and Islamic history.

Topkapi Palast Entrance 10 YTL and 10 YTL extra for the Harem
Harem Topkapi Palace 3rd. court
Sultan Mehmet II. built the palace complex of 4 courts and the Harem from 1478 A.D and ruled from here over the vaste Ottoman Empire. About 4000 servants lived in the palace, some more from outside were working there, too. The part, where the Royal family with their servants and the Empires umpteen women lived, is the "Harem". The male servants were castrated, so that the Eunuchs could not pregnant the Empirers wifes.
From interest are the collections of the Prophetes relics. A priest read life on loudspeakers from a book (I suppose the Koran). Some pretiosa are in another part of the palace.

Living in the Harem
more than 1000 women lived in the Harem, who weren't allowed to leave the Harem. Living there was very boring for them. If one of them had the rare luck, to be choosen to serve the Sultan, she could get advance to a "favorite", which was without sexual experience not as easy as it seemed. The rise was connected with an own room and own servants. Mostly four women were choosen as wife. A women who bear the Sultan a sun, was more powerful, especially, if the son has the chance to get a Sultan, too.
But that could also be dangerous.

Quarter Eminönü bordered to Sultanahmet
Grand Bazaar
Grand Bazaar click to enlarge
More than 20.000 sqm, 61 streets and 18 gates is the area of 4000 shops, which sold gold jewels, carpets, clothes, shoes and other goods. About 20.000 people live from the Grand Bazaar. At the outskirts are handicrafts trades and lodges but their presence decline. The people of Istanbul buy not very often there and prefer other markets. so at the market in Eminönü or Kadiköy.
Galata - Bridge
the 470 m long bridge is build by Thyssen Krupp in 1991 and connect the two quarters Eminönü and Galata. In the lower floor are restaurants , Bistros and Cafés of the upper-middle price class. At the end of the bridge is a fish market.
Valenz Aqueduct
Roman aqueduct
the 1 km long and 30 m high aqueduct was built by the Roman Emperor Kaiser Valenz (364 -378 A.D.) Today a mulitlane road is leading through it.
Süleymaniye Camii Mosque
Süleymaniye Moschee
the Mosque (1557 A.D.) is the biggest Ottoman building and it should be the finest. Under restauration at the moment.
Fatih Camii Mosque
Fai Moschee
the Mosque of Fatih th Conquerer (1452-1481 A.D.) replaced the church of the Byzantine Emperors. It broke after en eearthquake in 1766 A.D and was rebuilt 1771 A.D. The interior with the light openings and the colour scheme of the ceiling is particullary beautiful.
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Quarter Galata and Beyoglu opposite of Eminönü at the other side of the Golden Horn
Galata Tower
Galata Tower click to enlarge
a 65 m hight observation tower, built by the Genuese (Italy) in the 14th. century. AT the top is a luxury restaurant and a viewing platform (entrance 10 YTL).
The old cable Tünel - tram connect the lower part of Karaköys (behind the Galata bridge) to the 200m upper quarter Beyoglu (1 YTL). From there you can continue with the historic tram Eski Tramvay along the Istiklal Caddesi road to the Taksim Place (1 YTL)
Istiklal Caddesi - shopping mall from Galata-Tower to Taksim Place
old tram click to enlarge
is a shopping mall with man shops. At night quite bustling. Halfway to Taksmi Place is a popular and busy bar and restaurant carree to the left. At Taksmim Place is a central bus station.
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at the Old Wall
Theodosian Wall)
Wall
die Theodosian Wall is part of the mural, which was built in Constantinople 330 A.D. and enlarged from 408 to 450 A.D. It protected more than 1000 years the town against enemies from the west until it was conquered at the 28. May 1453 A.D. by the Ottoman Conquerers. There are towers about all 20 meters. Fine is the part west of Silivrikapi with the castle of the seven towers at Yedikule, which is near Mevlanakapi. Good preserved parts are also at the Topkapi (getting there by tram). It is possible to walk on the wall, but be careful.
Chora - Church (Kariye Müzesi)
Chora Church
is quite near the Theodsian Wall at Edirnekapi. The church has fine mosaica from the 12th century. It is a museum now (10 YTL Entrance fee, closed on Wednesday). The fine mosaics and paintings, which are gems of art history, were covered by a wooden panel in the 15th century by the Islamic conqueres and so preserved from destruction.
Getting there: Bus to Edirnekapi and then to the left a hundred meters along the Wall and then turn right.
Eyüp Mosque
Eyüp Mosque
for the Islam Eyüp is a very important pilgrims place (it is the most important mosque after Mekka, Medina and Jerusalam). It is a 30 min walk from the wall (or ferry from Eminönü). Mulims pray at the grave of Ayub, who was Mohammed's standard bearer. A teological advisor of a sultan was instructed in a dream by an Angel, where the corpse of Ayub is. the nice little town has therefore a even though decent touristic athmosphere, with restaurants and shops of devotional goods. Around is a big cementary, it is popular to have a grave near that of Ayub. Up to the hill is the famous Café Pierre Loti with it's panorama viewdown the Bospurus to the core of Instanbul. It belonged to the french writer and soldier Pierre Loti. Prices are reasonable.
Café Piere Loti

out of town
Dolmabahçe Sarayi
in the middle of the 19th century Sultan Abdümecit built a new palace at the shore of the Bosporus at Dolmabahçe Saray, which is at the shore of the Bospurus
Yildiz Park
not far from the Dolmabahçe Sarayi is park with old trees, two pavillions, a porvelain manifacture and a wooden palace. At the entrance of the park is in the old Ciragan Palace one of the finest luxury hotels.
Kiz Kulesi -Tower
Old custom tower in the sea 200 m before Üsküdar. The ferry Eminönü-Üsküdar pass the tower, which is today a luxury restaurant.
After a tale a daughter of a sultan's daughter was prdecit dying by a venom snake. For saving her she was banned to the tower, but the snake came in a basket of fruits.
Bosporus tour
with a tourist boat or cheaper with the public ferry and bus along the Bosporus. There are nice towns and villages with villas and frame houses on of 200m high hillsides. .
"Kilzil Adalar (Red Islands)
about 20 km out of the Marmara Sea are these small islands. Büyük Ada is the biggest and most visited of them. The islands are a popular weekend destination. there are pebble beaches, forests and villas. In former times the Sultans princes and other disagreeable members of the royal family were banned here.
getting there 1.5 - 2 hrs boat from Eminönü

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Links:
Istanbul: istanbulcityguide.com,
Turkey
Links: turizm.gov.tr, ratgeber-tuerkei.de, turkinfo.tic.at , antalya-ws.com , cappadociaonline.com, fairchimney.org, theguideturkey.com, about-turkey.com, hitit.co.uk, turkishdailynews.com,

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mail me:kambodschajoe@hotmail.com
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It would be kind to mail me 1-3 mistakes you found, if you think this side is helpful for your trip. Thanks!

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