East meets West...II

Slept like the proverbial log!

After a late breakfast, a return visit to explore the area across the Galatay bridge and up the Tünel funicular railway. First I called into Sirkeci railway Station, original terminus of the Orient Express. It’s still got something of the romantic age left and even has a small museum with objects of most interest to Turkish train-spotters.

I intended to find the Pera Palas Hotel, which was famously used by passengers arriving on that train- you could just imagine Hercule Poirot there. However it has been closed for restoration since 2006 and looked rather sad and dowdy, with not much sign of restoration underway, at least externally. Pera Street with its nostalgic ‘tram’ is rather like a grand European thoroughfare with big shops and imposing façades, but why did I have to decide to turn around just before the Galatasseray Fish market- I may even have been right by it but surprisingly didn’t smell it. Never mind!
Quickly back to the hotel to drop off the Turkish Delight that will be returning to the UK with me, and a bite of lunch, before pick up for the East meets West afternoon tour, which was perhaps not quite as advertised.
The Beylerbeyi Palace is closed on Thursdays so the Chora church is substituted, which as an example of Byzantine art and mosaics, was perhaps more interesting for me than 19th Century Ottoman! Plenty of mosaics in St Saviour, which were of the Orthodox tradition, and many had survived the church being converted into a Mosque.
It’s quite a drive in heavy traffic across town then across the Bosphorus Bridge to a viewpoint- which had a good view of the bridge and the modern skyscrapers of the modern business area of the city but few of the old city and the harbour area, so these views had to be whilst crossing the bridge itsself. Back into the city in typical big city traffic, snail’s pace and lots of tooting horns; I rather liked the countdown on the traffic lights which gave the number of seconds before they will change- seemed rather a good idea to me.

I asked to be dropped off at Galatay bridge rather than stay any longer on the coach back to the hotel, so that I could experience the food by the bridge, grilled fish served on the waterfront from boats moored alongside- genuine offshore traders! Apparently, though I didn’t know it at the time, this is one of the 1000 things to do before you die! The fish, sea bass I gather, but it looked more like mackerel, is served in a baguette with onion- add your own salt and lemon; I have to say it is delicious, and the smells around the fish stall just add to the experience. Balik ekmek!



Next stop was the Spice Bazaar, a hustle and bustle of a covered market selling spices, Turkish Delight, Baklava etc, and from there I walked back through the alleyway of streets to the Grand Bazaar and to my nearby hotel.