TIMELESS HERITAGE
Whether you’re in Istanbul for a week or a year, one
neighborhood that invariably features on every itinerary is
Sultanahmet. As the beating heart of old Istanbul, the narrow,
winding streets of this time-honored enclave boast an
incredible concentration of art and architecture.
“Now just a small part of Istanbul, Sultanahmet is
essentially the city once known as Constantinople,” explains
local guide Busra Soydemir. “It’s incredible to think people
have been living here for about 8,000 years, making it one of
the oldest continuously inhabited areas of the world.”
With its sextet of slender minarets dominating the
Istanbul skyline, the iconic Sultan Ahmed Mosque — more
commonly known as the Blue Mosque — graces a thousand
Turkish postcards. Designed by the famous Ottoman
architect Sinan, construction finished in 1616. Four centuries
later, it remains a fully functioning mosque.
As visitors soon discover, the exterior of the Blue
Mosque is not actually blue at all, but its huge domed
ceilings are covered with more than 20,000 ornately
patterned, azure Iznik tiles. Offering gentle, stained-glass
light and the sounds of quiet prayer, it makes a peaceful
escape from the bustle of the city outside.
Facing the Blue Mosque is another architectural marvel
— the Hagia Sophia or Aya Sofya. Originally built as a sixth-
century Greek Orthodox church, it has also been a Catholic
cathedral and a mosque. Today it’s a non-denominational
museum boasting a unique mix of Eastern and Western
influences.
“Head to the upper gallery to see the beautiful blend of
Islamic calligraphy art and Christian mosaics,” recommends
Soydemir.
A stone’s throw from the Hagia Sophia lies another
Sultanahmet highlight — the Topkapi Palace. Perched on a
bluff overlooking the Bosphorus and the mouth of the
Golden Horn, this was the command center for the Ottoman
Empire for 400 years.
TURKISH DELUXE
When Sam Cevikoz returned to Istanbul from Sydney to
open a high-end cafe in 2013, the city’s Nisantasi
neighborhood seemed like the natural place to set up shop.
“There’s nowhere else in Istanbul like Nisantasi,” says
the entrepreneurial coffee aficionado. “It's hard to describe
the atmosphere here. Yes, the people who come here
appreciate quality and luxury. But they’re also willing to
follow trends, to learn, to try new things.”
They say that to understand Istanbul, you need to make
sense of its richly layered history. Old Istanbul offers
magnificent architecture and cultural artifacts that date back
thousands of years. Indeed, many are drawn to its complex,
Byzantine history — for its time-honored harems and
mosques, cemeteries, and grand bazaars.
But there is another face to Istanbul: a contemporary
face of change, consumption, and cool. Today Turkey’s most
cosmopolitan metropolis has more billionaires than any city
outside London, New York, and Moscow.
Indeed, market scale and demographics continue to
make Turkey a magnet for international fashion brands,
which have flocked to Istanbul in droves over the last
decade. Their destination of choice? Nisantasi.
Outstanding examples of classical Ottoman-era architecture, the
Yeni Cami (New) Mosque and Sultan Ahmad (Blue) Mosque were
completed in the 17th century.
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PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY IMAGES(ALEXANDER SPATAN, TETRA IMAGES, DHMIG PHOTOGRAPHY)
