Istanbul

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, awesome! Stay in Kadikoy on the Asian side, it’s a great neighborhood. I went with a friend (both women) and felt completely safe and had a wonderful time. Direct flight from Dulles is a huge plus; we used public transportation the whole time and it was clean and easy. Recommend the two continent food tour.

I loved Kadikoy. It was so vibrant while retaining a real people/real neighborhood feel. I stayed in Cihangir which was also very cool and centrally located but had a bit of a hipster/scene-y feel. (This was about a decade ago, though.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

You must be Greek.

The Turks brought their history, culture, and faith, which is very rich and gives us splendid mosques and cultural heritages to see as a modern tourist. But there's no denying the complex history of invaders and conquerers and occupied people over the centuries that is the history of Anatolia, especially western Anatolia. The Turks do not have a pleasant history with, say, the Greeks they conquered, and especially not the Armenians, who they tried to genocide. But that shouldn't derail the thread. Istanbul is a rewarding city to visit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

You must be Greek.

The Turks brought their history, culture, and faith, which is very rich and gives us splendid mosques and cultural heritages to see as a modern tourist. But there's no denying the complex history of invaders and conquerers and occupied people over the centuries that is the history of Anatolia, especially western Anatolia. The Turks do not have a pleasant history with, say, the Greeks they conquered, and especially not the Armenians, who they tried to genocide. But that shouldn't derail the thread. Istanbul is a rewarding city to visit.

By your logic, the US is a very, very sad place. The invasion by Europeans, the genocide of the Native Americans, the stealing of their land and the replacement of their culture with European culture. What a very sad and unpleasant history!

[Anonymous]

Istanbul is amazing. DH and I went in 2019. One thing I’d recommend would be not to stay in the old city part. It was super easy to get around on public transport and hotels were so much nicer in the newer area (naturally)

[Anonymous]

I really liked the old town, much more than the new.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How did you get to the other cities pp? Did you go a tour? Feel safe?

We flew to Cappadocia and then to Antalya. Rented a car in both places. Felt extremely safe -- in fact, while trying to navigate public transport from the Istanbul airport (and then later in Istanbul), people could see that we were confused & helped us out in broken English. Extremely kind!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

Guess what? In DC, several churches that nobody went to for years have been turned into condos. Things change with the times. Change isn't sad if very few are invested.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone been? Worth it?

Istanbul is one of the most remarkable cities on the planet. Even the touristy stuff like the Hagia Sophia is very cool. It's such an interesting city.

Envious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

You must be Greek.

The Turks brought their history, culture, and faith, which is very rich and gives us splendid mosques and cultural heritages to see as a modern tourist. But there's no denying the complex history of invaders and conquerers and occupied people over the centuries that is the history of Anatolia, especially western Anatolia. The Turks do not have a pleasant history with, say, the Greeks they conquered, and especially not the Armenians, who they tried to genocide. But that shouldn't derail the thread. Istanbul is a rewarding city to visit.

By your logic, the US is a very, very sad place. The invasion by Europeans, the genocide of the Native Americans, the stealing of their land and the replacement of their culture with European culture. What a very sad and unpleasant history!

My 16 year old daughter says that though Europeans were indeed invaders, their invasion can be justified because they ultimately made America a better place than it was prior to their arrival. Can the same thing be said of the Turks?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

You must be Greek.

The Turks brought their history, culture, and faith, which is very rich and gives us splendid mosques and cultural heritages to see as a modern tourist. But there's no denying the complex history of invaders and conquerers and occupied people over the centuries that is the history of Anatolia, especially western Anatolia. The Turks do not have a pleasant history with, say, the Greeks they conquered, and especially not the Armenians, who they tried to genocide. But that shouldn't derail the thread. Istanbul is a rewarding city to visit.

By your logic, the US is a very, very sad place. The invasion by Europeans, the genocide of the Native Americans, the stealing of their land and the replacement of their culture with European culture. What a very sad and unpleasant history!

My 16 year old daughter says that though Europeans were indeed invaders, their invasion can be justified because they ultimately made America a better place than it was prior to their arrival. Can the same thing be said of the Turks?

That’s the logic of a conqueror. Pretty sure many would disagree with your daughter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

You must be Greek.

The Turks brought their history, culture, and faith, which is very rich and gives us splendid mosques and cultural heritages to see as a modern tourist. But there's no denying the complex history of invaders and conquerers and occupied people over the centuries that is the history of Anatolia, especially western Anatolia. The Turks do not have a pleasant history with, say, the Greeks they conquered, and especially not the Armenians, who they tried to genocide. But that shouldn't derail the thread. Istanbul is a rewarding city to visit.

By your logic, the US is a very, very sad place. The invasion by Europeans, the genocide of the Native Americans, the stealing of their land and the replacement of their culture with European culture. What a very sad and unpleasant history!

My 16 year old daughter says that though Europeans were indeed invaders, their invasion can be justified because they ultimately made America a better place than it was prior to their arrival. Can the same thing be said of the Turks?

Does your DD go to school in Florida? What's her perspective on the free skills training slaves received?

I think if you could time travel back to America before the Europeans, you would disagree with your DD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've travelled there several times. I always found Istanbul bit of a sad city for various reasons. When you realize it was capital of the Byzantine empire that lasted a thousand years and virtually the entire historic and heritage legacy of the Byzantines is gone outside a few churches, to be replaced by an invading new culture and people, it does leave you with a bit of a profound feeling. And even modern Istanbul is a blend of the very decaying and new.

That aside, the sights in Istanbul can be wonderful to see. And it's atmospheric. There are definitely run down areas and areas I wouldn't venture alone if only because we did have kids thinking it was funny to throw rocks at us when we decided to walk back to Sultanahmet from an old Byzantine church by the city walls. Food is like anywhere else, do your research beforehand. Most of everyday restaurants will be oily but the good ones are very good. Istanbul Eats is a good blog to check for food recommendations if it's still around. Grand Bazaar is fun to walk through but is also very touristy and I'd be leery of buying anything from there. Do a tour up the Bosphorus. We also enjoyed Cappadocia and Ephesus and the Turkish coast.

You must be Greek.

The Turks brought their history, culture, and faith, which is very rich and gives us splendid mosques and cultural heritages to see as a modern tourist. But there's no denying the complex history of invaders and conquerers and occupied people over the centuries that is the history of Anatolia, especially western Anatolia. The Turks do not have a pleasant history with, say, the Greeks they conquered, and especially not the Armenians, who they tried to genocide. But that shouldn't derail the thread. Istanbul is a rewarding city to visit.

By your logic, the US is a very, very sad place. The invasion by Europeans, the genocide of the Native Americans, the stealing of their land and the replacement of their culture with European culture. What a very sad and unpleasant history!

My 16 year old daughter says that though Europeans were indeed invaders, their invasion can be justified because they ultimately made America a better place than it was prior to their arrival. Can the same thing be said of the Turks?

Ask the native Americans if they are now better off. GMAFB. And yes, the Turks have made their country into one of the most visited countries in the WORLD! I guess they’re doing something right!

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/most-visited-countries