Istanbul Trails ~ Your Istanbul Tourist & Expat Travel Guide
Your personal Istanbul city trip & expat guide
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Below you’ll find a list of the official, national and religious holidays in Turkey for 2009, 2010 and 2011. When you plan a city trip or a cultural excursion, you may want to take a look at these. Museums, monuments and palaces may be closed on official and national holidays, and can have deviating opening […]
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This may seem like a strange restaurant tip. Sultanahmet Köftecisi is a place that doesn’t have a real menu, obviously doesn’t care too much about its interior design, doesn’t serve alcoholic beverages, has no starters and only one dessert, expects you to vacate your table in less than 30 minutes, yet is a must-have-done experience […]
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There has always been some mystique attached around the Harem. Below you’ll find a fair impression of the Harem in Topkapi Palace. There are two versions available: a YouTube version (smaller in size) and a WVM version (bigger in size). The length of both movies is the same: 2:17 min. Enjoy! YouTube Version Local Version
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The word Harem comes from Arabic and originally means forbidden. Contrary to what many (want to) believe, the Harem was not just an erotic hothouse. It was the private area of the sultan and his sons, hence forbidden for all other males, except the black eunuchs guarding the premises. Women on the other hand, had […]
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Topkapi Palace has also been the setting for a few caper movies. Topkapi (1964) is the oldest and won an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Peter Ustinov); the second film is a sequel of The Thomas Crown Affair starring Pierce Brosnan and is scheduled to be released in 2009. I’m afraid my movie […]
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As mentioned in the first part, the First Courtyard was the most public one, and therefore not really considered as being part of the Topkapi Palace. But the deeper you go into the palace, the less accessible it was for the people of the Ottoman Empire. Where the Second Courtyard was already semi-public (see Topkapi […]
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While there are several countries that lie on more than one continent, Istanbul is the only city in the world built on two continents. Istanbul’s coordinates are 41 degrees north, and approximately 29 degrees east. Not a big deal. But if you would follow that 41°N parallel around the globe, you’ll find out that Istanbul […]
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Whatever means of transportation you choose to reach your hotel, if it has inflatable tires, chances are very likely you’ll be confronted with one of the biggest problems Istanbul has to cope with: traffic! Of course, Istanbul is not the only metropolis in the world suffering from clogged streets. But the massive proportions of these […]
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Once you’ve made your way out of the airport, there is of course still the matter of getting to your hotel. If your hotel reservation includes a free airport pick-up, you’re all sorted. If not, do keep on reading since you have a few options. Let me give you a rundown of the cheapest, quickest […]
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