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Sphendone-February 2024

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Feb 10, 2026

　　The only remaining built section of the Hippodrome hints at how monumental the arena was. The level of galleries that once topped this section was damaged during the Fourth Crusade and totally dismantled in the Ottoman period – many of the original columns were used in construction of the Süleymaniye Mosque.

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Must-see attractions

　　The colourful and chaotic Grand Bazaar is the heart of İstanbul's Old City and has been so for centuries. Starting as a small vaulted bedesten (warehouse) built by order of Mehmet the Conqueror in 1461, it grew to cover a vast area as lanes between the bedesten, neighbouring shops and...

Topkapı Palace

　　Topkapı is the subject of more colourful stories than most of the world's museums put together. Libidinous sultans, ambitious courtiers, beautiful concubines and scheming eunuchs lived and worked here between the 15th and 19th centuries when it was the court of the Ottoman empire. A visit to the palace's opulent...

Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque

　　The Aya Sofya (officially the Ayasofya-i Kebir Cami-i Şerifi, or the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque) is one of the Byzantine Empire’s surviving architectural marvels. Right in the heart of İstanbul’s historic center, this sacred building remains – even today – an important symbol of power. 　　Commissioned by Emperor Justinian, consecrated...

Basilica Cistern

　　This subterranean structure was commissioned by Emperor Justinian and built in 532. The largest surviving Byzantine cistern in İstanbul, it was constructed using 336 columns, many of which were salvaged from ruined temples and feature fine carved capitals. Its symmetry and sheer grandeur of conception are quite breathtaking, and its...

　　İstanbul's most photogenic building was the grand project of Sultan Ahmet I (r 1603–17), whose tomb is located on the north side of the site facing Sultanahmet Park. The mosque's wonderfully curvaceous exterior features a cascade of domes and six slender minarets. Blue İznik tiles adorn the interior and give...

Süleymaniye Mosque

　　The Süleymaniye crowns one of İstanbul's seven hills and dominates the Golden Horn, providing a landmark for the entire city. Though it's not the largest of the Ottoman mosques, it is certainly one of the grandest and most beautiful. It's also unusual in that many of its original külliye (mosque...

İstanbul Modern

　　This lavishly funded and innovative museum has an extensive collection of Turkish art and also stages a constantly changing and uniformly excellent program of mixed-media exhibitions by high-profile local and international artists. Its permanent home is next to the Bosphorus in Tophane, but the massive Galataport redevelopment project currently under...

Dolmabahçe Palace

　　These days it’s fashionable for architects and critics influenced by the less-is-more aesthetic of Bauhaus masters to sneer at buildings such as Dolmabahçe. However, the crowds that throng to this imperial palace with its neoclassical exterior and over-the-top interior clearly don’t share that disdain, flocking here to tour its Selamlık...

Pierre Loti Café

　　Many visitors head to this hilltop cafe after visiting the Eyüp Sultan Mosque. Named for the famous French novelist who is said to have come here for inspiration, it offers views across the Golden Horn and is a popular weekend destination for locals, who relax here over cheap tea, coffee...

　　With a brief to explore critical and timely issues in visual and material culture, the İstiklal branch of the SALT cultural centre is one of the city's most interesting arts-focused institutions. Occupying a former apartment building dating from the 1850s, it houses exhibition spaces, a cinema, a bookshop and a...

　　İstanbul has more than its fair share of Byzantine monuments, but few are as drop-dead gorgeous as this mosaic- and fresco-laden mosque. Nestled in the shadow of Theodosius II's monumental land walls, it receives a fraction of the visitor numbers that the famous Aya Sofya attracts but offers equally fascinating...

　　There's plenty to see at this impressive museum, but its major draw is undoubtedly the 2nd-floor exhibition of paintings featuring Turkish Orientalist themes. Drawn from Suna and İnan Kıraç's world-class private collection, the works provide fascinating glimpses into the Ottoman world from the 17th to 20th centuries and include the...

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