| Boğaziçi |
 For a different perspective of Istanbul, treat yourself to a boat ride on the Bosphorus, and savor the experience. From Sirkeci, Kabataş, Beşiktaş, or any other of the many vapur limanı (ferry docks), you can find your way easily onto one of the ferry boats that ply to and from across the Bosphorus. If you venture forth on a weekday morning, you shall have to endure the crowds of commuters on their way to work, but you will be treated to an impressive display of seamanship, as the Captains of these large steamers wheel their vessels around and dart through gaps in the busy Bosphorus rush-hour traffic, slicing a swift course stern and aft of small fishing boats and huge super-tankers alike with breath-taking precision. The fresh smell of the sea wafting in on a morning breeze, with a chorus of sea gulls cawing, boat horns tooting, and the swish of waves past the bulwarks, complete your impression of this busy maritime metropolis.You may choose to visit the Princess Islands in the Sea of Marmara, or voyage up the Bosphorus to the Black Sea. The latter journey provides a significantly different, and in many ways more attractive view of Istanbul, than you can otherwise get by car. From the Bosphorus you can view the entire expanse of the great palaces Dolmabahge and Qragan, and numerous lesser ones besides. You will be filled with awe as you gape up at the massive expanse of the two huge suspension bridges, which straddle the continents of Europe and Asia, towering hundreds of feet above your boat as it passes beneath. Along the way you will see several fine examples of typical Turkish architecture from earlier this century and the last, called Yah. These traditional wooden villas are a testament to the artisans who built them, skilled as they were in carpentry, and the art of wood carving. A yah can be four or five stories high, are painted in gay yellow or pink, trimmed in white, often with a patio or balcony and boat dock, since they were originally built so close to the shore that they appear to be on the water. Bordered on either side by high hills of deep green pine forests, occasionally scarred by the light red and grey swathes of surging urban development, the shore-line is a continuous series of bays and villages that comprise suburban Istanbul. Clusters of yachts and fishing boats shelter in these inlets, which are surrounded by hillsides dotted with the elegant modern villas of the Istanbul wealthy. High above the waterway, the imposing presence of looming stone-grey hulks -the fighting fortresses, Rumeli Fortress and Anadolu Fortress-leer out from their commanding perches with an ominous portent of authority from a by-gone era. The Bosphorus widens at the mouth of the Black Sea, and provided one has rented a suitable vessel, an adventurous and aquatic soul may dive from the upper deck and plunge deep down into the dark and briny, blue-green waters, where the chill of the depths, and the peculiar mineral and salinity content of the waters, will invigorate you even to your bones! Close at hand, the villages of Rumeli Kavak and Anadolu Kavak offer a choice of fine fish restaurants to feast appetite, where the Kalkan (turbot) comes highly recommended. On your return journey beware the iyod, the aromatic breeze blowing off the Black Sea, with a reputation for inducing sleep - for together with a full belly, and the gentle lull ol the waves, you risk dosing of into a slumber, and mrssing the sights on the opposite shore, and a second glance at all that passed you before. Returning to Sirkeci in the laie afternoon, enjoy the trulv magnificent panorama. From the sea you get an especially good view of the old city walls, the Topkapt Palace and Yeni Saray with the truly massive proportions of the Haghia Sofia set into perspective. The old city's silhouette dons a mystical and magical aura, when the hazy veil of dusk, shades a pastel of blue-grey domes and minarets, against the orange blaze of the sun as it sets. |