Istanbul. 10 ticks
It's impossible to just look at her. 6th century 40 meters. Such a 16-storey building for you 14 centuries ago. Get inside, lose orientation in time and space, throw back your head and stand with your mouth open. When you come to your senses, find a wall with a fingerprint. The brave and the curious can stick their thumb in, and, having described a circle with their hand, make a wish. If you're lucky, go up to the second floor and look at the mosaics up close.
2. Blue Mosque.
She is right there, opposite Sophia. Practically does not concede in the size. At the entrance, put on the scarves offered immediately, or your own, if they were taken with you in advance.
3. Hippodrome.
Go through the side exit from the territory of the Mosque to the square in search of a hippodrome. Instead of the hippodrome, find the Egyptian obelisk and be surprised, having overheard the guide of one of the many excursions, that the giant hippodrome has long been gone, but there is a place, it is on this square that you are.
4. Reservoir. A stone's throw from Sofia is a museum-reservoir, 6th century. Go underground, open your mouth in amazement and not even try to count the columns. Go through the passages to the end of the hall, find the head of the Gorgon Medusa, immediately be tormented by memories, whether Theseus flew to where Istanbul is now.
5. Bosphorus.
Come to Eminonu Square, if you have an hour to spare, look at the Egyptian market and by all means buy spices, nuts, raisins and everything that fits in a bag, and what the sellers will persuade you to do, and they, as you understand, will persuade you to do everything. Buy a ticket for a pleasure boat for $ 1.5 and spend 1.5 hours between Europe and Asia. Look from the board at the Golden Horn Bay (if you have an underwater spyglass, look for ships with treasures), the Sultan's Topkapi Palace, Dolmabahce Palace (if you have binoculars, see the largest chandelier), count the number of millionaires by the number of mansions along the Bosphorus, you can still count the yachts or garages on the roofs of mansions, then decide for yourself what to count or not. Sailing under the bridge, be surprised by its height, again, you can calculate its height in meters. When you get tired of counting, look at the Sea of Marmara, the islands and the Maiden's Tower, and say that next time you will definitely visit there.
6. Nargile.
Getting drunk on the aroma of spices in the market and in the bag, from the Bosphorus, from the city, cross the Galata bridge, pass the tower of the same name and get into the Karakoy area, where you can find an endless row of Tophane cafes, sit in an armchair and order a nargile, i. e. hookah, a hookah will be served with bardak tea (tea in small cups). If the forces remain at least in your hands, play a game of backgammon. This place is not touristy, mostly local people here, so female tourists will enjoy increased attention, in fact, after the signals of cars and buses on the Galata bridge and everyone's attention on the boat, you will already get a taste. If you can orient yourself on the map, you will find the station not far from the cafe, the same one where the Orient Express arrived.
An area that is full of life around the clock. If you get here before midnight, you will be lucky to ride on the old tram, if after, then follow this path on foot. Offices, shops, restaurants, and it is worth turning into any nook and cranny, countless bars and clubs. Take a look at the Chicken Passage restaurant quarter (flower passage) and try dolma, stuffed mussels, fish, be sure to order crayfish, Turkish anise vodka, which must be diluted with water, after which it becomes cloudy white. If you look around, you will notice that it is drunk at almost all tables in large quantities. Stay here a little longer and hear the choir singing - they also sing when they drink. Return to Taksim at night to check out the nightclubs.
Ask a taxi driver to take you to one of the cafes on the slopes of the Bosphorus, the higher the better, and the better in the evening. Order tea and syutlach or kazan-dyby (desserts), if it seems a little, then baklava and even more tea. Do not think about anything, admire the lights of the city and the Bosphorus. After drinking a lot of tea, try to find the difference between Bai and Bayan (i. e. between M and F in the right place).
9. Ortakoy.
Go to dinner at one of the restaurants on the Ortakoy embankment (a heel with a mosque and a view of the Bosphorus), this time choose lamb, try olives, which taste more like barreled green tomatoes than the usual canned olives. You can drink wine with meat, for example, Doludzha, but if you are a big connoisseur of wine, then it’s better to order Efes beer.
10. Grand Bazaar.
Check out the Grand Bazaar before leaving. Nearby is Istanbul University. Pigeons can be fed on the square. The Grand Bazaar is a city within a city, shopping arcades are entire streets. Here you can find anything you like, even if you do not buy anything, do not deny the pleasure (to yourself, and even more to the seller) to try on turbans, dresses and scarves with coins. Did you feel the color? Then you will certainly want to return to this city again.
