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The Golden Horn (Haliç), Istanbul Turkey Travel Guide, touring Eyup Camii, visiting Istanbul's neighborhoods - Indian Chief Travel
TURKEY  |  Istanbul, Turkey Travel Guide
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The Golden Horn

The Golden Horn (Haliç)

The Golden Horn, or Haliç, is an inlet dividing in two the European side of Istanbul. Once the playground of sultans, the banks of the Haliç were lined with villas and gardens full of cypress and plane (sycamore) trees. The area has been home to European immigrants starting with the Genoese in the 14th century. Jewish, Armenian and Greek immigrants have all resided along the narrow tangle of streets.

Progress brought with it industrial pollution from factories and warehouses and the area sank into decline with the once-golden waters of the inlet becoming filthy. Recently, efforts have been made to clean up the water and it is once again attracting travelers and locals who want to take a trip down it – either by taxi to see the mosques, markets and museums or by ferry to take in the views.

An essential stop is the Church of St. Saviour in Chora (also known as the Kariye Museum) just inside Edirne Gate. The church has more than 100 of the best Byzantine frescoes in the world depicting biblical scenes from the Annunciation to the Last Judgement. A taxi to the church will cost about $5, or you can take a bus for Edirnekapi and get off beside the Vefa Stadium.

Neighborhoods in the Haliç

Halfway up the Haliç are the neighborhoods of Fener and Balat with their colorful houses, churches and synagogues. Fener was almost exclusively Greek until the population exchange in 1923. It was a respectable and aspirational neighborhood, home to merchants and aristocrats. The residents built many schools, including the striking Fener Greek High School, a red-brick building that has become the symbol of Fener. Nearby, is the austere grey-stone Church of St. Stephen of the Bulgars. The Bulgarian Orthodox church was built entirely of cast iron and prefabricated in Vienna before being shipped to Istanbul and assembled on the banks of the Haliç.

The left bank of the Haliç was known for its traditional taverns, called meyhane, lively music halls and restaurants. Most had disappeared by the 1970s, but there is now a revival with a few new meyhanes opened in the past couple of years.

The Armenian neighborhood of Kumkapi is worth visiting for meyhanes and its fish restaurants playing gypsy music. There are some Armenian and Greek churches in Kumkapi, though few Greeks still live in the area.

Eyup Camii

Istanbul is packed with beautiful mosques and it would be impossible to spend a whole vacation trying to visit them all. With so many other adventures to have, the three must-see mosques are the Blue Mosque, which is the most beautiful, Süleymaniye Camii, the second-largest, and Eyup Camii, the most holy. Eyup Camii is in fact the fourth holiest in Islam, after Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem. Many pilgrims visit the tomb in search of a miracle. The district is one of the most religious in Istanbul and visitors should be respectful and avoid going there on a Friday, when it is full of worshippers.

Eyup Camii lies outside the city walls at the end of the Haliç. It is a 15-minute bus ride or more pleasant ferry ride from Eminönü. Eyup was the first mosque built after the Ottoman conquest of the city and it attracts many pilgrims. The interior of the mosque is magnificent, with gold leafed decorations and chandeliers hanging from the dome. Ebu Eyyub Ensari, the standard bearer of the Prophet Mohammed, died here during the Islamic assault on Constantinople in 670AD. Eyup’s elaborate tomb sits alongside those of prime ministers, sultans and other political figures in the graveyard.

Above the mosque on a hill overlooking the Haliç is the Pierre Loti Café, made famous by the Turkophile French writer in the 1800s. It has been a draw for bohemian, and religious, spirits for decades. Luckily, there is now a cable car to whisk visitors up the hill in a couple of minutes rather than the 20 minutes it takes by taxi.

Last updated November 19, 2010
Posted in   Turkey  |  Istanbul
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