Walking Istanbul

We pay our first visit to the magnificent Walls of Theodosius which protected Constantinople for over 1,000 years. From the southern terminus of the walls by the Sea of Marmara we’ll walk to the great Ottoman Turkish fortification of Yedikule and the Byzantine Golden Gate. We enter the old city through the Mevlana Gate and then visit the Zoodochus Pege, a 19^th century Greek orthodox church built over older Byzantine foundations. We’ll end the day at the Panorama 1453, a fascinating museum/dirama paying homage to the capture of Constantinople by Mehmet the Conqueror.

Today’s journey begins at controversial Taksim Square, in the ‘European Quarter’ of the city. From here we walk down Istiklal Caddesi, formerly the Grand Rue de Pera, lined with 19^th century Parisian-style buildings and consulates. We visit the smart Pera Museum, then walk down Kumbaraci Street to the neo-Gothic Crimea Memorial Church. Next-up is the Galata Mevlevi Museum (home of the whirling dervishes), followed by the Jewish Museum. We continue with an ascent of the Genoese Galata Tower for panoramic views of the old city before heading steeply down towards the Golden Horn via the elegant Kamondo Steps, famously photographed by Henri Cartier Bresson, to finish on the waterfront by the landmark Galata Bridge.

This morning we walk from the Aqueduct of Valens to the Golden Horn. Along the way, we look at the remains of the early Byzantine Church of St. Polyeuctus, then head north to the Fatih Mosque, built on the site of the Byzantine Church of the Holy Apostles. We continue to the Sultan and Aspar cisterns, then Yavuz Selim Mosque and tomb. After lunch we walk steeply downhill through the old Greek quarter of Fener to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the spiritual centre of Orthodox Christianity worldwide. From here we take a ferry down one of the world’s great natural harbours, the Golden Horn inlet, to the famous Galata Bridge.

After breakfast, we continue our walk along the Walls of Theodosius from Topkapi. Our first stop is the Mihrimah Camii, a beautifully restored Ottoman mosque splendidly situated on the old city’s highest hill. We continue north to the Kariye Mosque, once the Church of St. Saviour Chora and noted for its superb collection of mosaics and frescoes. We’ll call into the newly restored Palace of the Porphyrogenitus for splendid views before continuing downhill to Egri Gate and past the tomb of a follower of Mohammed. We wind our way down the steep slope to the end of the Land Walls on the Golden Horn, completing the circuit begun on our first day in the city.

Today we transfer to the airport for our independent onward journeys.