Istanbul by bike. TWO Continents in One Day!

Istanbul by bike. TWO Continents in One Day!

Istanbul. Today is a good day so I’m gonna take you around Istanbul. Let’s discover the city together. Here we are in Caddebostan on the Anatolian side AKA the Asian side of Istanbul. Now there is a rattling noise that you will hear most of the day is because I fill my thermos with ice and water. This is one of the little beaches with a bit of sand. You can rent some umbrellas and chairs and chill and there’s already quite a number of people for being eight o’clock in the morning. Turkish flag and Fenerbahçe flag waving proud this morning. This belongs to Fenerbahçe sport team because they don’t have only football they also have a basket and they actually won the something league a few weeks ago. I don’t know if they won the European league of basket or something like that and that’s a stadium Fenerbahçe stadium. I think I’ve been so long in Kadikoy that I have to be a supporter of Fenerbahçe. Let’s cross the bridge and I think crossing the bridge here is Moda popular neighborhood for partying. So yeah if you wanna dance if you wanna have a few drinks enjoy your night this is the place to be. From here you can see Istanbul on the other side. Here is the ferry harbor of Kadikoy. Now we go to the one we take is the one for Eminönü which is a harbor on the European side. I think the ferry costs maybe like 50-60 to non-residents and half of the price to residents. That’s my ferry, we made it on the European side, that’s Karaköy that’s Galata bridge and this is Eminönü. Of course it wouldn’t be Istanbul without roasted chestnuts and roasted corn Look at this. And this is Eminönü square the heart of the Ottoman Empire trade Now it’s a busy place for tourists you can see all the tourist shops the mosque of course Let’s leave Eminönü. Dates, figs, Chinese things Spices, tea. These are the mats they used to pray. hammocks Nice. Look at this fucker. Almost made it to Suleymaniye mosque. Again apologies to all the Turkish people for mispronouncing the names of things. Door is open and we go in And I think from here, there is a good view There you go. Beautiful viewpoint on Galata Bridge, Karaköy and on the other side is Uskudar. Beautiful mosque, very big. Follow the ball. I wonder if you follow a ball on a pole. Are you considered a bollocks? That’s the entrance of people praying. I think I will want to come back and visit this mosque without the bike. Go inside. It’s a nice place actually. You can chill in the garden. Nice. Very nice spot of Istanbul. Here is where people wash themselves before going to the mosque. It was my first time in Suleymaniye mosque and it was nice, very nice. Next stop we go to the Grand Bazaar. Bikes are not allowed in Grand Bazaar but maybe we get to see one of the nice entrances. Personally I’m not a big fan of the Grand Bazaar It gets old very quickly. There are three, four kind of shops and then everybody sells the same things. I was told once it was very different. Now it basically caters to clientele from Middle East and Arab countries. There are lots of shops that they sell gold, jewelry and lots of fake Gucci, Prada, fake Adidas, fake Nike. This is the building of the Grand Bazaar. It’s one of the oldest covered markets in the world and there are about 4 000 shops inside. That’s one of the gates of the Grand Bazaar. Gate 11. Thank you. Have a good day sir. How much? It’s free. Yes, free. So yeah, this is the Grand Bazaar building. Gate 9 I guess. So yeah, in my opinion, Grand Bazaar overrated. Unless you want to invest in gold. Original Gucci Hermes. So this is one of the most visited places in Istanbul. This was once a Roman hippodrome and this is the Blue Mosque and then on the far side there is Hagia Sophia. On this side there is this German fountain was built in 1900 to celebrate the visit of the German Emperor It’s a fountain so there is water, at least we hope. St. Gaud’s mosaic. And on the far side of this big square basically, there is Hagia Sophia, another icon of Istanbul. The Christian basilic converted into a mosque. There is a nice picture of the blue mosque here. Yes, there is. Hagia Sophia in all its splendor. Oh, there is even the fountain, water fountain. Impressive building as well. The amount of tourists is a bit overwhelming. They are restoring the south face of Hagia Sophia. This is the entrance of Topkapi Palace, hearth of the Ottoman power. You can only see the fortified walls. I’ve actually looked it up. Inside the palace there is the Sultan’s treasures and there is also his circumcision room. I guess you can take a tour if you want. I think there is a nice park up here where we can chill a little bit. Of course there are sardinians with a flag. Every fucking one. Oh god. Gulhane Park. Gulhane. Gulhane. Gulhane Park. I don’t know. I have no idea. It’s a nice place to chill. Some nice babes. Istanbul. Another Istanbul sign. Let’s take a picture. Maybe not. What a charming little park. Love it. If you are in Istanbul and you want to cool down and rest from all the walking, this is the place to be. I think now it’s time to go back down to Eminönü basically. Gulhane. Gulhane. Oh here is very nice too. Loads of breeze from the Bosphorus. Now let’s go on the Galata Bridge and cross it Underneath there are restaurants. Above there are tourists and fishermen. At this time of the day not many fishermen but if you come in the afternoon it’s full. That’s the view from the Galata Bridge. When I arrived in Istanbul in 2019 I crossed this bridge. And incorrectly I said I was going from Europe to Asia and I was crossing the Bosphorus. And to the best of my knowledge this was the Bosphorus but it’s not. So yeah that’s the Bosphorus. You see the bridge. From there to there is the Bosphorus. This is a side path. I don’t know how to call it. It’s a different thing. This is still Europe. Asia is over there. At the end of the bridge, Karaköy. If you find yourself in Istanbul and you need something for camping outdoors, there are a few outdoor shops in Karaköy. There is this one and if I remember correctly you go around the corner and there is another one. And that’s where I bought the Pocket Rocket 2 in 2019 Now we need to climb. It was steep, very steep. Halfway through, but we stop here for the Galata Tower. This is the Galata Tower, believe it or not it was built by Italians, by the Genoese. Remember when I was in Genoa? I told you Genoa was a powerful city, was a powerful republic. At some point, I can’t remember exactly the year, but they were ruling, they had the control of this part of Constantinople. And I think on the opposite side was the Byzantine Empire. So yeah, this, we’re looking at Italian stuff. The entrance for the Galata Tower is 30 Euro which is a bit steep to just walk up there, take a few pictures and come down. This is the main street leading to Taksim Square It’s very commercial, lots of shops, lots of restaurants, lots of souvenir things like Turkish candies, Turkish delight, Turkish ice cream, kebab restaurants and Burger King, McDonald’s. Everybody is on this street. This is a pedestrian street, but there is a tram, an old tram running through it. It’s a busy shopping area. This is the Catholic Church, St. Anthony’s Church. I think it was built by an Italian architect. But yeah, this is a big Catholic church. And actually, I saw a video on YouTube of a little Turkish band that did a concert inside this. It’s quite nice. And this is the little tram, see? Very nice. We are approaching Taksim Square. Now as you can see the square is all fenced off by these police barriers and it’s because usually when there are some protests in in Istanbul this is where everybody gathers to protest. There’s been a big protest this spring in Istanbul. So yeah this is Taksim Square. The next stop is a little far away. It’s four or five kilometers away. I’m taking the executive decision to burn one week of my budget to show you real Turkish kebab. There’s a place I know it’s around here somewhere. I was here in 2019 and I would like to go back to this place. But yeah it’s just the street next to the commercial one and I think it’s at the end of the street. You see also local people, Turkish people eating in this places Beautiful building. This is my favorite place. This is the menu. I think I’m gonna have this. It’s an Adana kebab. This is a bread they make. It’s really hot and it comes with some vegetables and this is spicy. It’s complementary with the kebab. This is my Adana kebab. It’s minced meat from sheep or lamb and fresh ayran. You see the foam inside. And this is bulgur. Bulgur is something that they eat a lot in Greece and in Turkey. It wouldn’t be a meal in Turkey if it doesn’t finish with chai, black tea. Complementary of the house always. Eysan, what’s the name of this restaurant? Taksim Bahçivan Is this the best kebab in Istanbul? Yes, yes, yes. Of course, why not? Historical place. 20 years ago opened this place. 20 years ago. Yeah, delicious food have here. I want to try all kebab. This is the kebab that they grill and this is the oven. The wood oven. Thank you so much. They let me put the bike there so it was safe So if you come to Taksim square, here you can have great kebab. I will meet you. Yes, and the best waiter. Thank you. After eating like a king, I’m ready to continue my journey in Istanbul This is the stadium of Besiktas. This morning we saw Fenerbahçe This is Besiktas. Then the other big team of Istanbul is Galatasaray. There it is, the most instagrammable mosque in Istanbul. This is Ortaköy mosque right under the Bosphorus bridge. Now we try to go around. The mosque at the back as well The Bosphorus bridge. Where bikes are not allowed. Impressive bridge, it’s very big. Hi, how are you? Hoppa, hello, catch it! I’ll wait here. Hoppa! I’ll wait here. I’ll wait here. I’ll wait here. I’ll wait here. The ferry to Uskudar. Look at this. The ferry is leaving now. Immediately. There you go Uskudar. It’s one of the most conservative neighborhoods on the Anatolian side. This peculiar building is the Maiden’s Tower Apparently it was built by an emperor to keep his daughter safe from a prophecy that I think he was told that his daughter was going to die by a snake bite. So he built the tower and locked her there. But she was still bitten by the snake because they delivered it with a fruit basket. This is Kadikoy Center. Nice and touristy. Lots of coffee shops, lots of bars, lots of restaurants and at night nightclubs. Back in Cadebostan. Kadikoy, Cadebostan. And this concludes my comprehensive tour of Istanbul.

Cycling the world – Europe: 206 episode
While paused on my round-the-world bike journey in Istanbul, I decide to hop on the saddle and cycle through the city’s most iconic sights. Starting from Caddebostan in Kadıköy, I pedal across both continents, exploring legendary locations such as Eminönü, Süleymaniye Mosque, the Grand Bazaar, Sultanahmet with Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, and much more. Crossing bridges, dodging traffic, and stopping for an authentic kebab near Taksim Square. Join me for this scenic tour through the heart of Istanbul, from Europe to Asia, all by bicycle.

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00:00 Caddebostan
01:11 Moda
01:51 Kadıköy Ferry Terminal
02:27 Eminönü
03:59 Süleymaniye
06:34 Grand Bazaar
07:24 Sultanahmet Square (Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque)
09:02 Topkapi Palace (outer walls)
09:46 Gülhane Park
10:51 Galata Bridge
12:02 Karakoy
12:43 Galata Tower
13:38 Istiklal Street
14:09 Saint Anthony of Padua church
14:52 Taksim Square
20:51 Taksim Bahçıvan (kebab)
18:04 Ortaköy Mosque
18:30 Turkish Icecream
19:10 Üsküdar
19:19 Maiden’s Tower
19:48 Kadıköy
20:51 Postcards