Owen Matthews

Istanbul: Going Deeper

<p>Owen Matthews takes you beyond the tourist trail</p>|David Platzer enjoys a captivating survey of the sensitive art of Edwin Smith.

From magazine issue: 30 June 2012

Text size

Small

Medium

Large
Line Spacing

Compact

Normal

Spacious
Comments
Share
Share

Owen Matthews

Istanbul: Going Deeper
Linkedin

Messenger

Email

Already a subscriber? Log in

This article is for subscribers only

Subscribe today to get 3 months' delivery of the magazine, as well as online and app access, for only £3.

Weekly delivery of the magazine
Unlimited access to our website and app
Enjoy Spectator newsletters and podcasts
Explore our online archive, going back to 1828

Most popular

Alexander Larman

What happened to the Rishi Sunak I knew at school?

After a heavy night in the city you may wish to escape to the Princes’ Islands, an archipelago in the Sea of Marmara where the Byzantines exiled their surplus royals and the Levantine bourgeoisie of the late 19th century built large wooden summer villas. But one has to be smart about planning a visit, because on hot summer days they are also the equivalent of New York’s Coney Island; a place where every Istanbullu who can’t afford to go anywhere else crowds onto packed ferries that resemble refugee ships. If you’re rich, take a ten-person sea taxi, about £100 each way from central Istanbul. Or take a public ferry from Kabatas, but on a weekday. On Buyukada, the largest of the islands, avoid the ripoff tourist restaurants on the seaside strip and hike (or hire a bike) up the mountain to the monastery of Aya Yorge, with its charming open-air restaurant and breathtaking views of the whole giant city of 15 million souls which is spread at your feet, distant and silent.