Taksim, Istiklal, & Galata Tower

My mother-in-law came out over her spring break, and we managed to get quite a few trips in.  One of more interesting ones was a trip to the Galata Tower.  From Ortakoy, we took a bus to Taksim, which didn't take very long at all.  We walked across the square, past the flower shops, and towards Istiklal Caddesi.  Our plan was to take the rustic tram down Istiklal, then walk down (as opposed to up) to the Galata Tower, and it worked out fabulously.

The old trams are pretty much the symbol of Istiklal/Taksim, so it was fun to actually go inside one.  The interior is old fashioned as well, which I found kind of surprising.  Given the number of people that go down Istiklal every day, I'd think they would want more seating.  But it made for a nice experience.  And it took the Istanbul card, just like every other means of public transportation.

The tram let out at the Tunel stop at the end of Istiklal, which saved us a good deal of walking.  I went to take a picture of Oma and the boys in front of the tram and realized at that point that I had left my memory card at home (imagine my horror, lol).  I decided to try to look for a shop that sold them as we walked down the hill in search for Galata Tower.  We stopped en route at a fresh squeezed fruit juice stand, and we sampled nearly every flavor they had: kiwi, orange, pomegranate, and pineapple.  Honestly, I think the kiwi was the best.

It wasn't far down to the tower, though you couldn't see it from the street until you were right on it.  It felt odd to be walking downhill to the tower, but we made it without getting turned around at all.  When we got there, I managed to find the memory card I was hoping to find, then we walked around the square to the entrance.  There was a little bit of a line to get in, but I imagine it was nothing compared to what it would be like in the summer.

The admission was fairly cheap (I think 13TL), and the kids were free.  The interior was really nicely remodeled too, and two elevators take visitors up to the 7th floor, where the restaurant is.  You can then walk your way up another flight or two to the viewing area.

The view from the panorama was amazing.  It's a great way to take in all of Istanbul and really appreciate its size.  The view over Topkapi, the Blue Mosque, and the Hagia Sophia is really amazing from the tower because you can see the islands off in the distance.  

 

 

 

The only unpleasant thing about it was that, even on a slow day, the top was cramped.  Everyone wanted to be on the side that faced the main attractions, and they would stop, pause, take pictures, and soak up the view.  It's only natural, but at the same time, no one followed the signs, and it was really high up with two little boys!

 

I'd say we stayed at the top for about 30-45 minutes before taking the elevators back down, then walking down to a cafe near the tram stop.  We ended up picking up the tram just before the bridge to Eminonu, and it worked out pretty well.  So far, it's been one of my favorite adventures in Istanbul.