Basic HTML Version
94
SEPTEMBER 2012
•
HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
complex—part of which was once an
actual palace—contains anoriginalmarble
hammam (Turkish bath), boasts an award-
winning terrace restaurant andhas hosted
the weddings of Saudi royalty. You make
your way to the infinity pool by the
Bosporus and sink into a deep snooze.
The sunset call to prayer and a warm
gust of wind from the Sea of Marmara, to
the south, startle you from your slumber
and remind you to get ready for dinner.
You’re meeting a friend at a traditional
Turkish tavern, called a
meyhane,
in the
Kumkapı district: a fairy light–festooned
jumble of balconies and sidewalk eateries
where locals go to socialize and sip the
potent anise spirit known as
rakı
.
You choose
Kumkapı Evren
for dinner
and select from a tray some charred and
vinegaryoctopus, choppedpurslane in tart
yogurt, salted eggplant purée and petite
shrimp in olive oil. The waiter then pours
the first of many glasses of
rakı
from the
bo le on your table and adds water and
ice. Drinking this and nibbling the mezes,
your companion explains, will continue
until you decide you’ve had enough booze.
Then, he says, you will order a fish.
HIGHLIGHT ZONES
Clockwise from above,
enjoying a narghile at Çorlulu Ali Pașa Medre-
sesi; the Blue Mosque’s grand prayer hall; the
gardens of Çırağan Palace Kempinski; Çorlulu Ali
Pașa Medresesi’s potent Turkish tea