Istanbul is a city of a thousand and one stories: many know of it, but none know it entirely.
A capital without a title, an ancient port with a new name, a mere one hundred years ago it relinquished its imperial powers, shook off the dust of time and regained its youth once again. Hammams and startups, skyscrapers and kebabs, bars and bazaars – this city stands with one foot in Europe and the other in Asia, juggling its contrasts like a street fakir.
Here, the Byzantine mosaic hides under the mosque plaster, Orhan Pamuk’s lines bloom in bright graffiti, while table dances fade away at a mullah’s first shout. Istanbul loves to surprise and knows how to bargain: it will pull out exactly what you dreamed of from behind the counter and exchange it for your heart.
– how many Hagia Sophia minarets can be seen from the inaccessible rooftop of the Grand Bazaar;
– how Mehmet Gürs created the new Anatolian cuisine, and how his project Mikla achieved a place among the top-100 restaurants of the world;
– why the Ukrainian Roxelana became Suleiman the Magnificent’s favourite wife and rebuilt the Topkapi palace;
– which secret ingredients are involved in the making of a real kebab.
