Galata Tower has dominated Beyoğlu‘s skyline since 1348 and still offers the most effective panoramic views of the town
Above, the Golden Horn, Seraglio Point and Old Istanbul as seen from Galata Tower (looking south).
History of Galata Tower
The story is told of how, in 1638, a specific Hezarfen Ahmet Çelebi attached wings to his body and flew (more likely coasted) across the Bosphorus to Üsküdar.
Why he did it once, nobody says, nor whether he survived…
Until the 1960s it had been a hearth lookout tower. Now the upper floors hold the panorama balcony.
The panorama balcony, encircling the best row of windows, is narrow, receptive the weather, and not recommended for anyone littered with acrophobia (fear of heights).
If you would like the total effect, be here at the time of a call to prayer, preferably the sunset call.
The balcony is open daily from 9 am to five pm (7 pm in summer). There’s an entrance fee.
The neighborhood round the Galata Tower, derelict once I first came to Istanbul within the 1960s, was pretty much stuffed with the hüzün (melancholy) so emphasized in Orhan Pamuk’s wonderful memoir, Istanbul: Memories and therefore the City.
Selfies on the panorama balcony at dusk—what better souvenir?
In the past few years, however, the complete district from the Galata Tower uphill to Tünel Square, with its Swedish Consulate-General, Deutsche Schule (German High School), and other Ottoman-era institutions, has been extraordinarily gentrified.
Now you discover chic cafés, art galleries, design firms, boutiques, and restaurants in its narrow streets.
This is becoming a district where foreign visitors come and rent apartments/flats to enjoy the sights, sounds, flavors and pleasures of Beyoğlu.
The length of the Galata Tower
Originally named the Tower of Christ, the 66.9-meter (220-foot)-high tower was the highpoint within the city walls of the Genoese colony called Galata. Most of the walls are long gone, but the nice tower , with its 3.75-meter (12-foot)-thick walls remains.
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