Rich Carriero details some out of the way attractions that all self-respecting expats should see before leaving Istanbul.

Every year from late spring to early autumn the city belongs to foreigners.  Tourists from Germany, Russia, England and the US descend upon the beaches and cities of Turkey in droves looking to score a tan and a good time at a reasonable price.  For expats, summer is the ideal time for getting out of the city and winter is too damned rainy to really enjoy anything.  The solution?  March and April!  Early spring in Istanbul is a fantastic time of year because the weather begins to warm up and dry out, yet the tourists have not yet mobbed Istanbul’s many attractions.  Here is a list of places that you may have been meaning to see but haven’t gotten around to yet.

1) Kız Kulesi – OK, you see it every time you take a ferry out to Kadiköy or drink tea in Tophane.  You might even recognize it from the James Bond film, The World is Not Enough, from about ten years ago, but maybe you’ve never taken the time to visit this little bastion in the Bosphorus.  It’s not that hard to get there.  Take a ferry to Üsküdar and then walk south along the edge of the Bosphorus.  On the Asian shore adjacent to the island there is a ticket booth for the small ferry that will take you out there.  The view is incredible; the top of the tower is a great place to drink tea and watch the sun set.  The restaurant inside is pricey but the food is gourmet quality.

2) Istanbul Archaeology Museum – This city’s archaeology museum is one of the best bargains in the city at 5 TL per person.  Next time you’re walking up the hill to Topkapi Palace, make a detour for the museum on your left.  The city has two amazing wings in their Ancient Near Eastern collection and the Greco-Roman wing.  The Near Eastern wing contains incredible ancient Assyrian, Babylonian and Hittite artifacts including a copy of the Kadesh Peace Treaty.  The highlight of the Greco-Roman wing is the Alexander Sarcophagus, which depicts the Battle of Issus in vivid relief.  For a breather, have a cup of Turkish coffee in the open air café.  The café is set among Byzantine column capitals and statues and the wraith-like stray cats that sun bathe on the ancient stone work.

3) Rumeli-Hisar – No one monument more eloquently tells the story of the conquest like Rumeli Fortress.  Mehmet II had it built in 1452 and installed with the biggest cannons he could find.  The work was completed so quickly and the fortress was so effective at stopping traffic on the Bosphorus that it was quickly called the “throat cutter.”  After visiting the fortress, a walk south through the districts of Bebek and Arnavutköy is a glimpse of Istanbul at its trendiest.

4) Mosaic Museum – The mosaic museum is not the easiest place to find, which is why when you visit, you might just have the place to yourself.  From the exit of the Blue Mosque, make a right and head through the large gateway and walk down the hill.  Make a right down the street lined with cafes, carpet and porcelain shops; the museum is on your left.  The Mosaic Museum is a preserved portion of tiled flooring from the Byzantine Royal Palace.  Almost nothing else of the palace remains but the tile work itself is exquisite.  The immense floor depicts scenes of hunting and mythological beasts in incredible detail given the medium of tiny bits of glass.

5)  The Prince’s Islands – It is a well known fact that the Turks don’t like the cold.  That’s why March and April can be a perfect time of year to visit the islands.  While Büyükada and Kınalıada are more oriented around the beaches, Burgazada and Heybeliada (the second and third islands) are home to beautiful homes as well as some of the most (relatively) unspoiled natural scenery in the city.  The circumference of both can be walked in a few hours, leaving enough time for a fish dinner before taking the last ferry back home.

6)  Kariye Museum and Theodosian Walls – The frescoes of Hagia Sophia pale in comparison to the paintings inside Chora Church, today’s Kariye Museum.  If you haven’t been out to Edirnekapı to see this place, you’re missing the best in Byzantine art.  Nearby the church you can take a walk on the city’s massive western walls.  From the turrets of the Theodosian Walls, you can take in some of the best views of the entire city, as well as get a sense of the topography of the Turkish Conquest.  The valley south of the Edirne Gate is one of the two places where Mehmet’s forces broke into the city on May 29th, 1453.

7)  The Harbiye Military Museum – The museum itself is an impressive collection of swords and axes from the medieval era but the real reason to come here is for the Mehter concert, which you can see most weekday afternoons.  The Mehteran were the Ottoman Janissary Band, a sonic force so loud and impressive that some Ottoman foes gave up without fighting.

8)  Istanbul Modern – Of the city’s many museums, Istanbul Modern is perhaps most in touch with today’s Turkey.  The Modern has exhibits from throughout the Republic’s short history as well as contemporary exhibits of painting, sculpture and photography.  The café enjoys a fantastic Bosphorus view.

9)  Su Ada – You may have seen it before in Kuruçeşme and thought, what the hell is that floating in the Bosphorus?  Either it was an invasive jellyfish or it was Su Ada, the restaurant/bar/club floating about 100 meters off the European shores of the Bosphorus.  Dinner on the small island is a singular experience that feels a bit like eating fish in full view of the whole city at once.

10) Pierre Loti Café – Not enough people bother to head up the Golden Horn to the districts of Fener, Balat and Eyup.  Pierre Loti, at the high end of a gondola ride from the water offers yet another tremendous view of the city for the moderately high price of an exquisite cup of Turkish coffee.  Nearby the Eyup Mosque honors the standard bearer of the Prophet, who is reputed to be buried there.  It’s one of the four holiest sites in Islam.