Tag: Pera Palace Hotel

Travels with My Aunt

Posted in Architecture, Art in Europe, Arts in Turkey, Culture, Exploring Turkey, Istanbul, Turkey6 Comments

New landscapes, new customs. The accumulation of memories. A long life is not a question of years. A man without memories might reach the age of a hundred and feel that his life had been a very brief one. – Graham Greene, Travels with My Aunt

Carpe diem, indeed. My aunt Susan (affectionately known as Suz) has certainly seized the opportunity in her travel existence. Over the past decade, she’s come to visit me in each country in which I’ve lived – South Korea, Russia, and now Türkiye.

Xian, China (March 2015)
St. Petersburg, Russia (May 2019)

Traveling solo from her small town in Maine, I greatly appreciate her effort to visit and always enjoy our time together. Suz is an appreciator of the Arts, often taking me to the Museum of Fine Arts Boston for my birthday when I was young.

Istanbul, Türkiye (April 2024)

We started off the visit on a swanky note with a stay at the Pera Palace Hotel. Though I’ve been for Sunday tea, I had never spent the night.

The Pera Palace Hotel has provided respite for many visitors to Istanbul. Famous guests include Agatha Christie, Ernest Hemingway, and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (we stayed next door to her room). It seemed all too fitting to learn that American writer Graham Greene had featured the hotel in his 1969 novel, “Travels with My Aunt”.

The hotel proved a fantastic spot to get our feet wet downtown – we drank çay at sidewalk cafes, did some shopping, and visited one of the few Catholic churches in Istanbul (certainly the largest) – St. Anthony of Padua.

April is simply the perfect time to Istanbul. The warm spring sun was quite a foil for the nor’easter Suz left behind in Maine. Trading snow for tulip season proved the perfect antidote.

Emirgan Park was our first stop, soaking in the gorgeous carpet of tulips blanketing the park. We were happy to trade the hustle of the city for quiet meditation, possible only early in tulip season, before so many visitors decend. We also took in the Sakıp Sabancı Museum, learning of the Modernist path pursued by Turkish painters in the late 1800s. A stunning terrace view of the Bosphorus can be seen from the museum’s front yard.

After our time at Emirgan Park, we shifted to a hotel in Sultanahmet (Hotel Arcadia Blue). Ideal for it’s proximity to the major sights (I’m currently recovering from a bit of knee surgery), we explored the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and even took in a whirling dervish show featuring local musicians.

As always, the Grand Bazaar was a highlight (Suz took to Turkish coffee like a pro). We also enjoyed our time at the Spice Bazaar (Mısır Çarşısı). Many fine Turkish treats are currently en route to Hallowell, Maine!

On the recommendation of my friend Monique, we checked out Pandeli Restaurant. Tucked away above the unassuming Eminönü entrance to the spice bazaar, the restaurant has been in business since 1901. While famous guests like Queen Elizabeth II and Audrey Hepburn have enjoyed lunch in these quarters, the menu remains affordable and delicious. The famous blue tiles added to the ambiance.

Our time downtown soon came to a close. With the bayram holiday (Eid) quickly approaching, it was time to clear out of Istanbul and see more of the Turkish countryside. We were off to Bursa and İznik.

Swanky

Posted in Culture, Exploring Turkey, Istanbul, Turkey4 Comments

The history of Istanbul’s Pera Palace Hotel is as storied as the building’s Art Nouveau facade. Built in 1892 to house passengers on the Orient Express, the hotel is located in Istanbul’s Beyoğlu neighborhood.

Aside from the Turkey’s imperial palaces, the hotel was the first building in the Ottoman Empire to be powered by electricity. Light still dances spectacularly across the marble walls, adorned in Byzantine stripes and topped with six domes full of beautiful blown glass.

From Hemingway to Graham Greene, numerous writers have used the hotel as a backdrop for their novels. Agatha Christie is said to have written Murder on the Orient Express during her time in residence.

Famous political faces have also walked the halls of the Pera Palace Hotel. US First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy visited while she was roaming the Aegean as Jackie O. On the first floor, Room 101 contains a museum dedicated to President Ataturk, founding father of the Republic of Turkey.

Tea at the Pera Palace had been on my radar since last spring when my friend Bea recommended it while biding her time in Istanbul. Bea knows good taste! Our Sunday afternoon tea proved as lovely as expected. Red velvet curtains hung from the walls as we enjoyed profiterole, simit, and other delicious pastries.

Fun fact: in Turkish, “pasta” is the name for baked goods like cakes or pastries. My local bakery is called Ekmek Pasta Cafe (Bread Pastry Cafe). Erişte, meanwhile, is the Turkish word for “noodle”.

The ballroom was in recovery from a wedding the night before. Very Marie Antoinette in palette and tone, the clocks decorating the sitting room were reminiscent of Fabergé.

The Pera Palace Hotel proved the perfect spot to liven up a grey Sunday in late January and fabulous company proved an antidote to the Sunday Scaries. Wishing you all a wonderful start to the week!