Ortaköy

"On the Waterfront The waterside neighborhood of Ortaköy is a favorite of locals and tourists looking to spend a lazy afternoon strolling its cobbled streets, playing backgammon over a few glasses of tea, or finding a spotfor a picnic with an overloaded kumpir (baked potato). The Bosphorus Bridge, the first in the world to connect Asia and Europe since Hellenic times, is the ultimate photo backdrop, especially behindthe Ortaköy Mosque when it's lit up at night (try to see the newly restored interior during the day, when light streams through the windows and makes the chandeliers and tiles shine). Traffic can be brutal, especially in summer or around Ramadan, but it’s a pleasant 30-minute walk past old palaces turned hotels inBeşiktaş, where many ferries and buses terminate."