Kiz Kulesi. The Maiden's Tower.

Kiz KulesiThe tiny island located on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus is one of the icons of the city. The sight of his imperial mosques tower in the background is one of the most remarkable sunsets Istanbul and displacement there lets us know a bit of everyday city, your coming and going at various transport crossing from one continent to another. If we, we can book at the elegant restaurant that is in the tower to enjoy dinner with the city lights as a backdrop, but a tea sitting on the promenade Salacak is also a great and economical choice for enjoy the view from the Asian side, with the incessant maritime traffic of the Bosphorus in the foreground.

Kiz KulesiVarious legends are told about the island but the guides have a special predilection for two of them. The first is that of Hero and Leander, however, this is a glaring mistake, since the unfortunate history lovers took place at the Hellespont, ie the Straits of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus not.

The second legend says that a governor listened with horror prophecy announcing that his daughter would die by the bite of a snake. To keep her safe, mighty Lord sent his daughter to the tower to adulthood, date on which the curse expired. Only his father could visit and the guards were responsible for keeping the little snake-free island. On the day of the birthday of the maiden, his father was elated for having failed to prevent the unfortunate omen and came to the tower with a basket of exotic fruits. Among them was hiding a snake bit the young. However, This is a legend that share several places in Turkey, as the castle of Mersin, Kiz Kalesi called for the same reason that the small tower in Istanbul.

Fantasies aside, the small island is home to a tower for over two thousand years ago. Initially I had a military purpose, to defend the passage through the strait. In Byzantine times was where the Asian end of the chain that closed the Bosporus was fixed. After the fall of Constantinople had several uses, from lookout to lighthouse, even served as a place of quarantine. Since the eighteenth century the tower is no longer made of wood and later its structure was reinforced Istanbul earthquake 1999.

Kiz KulesiGo to Maiden's Tower is much easier than it may seem. From Eminönü pier, next to the Galata Bridge, salen ferris towards Uskudar, on the Asian side. Another option is to use one of our steps Kabataş, the station where the tram line ends near the Dolmabahce Palace. Right there we can take the ferry to Uskudar. Of course, we can do both, the way from Kabataş and return to Eminönü, if it fits better in our plans.

When we arrived at Üsküdar, We must turn to the right in about fifteen minutes walk will take us along the Bosphorus to a small pier in front of the island. The place is called Salacak and full of kiosks that cater to those who sit in front of the sea. In the afternoon, waiters cover the stands with people killim and sits down to watch the sunset with a tea.

Kiz KulesiThe boats that carried out continuously Island and bought the ticket right there, is round, no schedule. The journey takes a few minutes and when we got to the island can climb the tower, inside there is a restaurant on the first floor and a cafe on the last. The two are quite expensive but it is not necessary to consume to climb the lookout around the highest part. From there the views are superb. We can see the entrance to the Ataturk Bosphorus Bridge, European bank with its mosques and the Galata bridge and all accompanied by continuous maritime traffic where small boats ferry crossing with large and huge container ships. For those who choose to dine at the exclusive restaurant, requires prior reservation and we provide direct transportation to the island and back.

daughter-tower iconoFor its silhouette, Maiden's Tower is known as the citizens of Istanbul “bottle” and there is a tour of the most recommended.

map Istanbul***

See Map of Istanbul

http://en.wikipedia.org / wiki / Maiden 's_Tower

http://www.kizkulesi.com.tr/


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