Yesilkoy to Istanbul – 1st September
Distance: 16.9 km – Elevation +140 m -140 m
Weather: Sunny. Temperature: High 29 degrees
It was Sunday morning as I left the hotel before breakfast and made my way through the quiet back streets of Yesilkoy. I was the first customer of the morning in a cafe that was just opening as I arrived and I was joined by the cafe cat as I sat and ate a tasty croissant. I followed tree-lined avenues which led me to Bakırköy and its harbour. As I walked along the seashore through Kazlıçeşme I watched the numerous cargo ships anchored in the deeper waters of the Sea of Marmara as they waited to enter the Bosphorus.
It was just 17 kilometres to walk today and it wasn’t long before I arrived at Yedikule and the 14th century Marble Tower and the ancient city walls. In Yedikule I found the Golden Gate, a triumphal arch originally constructed by Theodosius the Great in AD386. Under Emperor Constantine the city of Constantinople had grown in size and the arch was built over the Via Egnatia at the extent of this urban growth. So having followed the line of the Via Egnatia from its point of origin in Durres, Albania, I had arrived at what was the western entrance to the ancient city after walking 1188 kilometres in 48 days.
From the Marble Tower, I walked along Kennedy Avenue, named after the President of the United States, following the line of the old city walls before branching off into the historic Fatih District. This is the area of the original city of Byzantium and the route took me through several neighbourhoods including Cerrahpaşa, Aksaray, Küçük Ayasofya Mahallesi, and Cankurtaran. Much of the city was destroyed by fires and earthquake in the 17th century so there is little left in the area that I walked through of its rich historical past, and whilst it was a hubbub of activity, the buildings were relatively modern. I am staying at the Hotel Empress Zoe in Cankurtaran a short walking distance from the Sultanahmet district and the Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sophia, and the Topkapi Palace,
