Lomography

Pierre Loti
written by nural on October 25th, 2009 , 3 comments (3 votes)

Please activate JavaScript to see this gallery.

Pierre Loti (Julien Viaud) is a French novelist and naval officer who lived between 1850 and 1923. He used to come to Istanbul, Eyup area and visit this hill top café occasionally, which is said to be established around 1850’s. The story is said that he was in love with a Turkish girl named Aziyade, and he would visit Istanbul very often because of her. The story is said that Aziyade was a married woman and Pierre Loti wrote a book about their affair. That is one of his best-known novels, and it not only tells about an affair, but also tells about an empire from different perspectives.

Nowadays, the funicular takes you up the hill or you can take a path that runs through the Eyup Sultan Cemetery to reach the cafe. In the cemetery, there are lots of tombstones that date from the Ottoman Empire. Aziyade’s tomb is assumed to be in this cemetery as well. Once you reach the top, you can sit at the cafe and have tea or Turkish coffee. There is also a small gift shop that cells books and other souvenirs.

You can see the entire Golden Horn region, up to Topkapı Palace from where you sit. So the view is definitely worth a visit, especially if you are there during the sunset. Also, during Ramadan, there are feasts in Feshane, which is situated in Eyup as well.

If you want a quiet atmosphere to enjoy your coffee and also an amazing view of the entire Golden Horn region, be sure to visit Pierre Loti cafe when in Istanbul.