There is such a thing as “sports travel. It’s when you choose a race you want to participate in, and then you think you can rest there, too.
That’s how it worked out for us with Istanbul. I ran my first marathon there. Istanbul is a 100% gastronomic place. Here you can eat nothing but this kind of “food of the gods” and wash it down with pomegranate juice.
More than once we’ve noticed that the fish markets not only don’t stink, but they even smell like fresh fish. Everything is fresh and straight from the sea. A woman from Istanbul, a friend of mine, claims that they do not sell frozen fish here at all. In Odessa, it seems that the sea is also nearby, and also seems to be black, but everything is somehow different.
We stood on the pier for about 20 minutes waiting for the ship. All this time we watched as this young man carefully looks over the fish, constantly watering it, changing places, cleaning, selling, etc.
Istanbul’s most popular running routes for the most part coincide with the marathon route. If you’re going on a short trip, don’t forget to bring your running shoes. We know where to go:
Belgrade Forest / Belgrade Forest is Istanbul’s equivalent of New York’s Central Park. Over 5,000 hectares of paths and forests, and the 6.5 km Belgrade Forest is a special jogging path starting from the Neset Suyu Fountain, where you can always stop at 17 “fitness points” – stations with exercise equipment.
Dalyan-Bostancı is another one of the most interesting places for jogging. There is a green part and an urban, Asian part of the beautiful Bostancı promenade. There is a bicycle lane.
Maçka Park – go straight to the far end of the park, the entrance is right in front of the Swissôtel. Comfortable lanes where local runners like to practice their interval training.
Around Sultanahmet – at a sightseeing pace, Seeing all the main sights of the city – Hagia Sophia – Hippodrome – Egyptian Obelisk – Snake Column – Obelisk of Constantine – Sultanahmet Blue Mosque – Great Palace Mosaic Museum – Sultan Ahmed III Fountain – Imperial Gates – Church of Saint Irene – Topkapi Palace – Archeological Museum – Gulhane Park – Parade Pavilion – Yerebatan Cistern.
From Galata Bridge to Eyüp is an early morning or weekend route, as it crosses the busy and traffic-laden Ataturk Bulvari on weekdays.