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Ayasofya Pansiyonlari (Konaklari)
is situated in a picturesque lane of old
lstanbul houses squeezed between the
City's greatest imperial monuments - the
Hagia Sophia and the Topkapı Palace -
was taken over in its entirety by the
Touring Club of Turkey and revived as a
hotel complex in the 1980s. lt was a
pioneering project that set the trend of
historical revivals that has spread
across Turkey since then
Each of the gaily painted
clapboard houses contains five to ten
hotel rooms furnished in the gilded
quasi- Victorian style favoured by the
Ottoman elite of the last century.
The interiors are
furnished in the 19th century Turkish
style in which traditional taste and
Western influence achieved a perfect
balance. The armchairs with tasselled
fringes, the velvet curtains, the
brackets and mirrors, all offer the
visitor a warm, friendly atmosphere
Each building has its own
lobby at the first floor for hosting the
visitors friends.
A four-storey mansion set
in a spacious garden of its own forms a
separate unit called Hotel Konukevi.
(Its upper fioors offer a good view over
the rooftops of the Palace). An
underground cistern of early Byzantine
origin serves as one of three
restaurants. Also within the complex is
an important research library devoted to
books and manuscripts on the history of
Istanbul.
The street is paved in
cobblestone and closed to motor traffic.
Recent signatures in the guestbook
include such celebrities as the film
directors Bernardo Bertolucci and Roman
Polanski |
