Zeyrek: Overlooking the Golden Horne

This weekend I wanted to have walk in old quarters of Istanbul. This time I strolled in Zeyrek and Fatih neighbourhood. These quaters are full of history, tradition and carry faces of the past and the present. I took a ferry from Uskudar to Sirkeci and walked from there towards Eyup direction. Nice walk along a warm wind. Then I decided to visit a church which is known among people as the Church of the Fırst Day of the Month. People go there (especially, indeed almost only women) to make wishes in search of healing, finding solutions to their problems such as marriage, becoming pregnant and earning hearts of lovers. It is small and cost church. When people visit they buy a key and try to sanctfy it while praying. I talked to the caretaker and found out that there was no service on Sundays.
Then I crossed the road to see Zeyrek where there is an old church and monostery. A small portion is used as a mosque but the building is so old ann in a bad condition. Luckly, restoration works have started recently. In addtion to the church there are old houses from the Ottoman times. Some of there houses were renovated and protected as part of UNESCO world heritage. A minute walk from the church will take you to a Zeyrek restaurant. This is very clean and well served place with a view of the Golden Horn and Galata Tower. A place every visitor to Istanbul must visit. You can have nice tea, coffee or more while having this excellent view.
After a nice and hot tea I walked around and came accross a place where there are lots shops and restaurants owned by people from Siirt region of Turkey. You can find all sorts of local food from Siirt. Restaurants serve also traditional Siirt food. If you have colestrol however, you need to be careful with your food because they serve fatty food.
When I finished my food around 4 pm. I alked up towards right and came face to face with the Fatih Mosque, named after Mehmed II, conqurer of Istanbul. This is a large and beautiful mosque surrounded by lots of historical buildings.
It was such a nice day. Keep these places in mind if you want to explore Istanbul on foot.