Winter in Istanbul: Exploring December Festivities and New Year Celebrations

Welcome to Winter in Istanbul. It's late December here in Istanbul and the city is sparkling with New Year decorations. I'll take you through two of the most vibrant areas. Istiklal Street and Galata Port, Istanbul. Today I'm out with my husband. I'm gonna film the New Year's time in Istiklal Street. But since it is Istiklal Street, a touristic famous old area, we see more. That one is a nice traditional lokanta, restaurant. With classic Turkish dishes. Here it says the Narmanlı Han was built in 1831 and served as a Russian embassy until 1924. If you come here when the tram waits, you can have your photo with it. It's interesting to see all the decorations like we are in Germany. I said Germany because I was born in Germany. That's why in the kindergarten and elsewhere I remember celebrating the Christmas time. The big pine trees decorated the chocolates and everything. All my favorite items that I've been using for many years. Let's take a look. Time passes so quickly. It's gonna be 2025. I don't know, should I be happy or sad for the passing year. It is in December usually around between 8 and 12 degrees. It's now on the upper side, very mild right now, beautiful to walk. Even though we are on the waterfront, we are expecting a cooler weather during next week. Galata Port is also a port as you can understand from the name. And today we have a guest cruise ship here. Here you can also visit Istanbul Modern Museum. It is closed on Mondays. I would love to visit but I'm gonna take you somewhere else. An exhibition about Turkish coffee. how it is made, how you can make it, the traditions and more, check my description box from below. Before leaving the post office building, I wanted to look at the stalls and stores where handmade jewelry and products were sold. Although handmade products are becoming increasingly rare in modern times, no factory-made products can match their value and beauty, I think. Another coffee, this time it's filtered. I'm planning to walk to the Karaköy Bridge to Eminönü as a last stop. But since I'm very close, I cannot skip having my favorite dessert in Karaköy. Can you guess what it is? There is an out from the Galata Port behind me and right across the street, Gülloğlu. Okay, I have my lunch. Let's have some börek first and then I'll try the baklava. I love the cheese inside the börek. It is kind of aged, has a deeper aroma. The flaky pastry is also very nice but it's a little bit oily. Could have been a bit less. I smell fish. They serve fish dürüm, fish wrap or fish sandwich. I think I could get that too. But I'm full. I have to do my afternoon prayer. I'm kind of late. So going to the mosque. Okay, I'm out. It's beginning to rain again. I cannot film when it's raining that much. But let's continue a little bit more. From Singapore. Turkey is very beautiful. I watch your Turkish food travel every day. I like your recipe. What did you try? I tried your breakfast and then I tried your jam, the rose jam. Your vlog really helped us a lot to understand Turkish food and Turkish culture. That's why I'm here for one month already. Have a nice time here. Enjoy. How beautiful. She just stopped me and we hugged each other. Now here it is Christmas decorations because this is the heart of it. If you want to decorate a tree, this is where you can buy from. I'm at Egyptian Bazaar, the Spice Bazaar. They are closing at 7. I think it's also for me the time to finish the vlog. Otherwise, it's going to just continue. So I hope you enjoyed the winter time in Istanbul I filmed during the late December. New Year's decoration, the vibes. Specifically in the touristic areas, there are both New Year's and Christmas decorations. In Turkey, there are debates. People are saying why not celebrate the New Year's. It is kind of a mix between the New Year's and Christmas. It is as if elements from traditional Western celebrations have been incorporated into New Year's Eve. While some do this knowing the history of Christmas, the majority simply celebrate to have a fun evening. And also please tell me if you have been in Istanbul in winter time. If you would want to visit after this video. See you next time, bye.