Reviewed by Lesley Gillilan
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AJIA HOTEL - REVIEW
On the Asian shore of the Bosphorus, this uber cool hotel is a slick conversion of a 19th century yali – the palatial summer mansions of the Ottoman elite. The location is a little off the beaten track (a half-hour drive, north of Sultanahmet, in a green sub-urban village best known for local yoghurt), but that was, and still is, the general idea: to provide an escape from the heat and hurly-burly of the old city. And this place, all stylish modernism and crisp clean lines, has helped make out-of-town Istanbul fashionable again.
Behind an original façade (a dazzling white confection of neo-classical pillars and pediments), the interior is a geometry of dark wood and creamy marble, glass and steel, light and shade. There is a vast lobby, almost bare but for arum lilies, white orchids, off-white chairs and sunlight; there is a romantic restaurant right on the waterfront; and 16 rooms on three floors (most of which have wonder-ful views). A private boat waits to ferry you across the blue water, but, really, why go anywhere? |
