Emirgan Park

Emirgan Park is one of the largest parks in Istanbul. I had attempted a visit in the summer, but the walk up the hill from the Bosphorus was too intimidating. Today I attended a luncheon at a home near an exit from the park at its highest elevation. As I was on foot, rather than in a car, it was no problem to step over the metal grate that would puncture tires entering this exit. Emirgan Park is famous for its tulips in the spring, so I will be visiting again at that time. But it was beautiful today also. Within the park, there are three pavillions, named for their colors. We have the White Pavillion, ... the Yellow Pavillion, which was open today for dining, and...

the Pink Pavillion.

Throughout the park, there are many walking trails, picnic tables, park benches, ...

a water fountain, with ducks and ...

a friendly swan. Not many people were in the park, as we are now in our second week of school and this was early afternoon. I imagine weekends are another story.

The grounds were magnificantly kept. Gardeners were working in several areas. My favorites in the park were the tree with the pink flowers, and ...

the knotted up tree.

I walked downward through the park and ended up at the Bosphorus, where I took the bus to Bebek and the ferry back to the Asian side. A to be repeated visit to Emirgan Park.