Ihlamur Kasri (Pavilion) with its Well-Kept Garden and Peacocks

Ihlamur is near Fulya neighbourhood between Nisantasi and Besiktas. Ihlamur means "linden" in Turkish. Today, although the yard is very colourful, there is not much linden odour left. It is a perfect place to wander around for a couple hours or have a refreshing breakfast.

A view from the yard. Unfortunately it is interrupted by skyscrapers. The building is the cortege pavilion.

Sultan Abdulmecit ordered the famous Armenian architect Nigogos Balyan to build two pavilions, one for ceremony, the other for cortege. (By the way, Balyan brothers were very famous at late Ottoman times. Nigogos Balyan was also the architect of Small Mecidiye Mosque, Dolmabahce Mosque, Adile Sultan Pavilion, Ortakoy Mosque or Big Mecidiye Mosque, Kucuksu Pavilion.) The orijinal Ihlamur Pavilion is the ceremony pavilion. It is bigger and heavily decorated. The cortege pavilion is smaller and plain compared to the former.

The ceremony pavilion.

After the death of Abdulmecit, Sultan Abdulaziz took care of his brother's favourite buildings (somehow less than him). He organized cock fights and ram fights in the garden. Then Sultan Mehmet Resat V took regular rests here. In 1910, Bulgarian and Serbian kings were was hosted here. Before the pavilions were built, the land was remembered as a resort. It had three sections, including a pool, a garden and an orchard. Then after some regulations at the reigns of Ahmed III, Abdulhamid I and Selim III it became the private garden of the sultans. (The people out!) One of the famous guests of the garden at that time was the French poet Lamartine.

A peacock from the garden.

Today, the buildings are museums. You can visit the garden by paying 1 TL and see the buildings from outside. I remember entering the building once when I was a university student. I had a couple of breakfast. I love to visit the garden in spring. If I'm lucky, I see a peacock.

How to get to Ihlamur Pavilion

Fulya is a prosperous neighbourhood. I can explain the lack of public transportation only with this. If you can afford it, you can take a taxi. However, it is an easy and short walk to the pavilion from Mecidiyekoy, Nisantasi or Besiktas. If you have half an hour and if the weather is fine, don't bother to walk.