An afternoon spent in Ortaköy enjoying the Bosphorus from a waterside cafe is a relaxing and rewarding way to catch a glimpse of İstanbul. Wandering through the narrow old streets of a thriving and fashionable town will provide an opportunity to acquire knick-knacks from the local curio shops or outside table vendors, and more substantial "souvenir antiques" too. Numerous cafes and bars offer plenty of choice of different atmospheres to relax in, whether your preference be for rock & roll environments, Latin American surroundings or typical Turkish tea houses. There you will also find a magnificent mosque represented in conic columns and decorative porticos, a synagogue, churches and several ancient but dilapidated buildings which appear to date from Byzantium times, standing amidst clusters of stucco or wooden houses typical of a bygone era. If you meander through the back streets and up into the interior of the valley which Ortaköy inhabits, you became increasingly aware that this district of İstanbul is itself a typical little town similar in many respects to towns outside of İstanbul The rapid pace of constructions last demolishing the surrounding lush green foliage, underbrush and copses of adjacent valleys, and the days when you could enjoy a stroll through hillsides covered with a plentitude of flora, fruit trees and fauna are rapidly disappearing.