THE Turks have changed tactics. For centuries, the sultans of Istanbul sent forth their armies, seizing territories across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. This time, it's a style offensive. And the spoils of the conquests are everywhere. Downbeat neighborhoods have re-emerged as artist and night life enclaves. Medieval Ottoman motifs are winding up on T-shirts and design products. Plain kebabs are getting epicurean makeovers, and Old World hammams are being converted into jet-setters' spas. With architecture from the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman periods as a backdrop, Istanbul is now the rare place where readers of Archeology and Wallpaper magazines can clink glasses with equal zeal.Friday



5 p.m.

1) Super Market



Get disoriented at the six-century-old Grand Bazaar (Yaglikcilar Caddesi, Beyazit), which has about 60 lanes holding 4,000-odd shops packed to the rafters with tea sets, gaudy gold, backgammon boards and enough water pipes for a Cheech and Chong marathon. Bypass the trinket slingers and hit EthniCon (Kapalicarsi Takkeciler Sokak 58-60; 90-212-527-6841; www.ethnicon.com), a store where old Turkish rugs are cut into rectangles and reworked into arty modernist carpet collages. Next, do like Jean-Paul Gaultier, Donna Karan and Sting, and head to Sivasli Yazmaci (Yaglikcilar 57; 90-212-526-7748) for gorgeous textiles - new and vintage - in silk, wool and cotton.



7 p.m.

2) Goodbye, Europe



Take a 15-minute ferry through time - and across continents - from Eminonu terminal in Europe (Iskele 2, Eminonu; 90-212-455-6900; www.ido.com.tr; 1.30 new lira) to the Kadikoy district in Asia. Crossing the Bosphorus at dusk, you'll have knockout views of the illuminated minarets of the medieval Suleymaniye Mosque, the fairy-tale Galata Tower, the vast dome of the Hagia Sophia and the majestic walls of the Topkapi and Dolmabahce Palaces. Don't be surprised if you feel a little less Occidental upon arrival.



8 p.m.

3) Anatolian Comfort Food



For those who don't have a Turkish grandfather to cook traditional dishes, there's Musa Dagdeviren, the Turkish-Kurdish proprietor of Ciya Sofrasi (Guneslibahce Sokak 43, Kadikoy; 90-216-330-3190; www.ciya.com.tr). A culinary Indiana Jones, he gathers gustatory secrets from remote provinces and serves a menu that may include ezo gelin (lentil soup with oregano and red pepper), diyarbakir guvec (a savory stew of lamb, tomatoes and soft eggplants) and kuru sebze domalsi (eggplant stuffed with rice and lamb). He is also a Midas of fruits, transforming them into golden juices (tamarind, anyone?) and desserts like candied pumpkin slices. The menu is in Turkish, so take a Turkish friend or make one at the restaurant. A three-course meal runs a mere 30 lira, about $22 at 1.37 lira to the dollar.



10 p.m.

4) Go-Go Beyoglu



The Beyoglu district has been transformed in recent years from a desultory dump into a buzzing night life district where you can scarcely hurl an olive without hitting someone making the scene in old-school Nikes. For a nightcap with the older intellectual set, head to the House Café (Asmali Mescit 9/1, 90-212-245-9515; www9.thehousecafe9.com.tr), order a bottle of Turkish Sarafin cabernet (75 lira) and make clever remarks about post-structuralism. To gyrate with young Turks, visit Wanna (Mesrutiyet Caddesi 151, 90-212-243-1794; www9.istanbuldoors9.com), where foreign D.J.'s keep young professionals in Mavi jeans dancing alongside the aluminum bar until the wee hours.



Saturday



10 a.m.

5) Lifestyles of the Rich



Why leave the house when you're an Ottoman sultan living in Topkapi Palace - Turkey's answer to Versailles?. The 10 a.m. harem tour (Sultanahmet; 90-212-512-0480; www.topkapisarayi.gov.tr; 10 lira) unveils the sultans' wild world of multiple wives, eunuchs and dwarf entertainers. Walk through opulent vaulted chambers decorated in blue Iznik tiles and stained glass, then check out the religious relics, which include facial hair and a letter said to be from the Prophet Muhammad. Top it off with a look at the royal treasury, filled with bejeweled spoils from Ottoman conquests, and a skull fragment purportedly from history's most famous headless hero, John the Baptist.



Noon

6) Rocks of Ages



Thousands of tiny, tightly packed shards. It doesn't sound like much, until you witness the exquisitely wrought mosaics glowing from the old walls and domed ceilings of the medieval Church of St. Savior in Chora (Kariye Camii Sokak 26, Edirnekapi, 90-212-631-9241; 10 lira entry). Take binoculars or a zoom lens to fully appreciate the detailed facial expression on Christ the Savior; the poignant allegory of a sick woman crawling to Jesus; and the rich reds, deep blues and dazzling Klimt-like golds that render the Biblical scenes. The church (sometimes called Kariye Mosque) also houses amazingly preserved frescoes. Don't miss the action-packed "Harrowing of Hell," in which Jesus breaks through Hell's gates, tramples Satan underfoot and yanks Adam and Eve from their coffins
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