The Bosphorus is the only strait in the world that divides a city between two continents. On your left, Europe. On your right, Asia. And as the sun drops behind the minarets and the water turns gold, there is genuinely nowhere better to be than on the water looking back at Istanbul.

This three-hour cruise departs from Eminönü in the early evening, just as the city starts to soften. The boat moves north through the strait at a relaxed pace, giving you time to actually look. Dolmabahçe Palace slides past on the European shore, its 600-meter marble façade almost absurdly grand against the water. Further up, the Rumeli Fortress appears on a rocky promontory, its towers built by Mehmed II in just four months before the Ottoman siege of Constantinople in 1453.

On deck, a spread of Turkish mezze keeps things unhurried. Stuffed vine leaves, white cheese, olives, fresh bread, and a constant supply of çay in those small tulip-shaped glasses that seem to appear from nowhere whenever yours runs low.

By the time you turn back south toward the city, the sky is deep orange and the mosques along the skyline are beginning to light up. It is a very simple evening, and one of the best you will have in Istanbul.