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SIGHTS OF ISTANBUL |
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Istanbul
is one of the most amazing cities, having been the capital of two
great empires, the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) and the Ottoman, and
was the largest and wealthiest city in the world for more than a
thousand years. It has an incredible history, unmatched monuments
and a speechless beauty.
Istanbul
is where the largest church in the world existed for about 1,100
years. This is where the first cafe in the world was opened.. This
is where the tulips originated.. where Mozart imagined when he
composed his "Turkish March" and "Abduction from the Seraglio"..
where Jason and the Argonauts sailed through.. where the largest
covered marketplace in the world exists.. where the finest carpets
and textiles in the world are made.. where the most delicious food
is cooked.. where millions of Muslims, Christians and Jews lived
together in peace for centuries.. where magnificent palaces, mosques
and churches decorate the hills and waterfront.. where Europe and
Asia meet, being the only city in the world in two continents..
And this is where Ataturk gave his last breath leaving a grand
legacy to the world..
"If the World was a single
state, Istanbul would be its capital."
Napoleon Bonaparte
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HAGIA
SOPHIA |
CHORA |
BASILICA CISTERN |
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Hagia
Sophia is the supreme masterpiece of Byzantine architecture. Its
spacious nave is covered by a lofty central dome carried on
pendentives, a device not previously employed in monumental
construction. It served as model for several of the great Turkish
mosques of Constantinople.
Documents
indicate that the first Hagia Sophia was built by Emperor
Constantius, son of Emperor Constantinos I, and was opened for
services in 360 AD.
More on Hagia Sophia
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The
Church of the Holy Savior of Chora, called in Turkish, Kariye
Camii, is after Hagia Sophia
the most interesting Byzantine church in the city. Not so much for
the building itself, pretty as that is, as because of the superb
series of mosaics and frescoes which it preserves and which have
been magnificently restored and cleaned by the Byzantine Institute
of America.
The
mosaics and frescoes are by far the most important and extensive
series of Byzantine paintings in the city and among the best and
most beautiful in the world.
More on Chora |
The
Basilica Cistern, also
called the Yerebatan Sarayi
or Yerebatan Sarnici, is the
largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that still lie beneath
the city of Istanbul, Turkey.
The
cistern
was built by Emperor Constantinus I during the 4th century and was
restored and extended by Justinianus in the 6th century. The water
came from the Belgrad forest via the Cebecikoy arch.
More on Basilica Cistern |
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ARCHEOLOGICAL MUSEUM |
HIPPODROME |
BLUE
MOSQUE |
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Istanbul
Archaeological Museum is one of the most important museums of its
kind in the world. Founded as a museum during the Ottoman Period,
then the imperial museum, the collection includes a number of
findings from various parts of the Ottoman empire, including
Mesopotamia, and in particular such monuments as the Alexander’s
Tomb, the tomb of the Weeping Maidens and the Lycian Tomb found at
Sayda in Syria in 1891.
Originally
the museum collection was exhibited in the Çinili Pavilion, an annex
of the Topkapi Museum now in use as the museum of faience and
ceramics and dating to the period of Mehmed II. But as the
collection grew, the present building was erected between 1892-1908,
to which a later annex has been added in recent years.
More on Archeological Museum
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The
site of the original Hippodrome, which extends away from the
Sultanahmet mosque was laid out in 196 by the Roman emperor Severus.
Constantine the Great turned it into a vast stadium capable of
seating a hundred thousand spectators who watched horse and chariot
races, gladiatorial combats, and other spectacles. The Hippodrome
was where the heart of Constantinople's social life beat and also
where popular displeasure was given voice and sometimes erupted into
riots and rebellion.
Like
other parts of the city, the Hippodrome was lavishly decorated with
monuments and works of art of which only three examples from the
Spina (the long structure running down the center of the stadium's
course) have survived.
More on Hippodrome |
The
Sultan Ahmed Mosque (in Turkish Sultanahmet Camii, in English
commonly called the Blue Mosque) is a mosque in Istanbul, the
largest city in Turkey and the capital of the Ottoman Empire from
1453 to 1923. It is regarded as one of the greatest masterpieces of
Islamic architecture.
The
mosque was built between 1609 and 1616 by order of the Sultan Ahmed
I, after whom it is named. He is buried in the mosque's precincts.
It is located in the oldest part of Istanbul, in what was before
1453 the centre of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine
Empire. It is next to the site of the ancient Hippodrome of
Constantinople, and a short distance from the great Christian Church
of the Holy Wisdom (Hagia Sophia).
More on Blue Mosque
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GRAND
BAZAAR |
VALENS
AQUEDUCT |
SULEYMANIYE MOSQUE |
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The
Grand Bazaar (Kapalıçarşı in Turkish) in Istanbul is one of
the largest covered markets (Bazaar) in the world with more than 58
streets and 4000 shops. It is well-known for its jewelry, pottery,
spice and carpet shops. Many of the stalls in the bazaar are grouped
by type of good, with regions for leather coats, gold jewelry and
the like.
The
bazaar contains two bedestens, or domed masonry structures built for
storage and safe keeping, the first of which was constructed in 1464
by the order of Mehmed II.
More on Grand Bazaar
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971
meters of the originally more than 1-km aqueduct which carried water
to Constantinople until the end of the 19th Century still stands
today. At its highest point, the aqueduct reaches a height of 29
meters. Of this monument a great part (971 meters) is still
preserved, but appears much lower than in the Roman and Byzantine
times, since the surrounding ground level has risen up to 6 m.
The
aqueduct transported water, which came from two different supply
systems, over the little valley between the fourth and third hills
of Constantinople. It was finally stored in a great reservoir: the
famous underground "Basilica Cistern."
More on Valens Aqueduct
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The
largest and most imposing mosque in Istanbul, the city of domes and
minarets, is the Suleymaniye. The aesthetic supremacy of its
interior and exterior and its perfect proportions have been
captivating the visitors for centuries. The Suleymaniye Mosque is an
architectural masterpiece.
The
16th century was the golden age of the Ottoman Empire. Suleyman the
Magnificent, the longest reigning among the thirty-six Ottoman
sultans, ruled for 47 years in this century.
More on Suleymaniye Mosque |
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GALATA
TOWER |
DOLMABAHCE PALACE |
SPICE
BAZAAR |
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The
Galata Tower (Turkish Galata Kulesi) is located in Istanbul
in Turkey to the north of the Golden Horn. One of the city's most
striking landmarks, it is a huge, cone-capped cylinder that
dominates the skyline on the Galata side of the Golden Horn.
The
original tower was destroyed during the Fourth Crusade, but it was
rebuilt as the Tower of Christ in 1348 during an expansion of the
Genoese colony in Constantinople. It was the apex of the
fortifications of Genoese Galata.
More on Galata Tower
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The
Dolmabahce Palace, a blend of various European architectural styles,
was built between 1843-1856 by Karabet Balyan, the court architect
of Sultan Abdulmecid. The Ottoman sultans had many palaces in all
ages, but the Topkapi was the official residence until the
completion of the Dolmabahce Palace.
The
ballroom is the largest of its kind in the world. A 4.5 ton colossal
crystal chandelier hangs from the 36 m high dome. The hall, which is
used for important political meetings,receptions and balls, was
previously heated by an oven-like system under the floor.
More on Dolmabahce Palace |
The
Spice Bazaar, aka. Egyptian Bazaar, the second largest covered
market in the city, was part of the mosque complex. Other surviving
parts of the complex are the tombs and the magnificent fountain. On
the mosque side of the L-shaped Spice Bazaar, there is a popular
flower market and cafes, and fish, vegetable and grocery stores
occupy the other side.
It
is one of the attractive sites in Istanbul with its vivacious and
distinctive atmosphere.
More on Spice Bazaar |
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MAIDEN'S TOWER |
EYUP
SULTAN MOSQUE |
PRINCES' ISLANDS |
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The
architectural structure of the Maiden's Tower (Kız Kulesi) dates
back to 341 BC. This cape, which was an extension of the Bosphorous
straits at the time (there are rumours that it was a peninsula
before) used to be called "vus".
At
this date, after being a mausoleum built on marble columns for the
wife of Commander Chares, a chain was pulled from its location at
Sarayburnu to the island where the tower was located, in 410 BC.
More on Maiden's Tower
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The
Mosque and Mausoleum of Eyup Sultan, located outside the corner
where the land walls meet the walls along the Golden Horn, is
considered a sacred site for Muslims. Eyup-el-Ensari was a
standard-bearer of Mohammed and he died here during an Arabic siege
of the city in the 7th century. His grave was discovered after the
conquest and later the mausoleum and the first mosque in Istanbul
were built on this site.
The
original mosque was destroyed in an earthquake and the present one
was constructed in its place in 1800.
More on Eyup Sultan Mosque
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The
Princes' Islands (today Burgazada) are a chain of nine islands off
the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, in the Sea of Marmara. The largest
island is Büyükada.
During
the Byzantine period, princes and other royalty were exiled on the
islands, lending them their present name. During the 19th century
the islands became a popular resort for Istanbul's wealthy, and
Victorian-era cottages and houses are still preserved on the largest
of the Prince's islands.
More on Princes' Islands |
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BOSPHORUS |
THEODOSIAN WALLS |
ISTIKLAL AVENUE |
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Bosphorus is the
strait between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara; 32km (20 miles)
long, 650-3300m (720-3600 yards) wide, 30-120m (100-395ft) deep.
Bosphorus comes from
a Tracian word of unknown origin, interpreted in Greek as meaning
"Ford of the Cow", from the legend of Io, one of the many lovers of
Zeus, who swam across the sea here as a cow chased and continuously
disturbed by flies sent by Hera.
More on Bosphorus
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The
Walls of Constantinople surrounded the Roman and Byzantine city of
Constantinople.
The
original walls of the city were built in the 8th century BC when
Byzantium was founded by Greek colonists from Megara. The final set
of walls were built during Theodosius II, stretching almost seven
kilometres from the Golden Horn to the Sea of Marmara.
More on Theodosian Walls
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Istiklal
Caddesi (Istiklal Avenue), is one of the most famous avenues in
Istanbul, Turkey. Located in the Beyoglu neighborhood of Istanbul,
it is a gallant pedestrian street, approximately 3 km long, that
houses tens of exquisite boutiques, music and bookstores, art
galleries, cinemas, theaters, cafés, bars, libraries, pubs,
coffeehouses, historical patisseries, chocolateries, technological
centers, and restaurants, all of which are seamlessly integrated
into the elegant 19th century Turkish architecture.
More on Istiklal Avenue
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YILDIZ
PALACE |
ISTANBUL LISESI |
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Yıldız
Palace became the fourth seat of Ottoman government in İstanbul,
after Eski Saray (the Old Palace) which stood where İstanbul
University is today, Topkapı Palace and Dolmabahçe Palace.
The
section of Yıldız Palace named Şale (after the Swiss chalet which it
was designed to resemble) is one of the most interesting examples of
l9th century Ottoman architecture.
More on Yildiz Palace
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Istanbul
Lisesi (Istanbul High School), one of the oldest and most
prestigious educational institutions in Turkey, was established in
1884.
As
a state high school, Istanbul Lisesi admits students through the
central state school examination. Admission to Istanbul Lisesi is
extremely competitive with only 144 students enrolled each year from
a pool of over 400,000 applicants, which makes it the most difficult
to enter among all of the 400 special state secondary schools in the
country.
More on Istanbul Lisesi
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