The city of future ..

Istanbul, a special and rich city should be lived in and felt. A visual and cultural wealth and fete, full of charming and surprising things, that may any time urge up your desire for discovery and give u all tastes and feelings of life ... an unmatched city that you can never forsake with its grandiose Bosphorus where you feel the modern life and the mystical traditional aura and history together.

A way of transition for the history, beliefs and cultural life connecting the past to the future, and the different cultures and continents to each other ..a mosaic .

Ancient Istanbul,

irthplace of many Empires, a place that is dreamed of by the other Empires, too for centuries, a living legend witnessed the shift in the course of the world history, just like an outdoor museum where many cultures and traditions are joined.

'Where the east meets the west.'

Istanbul is one of the oldest cities in the world, situated on the shores of the Bosphorus straight. This straight divides, and connects the two continents of Europe and Asia, as well as joining the Black and the Marmara Sea. This historical city was once the capital of the Roman, Byzantine, and the Ottoman Empires. Istanbul still preserves the cultural, historical and artistic values of centuries past. Today Istanbul is the capital of tourism, business, and culture.

OLD CITY CENTER

Blue Mosque
Across from St. Sophia is the supremely elegant, imperial, six-minaret mosque of Sultan Ahmet I. built between 1609 and 1616 by the architect Mehmet, it is known as the Blue Mosque because of its magnificient interior decoration of blue Iznik tiles.

St. Sophia Museum (Open everyday except Friday)
This ancient basilica, built by Constantine the Great in the 4th century and reconstructed by Justinian in the 6th century, is one of the architectural marvels of all time. Its immense dome rises 55 meters above the ground and 31 meters in diameter. The beautiful decorations include stunning Byzantine mosaics.

Topkapi Imperial Palace (Open everyday except Tuesday)
Overlooking The Bosphorus and the Marmara Sea stands a maze of buildings that was once the great palace of the Ottoman sultans from the 15th to the 19th centuries. The first courtyard is a magnificient wooden garden. To the right of the second court, shaded by cypress and plane trees is the place kithen, now housing an exquisite collection of crystal, silver, and Chinese porcelain, while on the left is Harem, the secluded quarters of the wives and concubines of the sultan. The third court contains the Audience Hall of the Sultan, the library of the Sultan Ahmet the 3rd, an exhibition of robes worn by the sultans and their families, the fanous jewel of the Imperial Treasury and finally, an exhibition of miniatrues. In the center of the third court is the Pavillion of the Holy Mantle, enshrining relics of the Prophet Mohammed.

Hippodrome
In front of the Blue Mosque is the site of the ancient Hippodrome, the scene of chariot races and the center of Byzantine civic life. Of the monuments which once adorned only three remain: the Obelisk of Theodosius, the bronze Serpentine Column and the Column os Constantine. Remains from the curved end of the Hippodrome wall can be seen to the south of these three monuments. Today, it's center of historical, cultural and touristic activities. The square with its surrounding area resembles an open-air museum.

Basilica Cistern (Openeveryday except Monday)
Close to St. Sophia is the 6th century Byzantine cistern known as the Yerebatan Sarnici. Fine brick vaulting is supported by 336 Corithian co.




Page : 1 : 2 : 3 : 4 : 5 :