Istanbul places

  About the fortress   The famous fortress was built in 1458 by Mehmet the Conqueror. It was quite important for the residents of the city: rituals and ceremonies were held here. The construction of this wonderful building coincided with a difficult historical period: the conquer of Constantinople. Ottomans added several adjacent buildings to the already existing ancient edifice of Constantinople: thus, the 4 towers of the fortress were… read more

  The history of Istanbul, when it was Constantinople of the Byzantine Empire, or under the Greek rule, is well known. However, the period, when it was a part of the Roman Empire (and not its capital yet), is not paid attention to by tourists and guides, despite the fact, that in Istanbul there are many monuments of the Roman epoch. We will describe you some of them...   Column of Marcian   This emperor lived in Constantinople, but… read more

Dolmabahce is one of the grandiose palaces of Istanbul, and tourists, getting once to its luxuruious chambers, are ready to spend their holiday there, watching its beauties. The history of the palaceDolmabahce, the palace of the Ottoman sultans, was built during 1842-1853. It is situated in the European part of Istanbul. The palace was built, following the order of Sultan Abdulmecid I, who considered his life in the medieval Topkapi boring. Topka… read more

The Bosphorus has always been pictured not as an empty strait, but always crowded with boats, galleys, big ships... It seems that the waters of this strait have never been empty.  And to this very day the Bosphorus is one of the most “populated” straits of the world. Hundreds and thousands of ships, liners, small boats and ships depart from the wharfs of Istanbul. Cruises, several week-long journeys, hour-long Bosphorus sails...T… read more

Once there were many beaches in Istanbul, mainly on the Asian coast. When the city was called Constantinople, its half, virtually, was a big beach. Later their number descreased, and in the middle of the 20th century, swimming in the Bosporus and the Golden Horn was almost unreal because of the technical development. Turks understood it on time, and cleaned the bay and the strait, and now the water is very clean. There are near 100 beaches in the… read more

Maiden's TowerThis wonderful monument is right in the middle of Bosporus strait. Historians claim, that for the first time the island was visited by Alexander of Macedon, who ordered to build there a high tower. Later, according to a legend, there lived a beautiful girl, daughter of a king, who was protected from the evil spell. They did not managed to do it, the girl died of the snake bite, and her beloved jumped into the sea. Nowadays there is … read more

This place is justly considered one of the most sacred not only for the Christian, but the followers of other confessions. The church of Michael and Gabriel has a glorious and rich history, ancient as Istanbul itself. Here we are going to tell you about this unique place of the city. The placeThe church is situated in Arnavutkoy district, which is famous in the whole Turkey for its coffee-houses and restaurants, where there are cooked fish d… read more

One of the most interesting places of Istanbul, connected with the late Medieval history, is tied to its Muslim part. Of course, the first houses appeared here long before Constantinople became Istanbul, but in comparison with the other parts of the city it is a new district: it is 'only' 800 years old. It is Ya Vedud, a small piece of land, extending along the Golden Horn. From one side it is confined by the walls of Constantinople, from the oth… read more

Here we are going to present you the cult places of Istanbul.  Each city is famous for its cult places as well. In Paris there are the Champs Elysees, in Venice there is the St. Mark's square, but in Istanbul there are four places of this kind! It is by no means surprising, for Istanbul exceeds several times even big European cities in terms of size. We say nothing of the population of Istanbul, that is about 20 million residents! However, … read more

  Four interesting facts about the Nuruosmaniye Mosque This mosque takes a special place among the mosques of Istanbul world-renowned for their size and rich decoration. It is not as old as Hagia Sophia Cathedral, not as monumental as the Blue Mosque and not so decorated as the Suleymaniye Mosque ... Nevertheless, the Nuruosmaniye Mosque also takes its place among the architectural sights of Istanbul. And everyone who visited Istanbul and wa… read more