Hills of different sizes with vineyards and sunflower fields as far as the eye can see. This is the region of Turkey known as Trakya. It is separated from the rest of Turkey by the Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara and the Dardenelle Straits. The first thing a visitor coming from Europe into Edirne would see is the Selimiye mosque, a masterpiece of the architect Sinan. It seems as though this city boasts proudly of hosting the structures most characteristic of Ottoman architecture.The cities found in this region are Balıkesir, Bilecik, Bursa, Çanakkale, Edirne, İstanbul, Kırklareli, Kocaeli, Sakarya,Tekirdağ and Yalova.

The land of silk, Bursa was the first capital city of the Ottoman Empire. In this city, which has come to be identified with lush green, places worth visiting are as follows: The Green Mosque (Yesil Cami), The Green Tomb (Yesil Turbe) and its splendid gardens, The Magnificent Mosque (Ulu Cami), Emir Sultan and Yildirim Mosques and the Ethnographic Museum. The country's first ski resort was built on Uludag Mountain, which soars into the air just south of the city.Tekirdag, which has beautiful examples of Ottoman architecture and broad beaches, is known for its vineyards and wine festivals.

Balikesir is the center of a broad and important region. To the north is Gonen with its famous thermal springs and the commercial port of Bandırma. After Istanbul this port is the biggest in the Marmara Sea. On the shores of Lake Manyas near Bandirma is the Bird Heaven (Kuşcenneti) National Park.One the shores of the Marmara Sea are a whole host of beautiful beaches and holiday resorts. Among them are Cinarcik, Armutlu, Gemlik, Mudanya, Erdek, the Marmara and Avsa Islands, Denizkent, Sarköy, Silivri and lastly Yalova, a site famous for its thermal springs.

İstanbul
There, God and human, nature and art are together, they have created such a perfect place that it is valuable to see." Lamartine is describing the city, which embraces two continents with one arm reaching out to Asia and the other to Europe. Istanbul, which was known as capital of the capital cities, and created huge peace geographies with reigning to first Roma, and then Eastern Roman (Byzantium) Empire and continents, and was the capital city of Ottoman Empire, is going to a modern future with preserving magnificence of history with proud.

Most beautiful monuments of the city are in the peninsula between Goldern Horn - Marmara Sea - Ramparts. Silhouette of mosques exceeding 500, rising at the hills of the city, creates a magnificent atmosphere. One feels himself / herself nearly in a dream between past and today! You should see Sultanahmet Mosque, which is also named as "Blue Mosque" due to its blue tiles, used in its decoration, and which become the symbol of Istanbul with its six minarets. Famous Hagia Sophia Museum, which is constructed as a church during Emperor Justinien, is at the opposite of it; this architectural master of art structure is adorned with excellent mosaic panels, describing Jesus Christ, Mother Mary and emperors. Süleymaniye Mosque, which is watching these two monuments on another hill, is the peek point of Ottoman architectural art. It is constructed by Mimar Sinan due to the request of Magnificent Süleyman.

There are Byzantine Period famous Hippodrome, where cart races are performed, and three obelisks from that period in the middle of the hippodrome between Hagia Sophia and Sultanahmet Mosque.

Yerebatan Palace is one of the most important water cisterns, constructed during Byzantine period. Kariye Museum, which is deemed as one of the most beautiful Byzantine era pieces of art, is preserving its original mosaic and freskos adorned original décor. Another place you should see in Istanbul is also Eyüp Mosque. Here reignes an infinite lively ambient with pigeon noises to the moral pleasure searchers with visiting Eyüp Sultan.

Istanbul is a city where historical structures are met with modern ones, and become new, and while Kapalı bazaar is insisting on holding the signs of dreamy days of history with its labirent like structure, at the same time serves the new products of the modern world; impressive jewelry, copper objects, carpets, various leather and suet clothing... Once you have drawn by its attraction, you can travel for hours in this bazaar without resting.

A cruise in the Strait, will be one of your unforgettable memories. Calm and unique residences, enumerated at both coasts of the strait and where separate love tales are reflected to waters from each of them, 20th century constructed luxury villas, Dolmabahçe, Göksu and Beylerbeyi Palaces, Rumeli and Anadolu Ramparts, remains of fishermen villages, restaurants, tea gardens, parks, night clubs will charm you. Maybe you can write your historical memories while sipping your tea at a tea garden at calm coasts of Marmara after having a swim at wild beaches of Black Sea during the same day.

In addition to its unique history and cultural history as well as numerous attractions modern hotels, rare restaurants, night clubs, cabarets, historical bazaars and shops are making Istanbul a fully adequate place for conferences and congresses.

Hippodrome    

During The Byzantine period rhe area of the grand bazaar was a trade center. After the Turks came to Istanbul, two bedestens which formed the essence of today's Grand Bazaar were built between 1455-1461 by Mehmet The Conqueror in an attempt to enrich the economic life in the city. Later on as people needed more places for their trade, they also added parts outside these bedestens. In time The Grand Bazaar was formed. With 18 enterances and more than four thousand shops it is one of the greatest bazaars in the world.

Sophia Church is one of the most extraordinary buildings in the history of architecture and from the Golden Age of Byzantium. It played such an important role in Byzantine Empire as well as in Ottoman Empire as a mosque. The word "Hagia" in Greek means "Divine" and "Sophia" means "Wisdom". "Divine Wisdom" is one of the attributes of Jesus Christ and this church is devoted to his divine wisdom.

The Church of Hagia Irene was another church which was also devoted to "peace" attribute of Jesus Christ. The church was first completed in 360 during the reign of Constantinus. It was called as "Megala Ekklessia", the Great Church. This church was burnt in 404 during a revolt. A new church was built in the same place, by emperor Theodosius on Oct,405. It was also destroyed in a fire. The third and the last church was completed in 537 by Emperor Justinian I. It was completed only in 5 years. Emperor Justinian I was a very strong believer of Christianity and he wanted to use the church as a means for enlarging the scope of Christianity. This church served as the heart of the empire, all coronation and major baptism ceremonies took place here. When Turks conquered Istanbul in 1453, the first thing Mehmed "the Conqueror" did was to order the conversion of the church into a mosque. Because he believed that this was written in Holy Koran that Istanbul should be conquered and turned to be an Islamic Land. From then on, the Church served as a great mosque, with four minarets added in different periods. The mosaics on the walls were covered with plaster because they were forbidden in Islam. Actually this helped the preservation of the mosaics and frescoes. The mosque was carpeted and the pulpit was put on the southern part of the church. Hagia Sophia served as a mosque until Mustafa Kemal Ataturk ordered the conversion of the mosque into a museum. He believed that it was a world heritage and people could come and see it. Therefore, in 1929, the plasters started to be removed and in 1940s, it was reopened as a museum.
While approaching the church from Blue Mosque, one gets impressed by the red big building with a splendid dome. The building is huge and vast. When entered through the main gate, one passes through two different narthexes (entrance). In the second entry hall (endonarthex), there's a big bronze gate which is from the reign of Justinian I. This was the main imperial gate to the church which was only reserved for the emperor's passage. Right above the gate, there's a mosaic which is from 9th C. Jesus Christ is in the middle, on the right hand side is Angel Gabriel and on left is Blessed Virgin. The depiction of Emperor Leo VI is also in the mosaic. The ceiling is reveted with floral mosaics. On the left end of the endonarthex, there's the ramp leading to the galleries on the second floor.

 There is a pulpit on the left of the nave. This pulpit is no way comparable to the ones in original mosques but it was a later addition as well. Above ,on the left of the nave there's the "Lodge of the sultan" which was designed as a secret lodge for prayer ceremonies of the Ottoman Sultans. This is a work of Italian Fossati Brothers who came to restore the Church in the 19th century and built many additions to the church. The mosaic on the apse is splendid...It's the depiction of Blessed Virgin and Jesus Christ and this mosaic is from the 9th C. It's completely original.
To reach the galleries on the second floor, one climbs a ramp which is very impressive.

The second floor was used for baptism or changing rooms of the priests. There are three splendid mosaics here on this section. The first one is located in the southeast of the main church. It depicts the judgment day of the world, "the Deesis", Jesus Christ is in the middle, on the left is John the Baptist, on the right is Blessed Virgin.

This mosaic is spectacular because the pieces used for the mosaic is quite little and this made the mosaic to look like a drawing. Even the cheek color or the wrinkles of John the Baptist is easily recognized. The other two mosaics are located in the eastern end of the Church. The one on the left depicts Emperor Monomachos IX with his wife, Zoe. Jesus Christ is in the middle. The one on the right depicts Empress Irene and Emperor Komnenos II with Blessed Virgin and Jesus Christ on her nap. As one walks to the very left end of the church, can come close to the beautiful mosaic on the apse which Blessed Virgin and child Jesus Christ. PS: To reach the galleries, there is a separate admission fee. In 2002, the tickets cost 15.000.000 TL.(9,5 USD or 10 EUR)

The Blue Mosque is one of the most prominent landmarks of Istanbul, especially when viewed from the First Hill or from the Asian shore of the Sea of Marmara. It is very impressive with its beautiful domes and semidomes, nice courtyards and six slander minarets. The Blue Mosque was founded by Sultan Ahmet I. He ordered Architect Mehmed Aga to begin constuction in 1609 and the whole complex was completed in 1616.

The location of the mosque is just opposite of the splendid Church of Hagia Sophia as it is trying to compete with it. That is actually true because Architect Mehmed wanted to construct a bigger dome then Hagia Sophia's but he could not succeed. Instead, he made the mosque splendid by the perfect proportion of domes and semidomes as well as the splendid minarets. There is an interesting story of the mosque; according to it, Sultan Ahmet I wanted to have a minaret made of gold which is "altin" in Turkish. The architect misunderstood him as "alti" which means "six" in English. However, when the architect was shivering as "am I going to be beheaded?", the Sultan Ahmed I liked the minarets so much. Prior to that time, no sultan had a mosque with 6 minarets.

The mosque covers a large area, there's a big courtyard where some ablution fountains are located. These ablution fountains are for people who are getting prepared to pray in the mosque. Before praying, one should wash his/her face, arms, neck and feet as well as mouth and nose. This is a basic cleaning. There are beautiful marble steps right in the middle of the courtyard, leading to the main courtyard. The marble courtyard is lovely, its marble comes from the Island of Marmara (the Turkish word for marble ,"Mermer" comes from Marmara). There is a fountain in the middle which is used as decorative purposes. There is a portal on the left hand side which is entrance for the local people.

Upon turning to the left, one comes to the main entrance of the mosque. The shoes must be taken off and put into plastic bags. Upon the entrance to the mosque, one should pay attention to the gate. The gate is a typical Seljuk- Turkish wooden work with a geometrical design in its center. The star symbolizes the Turkish Generation and very typical of early 11-12th C Turkish Art. After the gate, one meets the breathtaking interior of the mosque with its chandelliers and blue tiles. The mosque is all surrounded by beautiful 17C Iznik tiles which give its name to the Blue Mosque. It is all carpeted with prayer rugs because people must put their forehead on the floor and therefore the floor should be soft and clean.

The building is nearly a square and covered with a dome of 23.5 m.(77 feet) in diameter and 43m(140 feet) high. There are four colossal standing colums of 5m. in diameter(16.3 feet) which give the basic support to the building. The mosque has 260 windows which let the sunlight diffuse into the building quite nicely. They were filled with stained-glass in early 17C but they were restored later. The pulpit and nave is worth seeing, made of marble and original.

The Imam(priest) goes on the pulpit every Friday on the sacred day of the Muslims but he never climbs to the very top as a respect to Prophet Muhammed. Everybody should turn their face to the south when praying, because Mecca( Saudi Arabia) is located in South.
When visiting the Blue Mosque, one should remember the prayer times, five times a day. First one in the very early in morning, second at noon time, third in afternon, fourth in evening and last fifth before going to bed. The mosque is closed at prayer times for 1-1.5 hours. One should prefer to visit the mosque in the morning or before 3-4 o'clock in the afternoon because the prayer times rotate according to the sun's positions.

The Topkapi Palace was the second palace in Istanbul after the conquest. The construction of The Topkapi Palace, including the walls, was completed between 1465 and 1478 however, different sultans having ascended to the throne added parts to the palace which now gives the appearance of a lack of unity and style. The changes were made for reasons of practicality, to commemorate victorious campaigns or to repair damage caused by earthqueke and fire.

The Topkapi Palace was a city-palace with a population of approximately 4,000 people. It covers an area of 70 hectares / 173 acres. It housed all thr ottoman sultans from Sultan Mehmet The Second to Abdulmecit, nearly 400 years and 25 sultans. In 1924 it was made into a museum.

The Underground Cistern is one of the most extraordinary and impressive buildings in Istanbul. It is open every day from 9 am to 5 pm.
The structure was known in Byzantium as "Basilica Cistern" because it lay beneath the Stoa Basilica, the great public square on the First Hill. The Basilica Cistern was built by Justinian I after the bloody Nika Revolt in 532, probably as an enlargement of an earlier cistern which was constructed by Constantine the Great.

During the Byzantium Period, it was used as a reservoir for water storage for the Great Palace and other buildings in the First Hill.During the Ottoman Period, the water was used for Topkapi Palace and watering the gardens of it. However the cistern had its brighest days during the Byzantium Period. The interior of Underground Cistern is breathtaking. It is 138 m, 452 ft long by 65m, 213 ft wide. There are 336 columns in the cistern. Most of the column capitals are either in Corinthian or Doric Style. At the far end of the Cistern, there are two heads of Medusa which are put upside down or horizontal. The Medusa Heads are taken from an ancient Pagan site but they complement the pillars very beautifully and add a different taste to the building. Because of its magic atmosphere and great acoustics, this cistern is now hosting many Classical Music Concerts. There is also a little café which one can sip his or her coffee and enjoy this unique building. On the way to the exit, there are two small bookshops which is full of postcards and informative books as well as some silver jewelry.

The Suleiman's Mosque (Suleymaniye in Turkish and Arabic) is the second largest but finest and most magnificent of the imperial mosque complexes in the city. It's as magnificent as its founder Suleiman the Magnificent and a masterwork of the greatest Ottoman architect, the incomparable Sinan. Suleiman the Magnificent is the 10th Sultan of Ottoman Empire who expanded the boundaries of the Empire far to Vienna's City Walls. Conquering Vienna was his ultimate aim but he could not succeed.

The construction of the Suleiman's Mosque began in 1550 and the mosque itself was completed in 1557. The mosque is actually a complex building with the tombs of Suleiman and his wife, Hurrem Sultan(Roxelana). The other buildings were finished some years later. The mosque is preceded by a courtyard with columns of the richest porphyry, marble and granite. At the four corners of the courtyard rise the four great minarets. The four minarets are said to signify that Suleiman was the fourth sultan to rule in Istanbul and the 10 balconies denote that he was the 10th Sultan of the Ottoman Dynasty.
Entering the mosque, there is a vast room, almost square in plan surmounted by a huge dome. The dome is 47 m., 150 feet and its diameter is 27.5 m, 87 feet. The stain coloured windows are lovely, the sunlight diffuses inside very nicely.

The mihrab where the imam(priest) stands and the pulpit are Proconassian marble. There is also a marvellous woodwork inlaid with mother of pearl and ivory of the doors, window shutters and the preacher's chair. There are also impressive calligraphic inscriptions by the most famous calligrapher of Ottoman Empire, Ahmet Karahisari and his pupil Hasan Celebi. The mosque is all carpeted with red prayer rugs all pointing South where Mecca is located. Next to the mosque are the turbes, the tombs of Suleiman and his wife, Hurrem(Roxelana). The tomb of Suleiman is revetted with beautiful Iznik tiles and quite impressive. There is also the tomb of great architect, Sinan in the same complex. According to the story, Sinan was the only architect who had the honour of opening an Imperial Mosque because Suleiman gave the key to Sinan which was given to him to open the mosque. Another saying says Sinan trusts the quality of the mosque so much that if there is any big earthquake happens, this mosque will never collapse, it will fall into the waters of Golden Horn as one piece, not in small pieces...