Istanbul has been named as the European Capital of Culture for 2010 so a wide variety of events are available throughout the year that celebrate the vibrant arts, culture and civilization that makes this cosmopolitan city one of the most exciting places in the world to visit.

 

Religious Places

• Across from Hagia Sophia stands the supremely elegant Imperial Sultanahmet Mosque with six minarets. Built between 1609 and 1616 by the architect Mehmet, the building is more familiarly known as the Blue Mosque because of its magnificent interior paneling of blue and white Iznik tiles. During the summer months an evening light and sound show both entertain and inform visitors.

• The cascading domes and four slender minarets of the Imperial Suleymaniye Mosque dominate the skyline on the Golden Horn's west bank. Considered the most beautiful of all imperial mosques in Istanbul, it was built between 1550 and 1557 by Sinan, the renowned architect of the Ottoman Empire's golden age. Erected on the crest of a hill, the building is conspicuous for its great size, emphasized by the four minarets that rise from each comer of the courtyard.

• The Rustem Pasa Mosque, another skillful accomplishment of the architect Sinan, was built in 1561 by order of Rustem Pasa Grand Vizier and son-in-law of Suleyman the Magnificent. Exquisite Iznik tiles panel the small and superbly proportioned interior.

• The Imperial Fatih Mosque, constructed between 1463 and 1470, bears the name of the Ottoman conqueror of Istanbul, Fatih Sultan Mehmet, and is the site of his mausoleum. Standing atop another of Istanbul's hills, its vast size and great complex of religious buildings - medreses, hospices, baths, a hospital, a caravanserai and a library make it well worth a visit.

• The great Mosque of Eyup lies outside the city walls, near the Golden Horn, at the traditional site where Eyup the standard bearer of the Prophet Mohammed, died in the Islamic assault on Constantinople in A.D. 670. The first mosque built after the Ottoman conquest of the city, this greatly venerated shrine attracts many pilgrims.

• Built between 1597 and 1663, the Yeni (New) Mosque looms over the harbor at Eminonu, greeting the incoming ferryboats and welcoming tourists to the old city.

• The 16th-century Sokollu Mehmet Pasa Mosque built on an awkwardly shaped plot on a steeply sloping hill near Sultanahmet, is one of the most beautiful examples of classical Turkish architecture and another masterpiece of the architect Sinan.

• Walls of glass fill the four immense arches that support the central dome at the Mihrimah Sultan Mosque inside the Edirne gate of the old city walls.

• The province of Bilecik lies southeast of Iznik in the verdant and fertile Sakarya River Valley and houses the Orhan Gazi Mosque.

Museums

• The Basilica of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom), now called the Ayasofya Museum, is unquestionably one of the finest buildings of all time.

• The Archeological Museums are found just inside the first court of the Topkapi Palace. Included among its treasures of antiquity are the celebrated Alexander Sarcophagus and the facade of the Temple to Athena from Assos.

• The Museum of the Ancient Orient displays artifacts from the Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Hatti and Hittite civilizations.

• Rumeli Hisan, or European Fortress built by Mehmet has the Open-Air Museum amphitheater that is the site for some events of the Istanbul Music Festival.

• Originally built in the 15th century as a kosk, or pavilion, by Mehmet the Conqueror, the Cinili kosk, which houses the Museum of Turkish Ceramics, contains beautiful 16th- century specimens from Iznik and fine examples of Seljuk and Ottoman pottery and tiles.

• Like the Ayasofya Museum, the St. Irene Museum was originally a church. It ranks, in fact, as the first church built in Istanbul. Constantine commissioned it in the fourth century and Justinian later had the church restored. The building reputedly stands on the site of a pre-Christian temple

• Across the street from the Ibrahim Pasa residence is the Museum of Turkish Carpets which contains exquisite antique carpets and kilims gathered from all over Turkey.

• The Aviation Museum in Yesilkoy traces the development of flight in Turkey.

• In the Military Museum the great field tents used by the Ottoman armies on campaigns are on display. Other exhibits include Ottoman weapons and the accoutrements of war.

• The Kariye Museum, the 11th-century church of "St. Savior" in the Chora complex, is, after Hagia Sophia, the most important Byzantine monument in Istanbul illustrating scenes from the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary.

• Also in Besiktas is the Museum of Fine Arts that houses Turkish paintings and sculptures from the end of the 19th century to the present.

• The City Museum, located within the gardens of the Yildiz Palace, preserves and documents the history of Istanbul since the Ottoman conquest.

Landscapes

Landscapes in Istanbul exhibit different colors of life like

• Kefke rocky outcrops

• Sunset in Istanbul

• Kiz Kulesi

• Misir Carsisi (Spice Bazaar)

• Rumeli Hisari (Rumelian Fortress)

• Burgaz Island

• Golden Horn

• Cicek Pasaji (Flower Lane)

• Balik Pazari

• Kapali Carsi (Covered Bazaar)

• Horse-drawn carriages, Buyukada

• Bursa

• Manyas Kus Cenneti

• Manyas Kus Cenneti

• Meric Bridge, Edirne

• Sunflower Field

• Yalova

• Belgrad Forest