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Those who have been in Istanbul before , probably visited the Blue Mosque in Sultan Ahmet , today i went to Blue Mosque for friday praying , it was really crowded with muslims and the voice of the imam was amazing , you should listen him while he reads surahs loudly , next friday i will try to record his voice , i'm sure you will like his amazing voice.

And i recorded a video while he preaches to all muslims



i will take a better video next friday , i wish i had a video cam to take a more qualified videos, anyway hope you like it , do not forget to comment about video , thanks!

Tulip festival has been started by the major of Istanbul aproximately a week ago , now in anywhere of Istanbul you can see colorful tulips . This festival has been made for 2 years in summers , tulip represents Ottomans ( tulip period ) thats why you can see tulip pattern and shape from ceramics to tea glasses .

anyway, the reason i created this post is that i took a few pictures from the parts of Istanbul where tulips were planted and i wanted to share this pictures with you readers.




White tulips and a tulip looking cat ( look at the colors! lol she looks as if shes dropped into a paint bottle )


Last picture from the opposite of The Blue Mosque , as you see there are red and white tulips , these colors are the combination of the colors of turkish flag


There are more tulips with various colors but i could not take a picture of them since i was in a hurry , hope i can take more pics next time! Thanks!

A friend of mine sent me two great documents about Turkish cuisine and Turkey pictures,im pretty sure after looking this documents you will book a hotel in Turkey for this summer to taste these delicious turkish meals and wander along the seasides,you got a guide(me) so go ahead!

Turkish Cuisine : You will find the pictures of turkish meals you havent seen before.

Turkey Pictures : Awesome pictures from Turkey! From Aegean to Black Sea ..

And..

Speacial Thanks Goes To AnneKaz for This Great Archive!

After Bebek and Hagia Sophia & Blue Mosque , now its time to show the place i live in with my parents,famous Turks live in this place , Sarıyer is like a mountain where people settled its sides , summit of this mountain is forest where people go there to have picnic or to make kebab in summers,and the bottom is sea where people swim and fish . Sarıyer is famous for its börek and muhallebi ( which are turkish meals,i will tell you how to make this turkish meals later ) . Lets see this great place's pictures i have just taken!


A view to mountain from seaside.

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Opposite of Sarıyer , Beykoz.As you see there are forests ,which makes us live better.



A view from mountain to seaside.As you see there are two land from where sea passes through,the land on the right is european side , and the land on the left is asian side.







Finish.

Next posts will be about extraordinary turkish tradition and culture , and do not worry i will write about turkish meals too =)

thanks for visiting.

Today i shot pictures of Blue mosque and Hagia Sophia , i will tell the history of these places ,and i will add the pictures i took now.

BLUE MOSQUE :

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 slender minarets.

The Blue Mosque was founded by Sultan Ahmet I. He ordered Architect Mehmed AgaBlue Mosque from air 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.
Interior of Blue MosqueThe 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 Tiles in Blue Mosque 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(14Windows of Blue Mosque0 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.

HAGIA SOPHIA :
Hagia Sophia, which is considered as one of the eight wonders of the world, also occupies a prominent place in the history of art and architecture. It is one of the rare works of this size and age that has survived to our day. The church (called Ayasofya in Turkish) is erroneously known as Saint Sophia in the west. The basilica was not dedicated to a saint named Sophia, but to Divine Wisdom.

This was the site of a pagan temple, and the three separate basilicas built here in different times were all called by the same name. Although no churches were built during the reign of Constantine the Great, some sources maintain that the first Hagia Sophia basilica was built by him. Actually, the first small basilica with a wooden roof was constructed in the second half of the 4th century by Constantinius, the son of Constantine the Great.

This church burnt during the riots in 404, and a second and larger basilica that replaced it was inaugurated in 415. During the bloody uprising of 532 that broke out at a chariot race in the Hippodrome, ten thousands of the inhabitants of the city were killed and numerous building destroyed.
The Hagia Sophia church was among the structures burnt during this so-called "Nika" revolt which was directed against Emperor Justinian.

When Justinian finally suppressed the revolt, he decided to build a house of worship "the like of which has not been seen since Adam, nor will it be seen in the future." Construction started in 532 over the remains of the previous basilica and it was completed in five years. In the year 537, elaborate ceremonies were organized for the dedication of this largest church of Christendom. The emperor spared no expense for his church and placed the state treasury at the disposal of the architects, Antheius of Tralles and mathematician Isidorus of Miletus. The design of the dome followed in the tradition of Roman architecture, and the plan of the basilica was even older. Round buildings had been successfully covered with domes before. But in Hagia Sophia, Justinian was attempting for the first time in the history of architecture to build a gigantic central dome over a rectangular plan.


During the reign of Justinian, Hagia Sophia was a manifestation of refinement and pomp, but in later eras it turned into a legend and a symbol.

Because of its dimensions which could not be surpassed for the next thousand years and the financial and technical difficulties involved in its construction, people believed that such a building could not have been achieved without the assistance of supernatural powers. Although Hagia Sophia is a 6th century Byzantine work, it is an "experiment" in the Roman architectural tradition that has neither a predecessor nor a duplicate. The contrast between the interior and the exterior and the large dome are legacies of Rome. The outer appearance is not elegant; it was built as a shell, without much care for proportions. On the other hand, the interior is as splendid and captivating as a palace. As a whole, it is an "imperial" structure.

During the dedication ceremony, the emperor could not suppress his excitement. He entered the church in a chariot, thanked God, and shouted that he had outdone King Solomon.

The basilica developed into a large religious center with tall buildings surrounding it. The scene was now set for the clashes between the Byzantine emperors and the Eastern Church that would last for centuries.

Despite its uniqueness and magnificence, the structure has some vital faults. The most important problem was the enormous size of the dome and the pressure it exerted on the side walls. The architectural elements necessary for transmitting the weight of such a dome to the foundations were not fully developed at that time.

In time the side walls kept leaning outwards and the original low dome collapsed in 558. The second dome to be constructed was much higher and reduced in diameter, but almost half of this dome also collapsed twice, in the 10th and 14th centuries. Vast sums were spent in all ages for the upkeep of Hagia Sophia. The immediate restorations undertaken after the Turkish conquest in 1453 to convert it into a mosque saved this beautiful building. Among the major restorations at later times were the buttresses built by Turkish architect Sinan in the 16th century, the restoration by the Fossafi brothers in mid-19th century, and the repairs including the fortification of the dome with iron bands after 1930. Existing modern portable metal scaffolding will make future restoration work easier.

After serving two different religions with the same god, 916 years as a church and 477 years as a mosque, Hagia Sophia was converted into a museum on Ataturk's orders. Between 1930 and 1935 the whitewash on the walls was cleaned to reveal mosaics, which are among the most important examples of Byzantine art.

Hey people! Today the weather was snowy and i went to sea side to take pictures.I think that you like these pictures from Istanbul . And I'm waiting you to Istanbul , in summers i work as a tourist guide.I can be your guide for free :) . Now I will create a category " About Turkey " , in this category i will take pictures of Istanbul ( sometimes other cities of Turkey ) ,i will take pictures of turkish meals and traditions.Im sure that you love this category , because its good to know about new traditions . Anyway Below,There are pictures from Istanbul / Bebek . Please comment on these pictures. Thanks!