Cultural treasures of Istanbul
Located on the crossroads of Asia and Europe, there is just one city, Istanbul, a city that has survived three successive empires during 2000 years and keeps amaze and attract visitors from all over the world. You will only see turquois water fronts and have a time of your life. Istanbul is the most populous city in Turkey , located on both sides of Bosphorus, right between the Black Sea and Marmara Sea, called also Istanbul bridges to Europe and Asia, culturally and also physically. Getting back to the empires, Roman, Ottoman and Byzantine, This city still preserves the legacy of its past, successfully and hopefully looking forward the modern present and future.It’s a harmony of diverse cultures and traditions, being laid back but very modern at the same time, the daily rhythm of harmony can be easily felt in people and place itself. at the first sight, its seems all too much, too many monuments, too much history on this unbeaten landscape, breath it all in and enjoy, the only place on earth where you can actually having a meal and watching a landscape of another continent, pretty amazing, isnt it?
Already back then, Istanbul’s was a great place, 2500 years ago it was captured by Ottoman Turks, inhabited since like forever, it was world’s most coveted places. To avoid the invaders, Turks built massive walls, 5 meters deep and 9 meters in height, all over the city. But yet, the walls were more like a red light to something precious and desirable, to gain its importance. No wonder, the walls did not good, the city was attacked more than 60 times, it use to be the capital of Roman, Ottoman and Byzantine empires, each of the empires turned the family and friends into enemies. Many fought to get the city under their control, Greeks, Persians and Spartans and finally Romans took it, renaming it after Constantine the Great. The ruins and places you see nowadays were the results of all those empires spending countless fortunes building u this city, marking it as their.
Istanbul was and still is a very desirable place to be , live and travel to, standing on two continents, surrounded by palaces, water fountains and mosques all over it, with Islam and Christianity living shoulder to shoulder. As it was very attractive for those living outside those enormous walls, once they got in , they stole all treasures they possibly could. Some still say, what human couldn’t destroy in Istanbul, mother nature took care of, this city has survived dozens of earthquakes, leaving it into dust. This magical place used to live a Golden era, nowadays it’s mostly poverty they have to face. Yet, there are no other city like Istanbul, no other sunsets like in here, and no other soul like Istanbul’s one. A magnificent place, yet in a waiting list to be again the greatest city in the world.
