Most people don’t know that the tulips are from Istanbul originally. Every single soul thinks they are from Holland but that is not true. The Ottoman sultans liked the flower and made them grow all over the city in 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. They even had a contest for the best tulip every year. And then Dutch ambassador liked the tulips and took some bulbs home although it was against the law at that time. This is how they started the Tulip business and as you all know today they make a lot of money over the tulips.
Tulips are all over Istanbul once again!!
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Another movie shot in Istanbul but let me down: TAKEN II
Taken II; I am personally a big fan of Liam Neeson but this movie is definitely not one of the ones I will watch again. I was so excited when I heard that they would shoot it in Istanbul but the movie let me down badly. From the very beginning you can guess what
will happen next and the whole story is happening in and around Grand Bazaar. Police
cars are at least 20 years old which is not the case in Turkey. I don’t know
what they were thinking while filming it but Turkey is not a third world
country. Economy is growing, people are educated, industry is a lot better than
many European countries and Turkish law enforcement has better cars than the
ones in the movie.
I know Hollywood has never been loyal to the facts but at least they could
picture a better and modern Istanbul. The whole movie is limited to the
following;
*Grand Bazaar,
*Suleiman’s mosque,
*Eminonu Yeni Camii,
*Some women in burka,
*Narrow streets and rooftops in and around Grand bazaar.
Other movies shot in Istanbul;
*From Russia with love,
*Topkapi,
*Murder on the Orient Express,
*The world is not enough,
*International,
*Accidental spy,
*Skyfall,
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Tagged 2012, istanbul, latest movies set in istanbul, liam neeson, movie, taken 2
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Merry Christmas! Happy hanukkah!! or Enjoy the snow Istanbul!!!
Istanbul had the first snow of the season
Slippery roads in İstanbul started to take a toll on commuters on Thursday as many passengers were injured in a chain-reaction crash that involved at least a half-dozen cars on İstanbul’s Bosporus Bridge.
Losing control of their vehicles on slippery roads, the cars first hit barriers on the bridge then crashed into one another. All lanes of the bridge were closed as a result of the accident, which took place before dawn. The injured were rushed to hospitals by ambulances deployed to the area, with some of them in critical condition.
All lanes of the bridge were opened to traffic about an hour later, preventing possible chaos as İstanbulites start their morning commute to work.
İstanbul on Thursday morning saw its first snow, coupled with strong winds — particularly in areas close to the Black Sea coast. The snow, which has already brought eastern Turkey to a standstill, intensified in İstanbul later on Thursday, prompting the İstanbul Governor’s Office to close schools on Friday.
Meanwhile, a Metrobus en route to Zincirlikuyu on Thursday careened out of the Metrobus lane on the D-100 highway due to the snowfall, closing the road to traffic for some time. No one was injured in the incident.
Hundreds of drivers were stuck in traffic in different parts of the city. İstanbul’s Road Maintenance and Repair Directorate spent the entire morning salting the streets and clearing the roads from snow. Turkish Airlines (THY) had to cancel or delay some of its flights out of İstanbul on Thursday due to the heavy snowfall.The municipality also provided shelter from the frigid temperatures to 209 homeless people at the Metin Oktay Sports Complex in Yeniköy.
According to data released by the General Directorate of Meteorology, snowfall reached a depth of 10 centimeters in higher parts of the city. On Mount Uludağ, home to one of the most popular ski resorts in the country, snowfall reached a depth of 120 centimeters. Meteorologists have warned those traveling on mountain roads to take precautions, including using snow tires or chains.
Heavy snowfall in the country’s eastern provinces resulted in difficult driving conditions, and many roads were closed due to ice. A total of 275 village roads were closed to traffic in the eastern province of Tunceli, where snowfall reached a depth of one meter on Thursday. Many traffic accidents occurred in Tunceli, and the Tunceli-Edirne highway was closed to traffic when an avalanche occurred on the road on Wednesday night.
source: TodaysZaman daily newspaper.
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WHY TURKEY
In 2010, 940 million people traveled from one country to another for leisure and this traffic somehow had 919 billion USD budget. In terms of economy, it is a very large amount of money and many countries like Philippines, Maldives, and the Bahamas’ economy depend on tourism. How about Turkey? 27 million people visited Turkey which puts Turkey on the 7th position in the list of the most visited countries in the World. For many, this can be a great success but when you think about the potential Turkey has its nothing.
France had 77 million visitors in 2010 and she is on top of that list we mentioned before. But how? And why? What makes France so special for visitors that we don’t have? Again nothing; actually Turkey has a lot better assets than any country in the World. An amazing geo-strategic location, friendly people, one of the best cuisines in the World, a vast cultural heritage and an unbelievable history. Most of the people visit Paris for the steel tower; the Eiffel which is just a man-made 324 meters tall radio tower. Maybe Turkey does not have a 324 meters tall radio tower yet but does she need it? Not really. Turkey has more Roman ruins than any other country in the World, and most of the ruins are almost intact. The Roman heritage is just the starters, Turkey has something from all the times and cultures in the history. Just to mention a couple names we could say; Urartians, the Hittites, the Hattis, Romans, Byzantines, the Seljuks, and the Ottomans.
And history is not all Turkey has. The rich cuisine of Turkey charms many visitors from all over the World and it will continue to do so. In most countries if you needed “halal” or “kosher” food, you can have a hard time to find it but Turkey has all kind of foods in plenty.
Long story short, it does not matter who you are, what you are looking for Turkey has a lot to offer for reasonable prices and that’s why she should be on top of that list for good.
How to see top 10 attractions in Istanbul in two great days
How to see top 10 attractions in Istanbul in two great days
First thing is first, what are the top 10 attractions in Istanbul?
- Topkapi palace; the residence and office of the Ottoman sultans from 1478 to 1853, is by far on top of our top 10 list. You will need at least two hours to see most of it. Audio guides or guide books would not help much if you want to make most out of it in a short time.
- Hagia Sophia; the church of Holy wisdom once and a marvel of the ancient Roman architecture now attracting 12 thousand people every day on average, is number 2 in our top 10 list and you can see it in an hour.
- Suleymaniye mosque; the most beautiful and largest mosque in Istanbul, was built by the legendary Ottoman architect Sinan in 1557 for Suleiman the magnificent. Although it is far from the other attractions, definitely worth going the extra mile.
- Basilica cistern, the largest water reservoir in the old city built by the Roman emperor Justinian, is one of the few places you might want to stay longer if you are visiting Istanbul in summer.
- Grand bazaar; the largest and first souk in the world, is housing about 4000 shops selling beautiful Turkish souvenirs.
- Rumeli Fort; A huge fort built right at the narrowest point of the Bosphorus strait by Mehmet II in 1452 deserves to be on this list.
- The Blue mosque; Although the original name is Sultan Ahmet mosque, it is widely known as the Blue mosque due to the dominant blue decorations inside. Except for the crowds, definitely a must for travelers but you’d better time your visit well, otherwise you will be overwhelmed by the crowds.
- Spice market; It is not just about spices but a lot more delights, herbs, vegetable and souvenirs. It is not a maze like the Grand Bazaar but a little and enjoyable market for especially foodies.
- Yedikule dungeons; Seven Tower dungeons is a prison complex adjoining to the ancient walls of Constantinople and hosted quite a few ambassadors and wayward soldiers during the Ottoman times.
- Chora museum; Another little gem away from the busy Sultanahmet square is this tiny but amazingly beautiful converted church which houses about a hundred mosaics and frescoes from Roman times.
Now that you know what they are, you will only need us to tailor a private tour to show you these beautiful landmarks in Istanbul.
Feel free to contact us for any requests, questions you may have about our services or Turkey.
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Why is it so expensive to own a car in Turkey?
Here is the answer; TAX. yes, we have heavy taxes over the cars. And I want to share the price list of INFINITI SUVs in TURKEY with you. As you can see there is more than 100% tax over the price.
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Istanbul: A melting pot of history and culture
Istanbul is a city with many distinctions, perhaps the most famous being that it straddles two continents. There are lots of other interesting facts about this city that sits on both Asia and Europe. Istanbul, for example, changed hands between empires, acting at different times as the seat of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman rule. Over the years peoples of diverse cultures and religions have poured into the city thus making it one of the world’s foremost cultural crucibles. Throughout history Istanbul has also served as a major political and commercial hub and continues to do so today.
Istanbul attracts hordes of visitors each year who come to see its splendor and immerse themselves in its rich history. There are numerous sites that are very popular with tourists on Istanbul tours such as The Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sophia, the Spice Bazaar, the Bosporus, to mention but a few.
We have local guides who are committed to making your Istanbul tours as enjoyable, informative, and affordable, as possible and you can contact them at http://constantinopleguide.com/ to arrange private tours.
Cappadocia: A place you must visit
The Cappadocia region in Turkey is easily one of the
most beautiful places on earth. It is home to breathtaking geographical
features that have resulted from years of volcanic eruptions and subsequent
erosion. The impressive fairy chimneys are just some of the natural wonders
that dot the Cappadocia landscape. These rock formations, formed by the erosion
of soft volcanic rocks, jut out of the ground majestically. The landscape is
also spangled with beautiful volcanic mountain peaks and picturesque valleys.
There are numerous other sites that you really must
see such as the tunnels, fondly referred to as ‘underground cities’, hewn out
of volcanic rocks by people fleeing persecution thousands of years ago. You
will be utterly impressed by the intricacy and ingenuity behind the creation of
these tunnels. Once you are done exploring these and many other sites you can
enjoy some hot air ballooning, another very popular aspect of Cappadocia tours.
So, how do you get to Cappadocia? A most
proficient provider of Cappadocia tours
can be found at http://constantinopleguide.com/.
We can arrange private tours that will give you all the freedom to enjoy all
these attractions unhurriedly.
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Istanbul: A melting pot of history and culture
Istanbul: A melting pot of history and culture
Istanbul is a city with many distinctions,
perhaps the most famous being that it straddles two continents. There are lots
of other interesting facts about this city that sits on both Asia and Europe.
Istanbul, for example, changed hands between empires, acting at different times
as the seat of Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman rule. Over the years peoples of
diverse cultures and religions have poured into the city thus making it one of
the world’s foremost cultural crucibles. Throughout history Istanbul has also served
as a major political and commercial hub and continues to do so today.
Istanbul attracts hordes of visitors each year
who come to see its splendor and immerse themselves in its rich history. There
are numerous sites that are very popular with tourists on Istanbul tours such as The Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sophia, the Spice
Bazaar, the Bosporus, to mention but a few.
We have local guides who are committed to making
your Istanbul tours as enjoyable,
informative, and affordable, as possible and you can contact them at http://constantinopleguide.com/
to arrange private tours.
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The new Bond movie ” SKYFALL” is being shot in Istanbul, Turkey.
(Reuters) – A stuntman in the new James Bond film “Skyfall” now shooting in Istanbul lost control of his motorcycle and smashed into the window of a 330-year-old shop in the city’s 15th-century Grand Bazaar, Turkish media said on Monday.
The stuntman swerved to avoid hitting extras while careering through the Grand Bazaar at high speed, the NTV news channel said, but then crashed into the jewellery shop and smashed its crystal glass window.
“It is very nice for the Grand Bazaar to be chosen as a location for shooting this kind of movie. But the bazaar’s administration … didn’t notify us the shooting would be like this,” said Mete Boybeyi, the owner of the shop which once served members of the Ottoman court from the nearby palace.
“This place is regulated by the Council of Monuments. We can’t even change our window without their permission,” he said.
The bureaucracy involved in replacing the window would take quite some time, Boybeyi said, and that would mean the shop would remain shut and a loss of revenue.
“No one from the movie crew came to ask ‘what are your losses?’,” Boybeyi said. “We filed a complaint at the police station.”
Skyfall, due for release in October this year, is the 23rd film in the popular and lucrative Bond series. Full details of the plot are a fiercely guarded secret, but in the film, producers say, “Bond’s loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to haunt her”.
The 1963 Bond film “From Russia with Love” and the 1999 Bond film “The World is Not Enough” were also filmed on location in Istanbul, one of the world’s most historic cities which sits on the banks of the Bosphorus dividing Europe and Asia.
(Writing by Seltem Iyigun; Editing by Jon Hemming)
Source: Reuters.com
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Tagged 007, grand bazaar, istanbul, james bond, skyfall, spice market
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