About Turkey

from Mehmet Aslan

Many pictures of Turkey here, Antalya here,
and much culture information here.


Kaymaklý Underground City


The city is situated 15km to Nevþehir, in the Kaymaklý province.It was built during the 9th - 10th centuries during the period of the spreading of christianity, as a city of defence and hiding sites. The 8 floors of this underground city are built around a ventilation stack. The ceiling height of rooms on each floor, surrounding a ball, is 2m. the chapels are larger than the rooms and the ceilings are higher.

Sultanahmet Square Fountain

It is in the square in front of the main gate to Topkapý Palace. It was built during 1728-1729 by Ahmet III, and is among the important works of art of the "Tulip Period" of the Ottoman Era. It is based on a 10 x 10 m. plan with spouts on each of its faces and corners. It is famous for its architecture

Ahmet III Library Fountain

This fountain is in front of the Ahmet III Library the third courtyard of Topkapý Palace. It was built by Ahmet III in 1719 and decorations.

 

Van

Click the above link to see more pictures, learn about Van, and hear music of Turkey.


Istanbul

A six day city trip to Istanbul, the City of Wonder with visits of:  Topkapi, Aya Sofya, Blue Mosque, Suleymaniye Mosque, Archeological Museum, Museum of the ancient Orient, Grand Bazaar, Egyptian Bazar, Hippodrome,  Tekfur Sarayý, Mihrimah Camii, Kariye Müzesi, Fener, Eyup, Galata Tower, Mehter concert at the Military Museum, and a scenic boat trip along the Bosphorus.

Adana

View on the Seyhan River with the Sabancý Merkez Camii

Adana is the fourth largest city of Turkey, after Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir and has a population of over 2 million. The city is located in the middle of the highly fertile Çukurova, the ancient Cilician plain deposited by the rivers Seyhan and Ceyhan.  Due to this fact, Adana has always been an important city and agricultural center, described in the books of the famous Turkish novelist Yaþar Kemal. In more recent years the city has also developed as a large industrial centre. Adana's wealth led to a rapid and chaotic growth and nearly all of the old neighbourhoods have been demolished. The high temperature and humidity make it less popular for tourism. However, Adana has the only commercial airport in the region and was the starting point of our trip along Turkey's Mediterranean coast.

Adana's most prominent monument is the Sabancý Merkez Camii, an enormous beatiful new six-minareted mosque whose white marble reflection sparkles in the Seyhan river. The mosque was built by the industrial magnate Sakip Sabancý and was opened in 1999. It  is second in size only to the Sülemaniye Camii in Istanbul. It is crowned by a 51 metre high dome and provides space for 30,000 worshippers. The inside decoration tries to copy  Istanbul's Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Camii).

Among the other noteworthy buildings are the Ulu Cami or Great Mosque and next to it the Ramazanoðlu Türbesi. The Ulu Cami was built in 1507 by Halil Bey emir of the Ramazanoðlu Turks in a typical Syrian style.

Izmir

map of izmirIzmir is located in the Aegean province, which, of all the seven geographical regions of Turkey, enjoys the finest climate. In population it is the third city in Turkey.It is located in an area whose magnificent history has made it a tourist centre. It lies at the centre of the most important land, air and sea communication network in the ancient Aegean region.