Istanbul Experience

the city

I visited Istanbul in 2013. It was spring and I can remember the smell of the flowers and the warm temperature.

Istanbul is the most populous city in Turkey and the country’s economic, cultural and historical centre.

This city, also known as Constantinople and Byzantium, represents the meeting place of East and West across the Bosporus Strait. Here we found different cultures from Europe and from Asia, people with different religions and cultures who live together.

When we walked down the city streets we could see both women with typical black Islamic clothes and European families as in some city of the Old Country, shops with Turkish sweets or international food.

During our tours we visited the most important places such as Aya Sofya, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Galata tower and yes don’t forget the Bosporus cruise, unique in its kind, and everywhere we got the feeling of the magical atmosphere created by a millennium of history.

Finally I remember our last day. We were walking with our luggage on the square between Aya Sofya and the Blue Mosque when we listened to the sound of the muezzins duetting from their minarets. We had to stop to immortalize the extraordinary moment in our minds and why not in our hearts.

by Chiara