The capital city of Turkey, Istanbul, is an ancient city. It has been known as Byzantium and later Constantinople and is the only city in the world to straddle two continents, Europe and Asia, being located on the Bosphorus Strait. Istanbul served as the capital city of the Roman Empire from 330AD to 395AD, the Byzantine Empire from 395 to 1204 and 1261 to 1453, the Latin Empire from 1204 to 1261 and the Ottoman Empire from 1453 till 1922. Areas of Istanbul were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985.

On this visit, aspects of the convergence of Eastern and Western culture were studied, through the Islamic architecture found in the sacred sites across the city to the westernised secular areas such as Taksim Square. Famous Monuments were also visited, such as the elegant 14th century Galata Tower.

Beyazit Fruit Seller

Fruit juice seller in Beyazit, from above.

Şehzadebaşı Mosque Dome

Şehzadebaşı Mosque, designed by architect Sinan, finished 1548.

Şehzadebaşı Mosque

Panoramic architectural view of Şehzadebaşı Mosque.

Şehzadebaşı Mosque

Islamic architecture of the Şehzadebaşı Mosque

Şehzadebaşı Mosque Door

Detail of the worn step of the Şehzadebaşı Mosque.

Textile Bazaar

Textile Bazaar near Beyazit.

Park Beside Firuz Ağa Mosque

Park Beside Firuz Ağa Mosque, with interesting textures and remnants of old buildings.

Hagia Sophia Dome

Hagia Sophia, with scaffolding that is apparently now integral to the giant dome's structure, creating an alien presence

Banana Stall

Bananas for sale in a Bazaar

Stray Dog

Stray dog, described as "mad" by a fisherman(!)

Bozdoğan Kemeri

Valens Aqueduct, or Bozdoğan Kemeri, completed in 368AD

Bozdoğan Kemeri Traffic

Traffic races through the Aqueduct, splitting from a three lane motorway into individual lanes to shoot through the arches.

Passenger Dock

Panorama from a foot passenger dock showing the Galata Tower in the background.

Traffic Scars

Traffic in Istanbul is notoriously unpredictable, with regulations almost completely ignored, often leading to accidents.

Waiting

The Asian part of Istanbul is dominated my the Islamic faith, with a dense netwrok of amazing mosques, an ancient lifestyle fighting with modern secularism.

Spice Bazaar

Spices for sale at a Bazaar

Taksi

Taxis tackling twisting corners on Husayin Bakara street near a derelict mill.

Rush Hour

Rush Hour on a docking passenger boat, crossing the Golden Horn.

Bazaar

Bazaars are housed in buildings such as these, seach bay housing a separate business.

Galata Dereliction

Derelict buildings in Galata near the waterfront.

Galata Alley

Constricting alley leading to the famous Galata Tower.

Galata Tower Interior

Interior stairs leading to the viewing level on the Galata Tower.

Galata View

View of a road on the Galata Tower

Galata Tower Panorama

Panoramic view from the Galata tower. The image is available as an 80 megapixel, 360 degree digital file.

Old Cars and Buildings

Old cars and buildings in a residential neighbourhood.

Valide Sultan Mosque

Valide Sultan Mosque, with a minaret under restoration.

Docks

View of harbour near Muhsinehatun and Yali from the sky, with dense maritime traffic visible in the background.

Galata Kulesi

Galata Tower, originally built in the 14th century, nearly 67 meters tall with walls almost 4 meters thick.