The Magnificent Century by Sultan Suleiman and Roxalan

Excursion to the Blue Mosque of Sultan Ahmed:

The mosque is located on the shores of the Sea of Marmara in the historic center of Istanbul in the Sultanahmet area opposite the Aya Sophia Museum. The mosque is one of the symbols of the city. The architecture of the mosque combines two styles - classical Ottoman and Byzantine. According to legend, the sultan ordered the construction of a standard number of (4) gold (altyn) minarets, but the architect confused something and built six (alta) minarets. The construction of the mosque lasted seven years and was completed in 1616, a year before the Sultan's death.

Excursion to Topkapi Palace + harem

The main palace of the Ottoman Empire is just behind Hagia Sophia. The palace includes four courtyards. The first leads to the main entrance, there are ticket offices and on the foundation of the ancient temple of Aphrodite built a slightly younger (age 1700 years) Church of St. Irene.

Entrance to the second courtyard through the Greeting Gate. The Harem is on the left. Here lived wives, eunuchs, concubines and the mother of the sultan - the mistress of this part of the palace.

The Gate of Happiness leads to the third courtyard. At the entrance there is a small pavilion - the audience hall, where negotiations were conducted under the noise of the fountain. On the right is a collection of sultans' clothes. Next is a treasury of three halls, here are collected jewelry - for example, an 86-carat diamond "Spoon", surrounded by 49 smaller diamonds. Near the entrance to the Assembly of sacred relics, such as the tooth of the Prophet Muhammad, hair from the beard of the Prophet, the banner of the Prophet, the clothes of the Prophet. There are also Christian shrines - the hand of St. John the Baptist, for example.

In the fourth courtyard there used to be the famous Tulip Garden, there was even the position of “Minister of Tulips”. The homeland of these flowers is not Holland, but the Ottoman Empire, which is why the tulip (or lale) is chosen as a tourist symbol of the country.

Excursion to Dolmabahce Palace:

Dolmabahce Palace is the last sultanial palace in Istanbul. “Dolmabahce” in Turkish means “dolmabahce garden”. Previously, on the site of this palace was a small bay, which was covered. On the site of the covered bay in the early 17th century, a wooden complex Besiktas appeared. In place of which the Dolmabahce Palace was subsequently erected. The Dolmabahce Palace Complex was built by Armenian architects Karapet and Nikogos Balyanom in 1853 by order of Sultan Abdul-Mejid I, who wanted to outdo European monarchs in luxury. The facade of the Dolmabahce Palace stretches for 600 m along the European shore of the Bosphorus. All the clocks of the palace are stopped and always show the same time: 09-05. It was at this time, on November 10, 1938, that the founder of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, died in the Dolmabahce Palace, his former residence. Currently, the entire territory of the Dolmabahce Palace has been restored and is open to the public. Precious objects of the Dolmabahce Palace are exhibited in two halls: the “Salon of Precious Things”, where the collection of national porcelain is located, and the “Treasury of the Palace”, which mainly houses priceless paintings. The palace also has a "Gallery Hall", where exhibitions of paintings are held. Under this gallery there is another room where photographs are displayed. From there, you can walk through the corridor to the library of Sultan Abdulmezhit.

Excursion Suleymaniye (mosque) + and tombs

The mosque was built on the orders of Sultan Suleiman the Legislator by the architect Sinan in 1550-1557. The dome has a height of 53 m and a diameter of 26.5 m. The floor of the mosque is paved with carpets, the inside of the mosque is well lit - light falls from 136 windows. The mosque has four minarets. With buildings of baths, madrasahs (educational institutions), kitchens, libraries and an observatory, the mosque forms a complex comparable in size to a city quarter.

In the courtyard of the mosque is a cemetery, here in two neighboring mausoleums rests Suleiman himself and his beloved wife Roksolana. There are versions that the mosque is slowly slipping into the Golden Horn Bay.

Excursion to the Egyptian market "Mysyr charshasy" -

One of the most famous local markets is the Egyptian market or Mysyr Charshysy. The Egyptian market is also known as the Spice Market. It is the second largest market in Istanbul after the Grand Bazaar. It is built in the shape of a mirror-reverse letter L and has 6 gates. The bazaar domes are covered in lead.