Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia (Greek: Ἁγία Σοφία; Holy Wisdom), now known as the Ayasofya Museum, was an early Christian Church and later an Eastern Orthodox church which was transformed into a mosque in 1453 by the Turks, and converted into a museum in 1935. It is located in Istanbul, Turkey, on the Turkish Thrace. It is regularly considered one of the greatest and most beautiful buildings in history. Its conquest by the Ottomans at the fall of Constantinople is considered one of the great tragedies of Christianity by the Greek Orthodox faithful.The name comes from the Greek name Ἁγία Σοφία, a contraction of Ναός τῆς Ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας, meaning “Church of the Holy Wisdom of God”. It is also known as Sancta Sophia in Latin and Ayasofya in Turkish. Although it is sometimes called “Saint Sophia” in English, it is not named after a saint named Sophia — the Greek word sophia means “wisdom.”It was constructed in five years, from 532 to 537, at the orders of Emperor Justinian I and designed by Isidore of Miletus.Hagia Sophia is covered by a central dome which has a diameter of 31.87 meters and a height from floor level of 55.60 meters, slightly smaller than the dome of the Pantheon. The dome seems rendered weightless by the unbroken arcade of arched windows under it, which help flood the colourful interior with light.The dome is carried on pendentives — four concave triangular sections of masonry which solve the problem of setting the circular base of a dome on a rectangular base. At Hagia Sophia the weight of the dome passes through the pendentives to four massive piers at the corners. Between them the dome seems to float upon four great arches.At the western (entrance) and eastern (liturgical) ends, the arched openings are extended by half domes carried on smaller semidomed exedras. Thus a hierarchy of dome-headed elements builds up to create a vast oblong interior crowned by the main dome, a sequence unexampled in antiquity. Read more
French Street (Fransız Sokağı)
If New York has Chinatown and Little Italy, then Istanbul has “French Street” (Fransız Sokağı). “Rue Française”, with tented buildings, street musicians, cafés, bars and art centers, opened in summer of 2004. The street behind Galatasaray High School known as Cezayir (Algeria) Street was completely renovated from head to toe by a group lead by Mehmet Taşdiken within the scope of a two-year project. The buildings and sidewalks were improved and a special music system was established. Taşdiken had close contacts with the Municipality of Paris, so the stones of the street were arranged by Parisian architects, and 100-year-old coal-gas street lamps from the Municipality of Paris were installed.Mehmet Taşdiken says “the French have a very important legacy in Beyoğlu. Most of the establishments of Beyoğlu, such as the first cafés and first movie theaters, were established by the French in the 19th century and the buildings on the left of Cezayir Street bear the signature of French engineer-contractor Marius Michel, who lived in Istanbul between 1890 and 1910 and built the Karaköy and Eminönü docks.”Fransız Sokağı has a covered area of 9,000 square meters and a capacity of 3000 people together with the open-air areas. Read more
istiklal street
Istiklal Avenue (Istiklal Caddesi in Turkish) is one of the most famous avenues in Istanbul, Turkey, visited by nearly 3 million people in a single day over the course of weekends. Located in the historic Beyoğlu district, it is an elegant pedestrian street, approximately three kilometers long, which houses exquisite boutiques, music stores, bookstores, art galleries, cinemas, theaters, libraries, cafés, pubs, night clubs with live music, historical patisseries, chocolateries and restaurants. The avenue, surrounded by the unique nineteenth century Turkish architecture, starts from the medieval Genoese neighbourhood around Galata Tower and ultimately leads up to Taksim Square.