Oslo, the capital of Norway, is known for its green spaces and museums including the Viking Ship Museum and the Edvard Munch Museum. It is also very walkable and is close to many of Norway's natural attractions, with many parks and hiking trails.
Photo Gallery
The below photos were taken mainly alongKarl Johans gt street and Kontraskjæret park, which is closer to the harbor, on 04/07/2023.
Harbor Area
Rådhuset—Administrative center/public venue with an art collection & host of the Nobel Peace Prize
Taksim Square ⭐situated in Beyoğlu in the European part of Istanbul, Turkey, is a major tourist and leisure district famed for its restaurants, shops, and hotels.
Fanning out from Taksim Square with its Republic Monument, Taksim is a busy nightlife, shopping, and dining area. Vintage trams shuttle along Istiklal Caddesi, the city’s main pedestrian boulevard, which is lined with 19th-century buildings housing international shopping chains, movie theaters, and cafes. The dense network of side streets is filled with bars, antiques shops, and rooftop eateries with Bosphorus views.
― Google
Photo Gallery
These photos were taken on March 31, 2023, a cloudy to rainy day.
Republic Monument (left) and Taksim Mosque (right)
Republic Monument, built in commemoration to the Republic of Turkey
Attention: Click here to view a mobile-friendly version.
The Ceremonial Hall with the world's largest chandelier, made from Bohemian crystal and sold to the Sultan by Queen Victoria (Antonio Cristofaro, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
Dolmabahçe Palace ⭐⭐is the largest palace in Turkey. It has an area of 45,000 m2 (11.1 acres), and contains 285 rooms, 46 halls, 6 baths (hamam) and 68 toilets.
Dolmabahçe served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1856 to 1887 and from 1909 to 1922 (Yıldız Palace was used in the interim period).
This grand, domed sultan's palace is now a museum, including collections of art, calligraphy and carpets.
The design contains eclectic elementsfrom the Baroque, Rococo and Neoclassical styles, blended with traditional Ottoman architecture to create a new synthesis. The palace layout and décor reflect the increasing influence of European styles and standards on Ottoman culture and art during the Tanzimat period.
The exterior, in particular the view from the Bosporus, shows a classical European two-wing arrangement which is divided by a big avant-corps with two side avant-corps.
Functionally, on the other hand, the palace retains elements of traditional Ottoman palace life, and also features of traditional Turkish homes.
Dolmabahçe Palace in Istanbul, Turkey (YouTube link)
Photo Gallery
The below photos were taken on 03/31/2023, a cloudy day. Note that:
The two main parts of the palace, i.e. Selamlik and Harem, can only be visited with a tour guide. You need to put on plastic covers on your shoes and can't take any photographs.
Exterior façade of the Gate of the Treasury (Hazine-i Hassa Kapısı) near Dolmabahçe Clock Tower
By Jorge Láscar from Australia - Troy (and a trojan horse), CC BY 2.0
The city of Troy was a major center of trade and commerce during the Bronze Age. It was located on the northwest coast of modern-day Turkey, near the entrance to the Dardanelles, a strategic waterway that connects the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea. It was strategically located on a hill overlooking the surrounding plains, which made it a natural defensive position.
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey. In Classical Greek, the city was referred to as both Troia (Τροία) and Ilion (Ἴλιον) or Ilios (Ἴλιος). It is best known for being the setting of the Trojan War described in the Greek Epic Cycle and especially in the Iliad, one of the two epic poems attributed to Homer. Troia was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1998.
Troy was protected by a series of walls and gates, which was repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt during its 4000 years of occupation. As a result, the site is divided into nine archaeological layers, each corresponding to a city built on the ruins of the previous. Archaeologists refer to these layers using Roman numerals, Troy I being the earliest and Troy IX being the latest.
Troy was first settled around 3600 BC and grew into a small fortified city around 3000 BC (Troy I). Among the early layers, Troy II is notable for its wealth and imposing architecture. During the Late Bronze Age, Troy was called Wilusa and was a vassal of the Hittite Empire. The final layers (Troy VIII-IX) were Greek and Roman cities which served as tourist attractions and religious centers because of their link to mythic tradition.
Troy VII has been identified with the Hittite Wilusa, the probable origin of the Greek Ἴλιον, and is generally (but not conclusively) identified with Homeric Troy.
Photo Gallery
The below photos were taken on 03/30/2023.
View of the southwest-side ruins near the entrance (Troy VI is on the right; see the below picture)
The East Wall and Gate
The total circumference of the Late Bronze Age fortification-wall around the citadel amounts to 550 meters, of which approximately 330 are still preserved. The section displays a highly refined technique of construction, with careful working of the rectangular limestone blocks.
The East Tower and East Gate of Troy VI (Late Bronze Age, 1500-1300 B.C.)
The Temple of Athena (Troy VIII-IX)
The Temple of Athena belongs to the Greek and Romain city of Ilion. The temple, whose base measured 36m x 16m, was surrounded by a Doric colonnade supporting a coffered ceiling. Outside, on the entablature, were metopes (reliefs), the most famous of which shows Apollo/Helios. This is now displayed in Berlin. The temple was probably under construction for nearly a century, from ca. 240-150 B.C. It was restored in Romain times, probably by order of the Emperor Augustus (31 BC-AD 14). In Greek and Romain times the temple was the focal point of a great annual festival in honor of the goddess Athena. This festival was marked by sacrifices and athletic contests.
The Temple of Athena. Reconstruction of he colonnade before the entrance.
The exterior of the citadel walls of Troy II and III (ca. 2550-2200 BC), those of the Burnt City of Schliemann.
The protective roof built during the summer of 2003 was used to keep megaron as well as the preserved stretch of fortification wall visible to the public without endangering the original mudbrick masonry. The roof not only conveys the more rounded form of the mound before excavation, but has even been positioned to reflect the approximate height of the mound when Schliemann arrived in 1871. The shape, moreover, resembles a billowing sail, recalling the nearly constant northeasterly winds that certainly did bring riches to the site. A ancient ships were compelled to bide their time in Beşik Bay awaiting a breeze from the southwest that would take them through the straits and onwards toward the Black Sea.
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