St. Nicolas

Viete že Svatý Mikuláš pochádza z Turecka ?
Do you know that Saint Nicholas came from Turkey?
Saint Nicholas .

 Baba Noel Türkiye'den geldiğini biliyor musunuz?

Biskup Nicholas (tiež známy ako Nikolas z Bari alebo Myry), bol v 4. storočí kresťanským svätcom v oblasti Lycia Myra (teraz Demre. Je patrónom detí a námorníkov. 6.decembrasú je oslavovaný ako Deň svätého Mikuláša. V mnohých krajinách, sú deti v tento deň obdarované sladkosťami. V 1087 taliansky námorníci obchodníci unieslipozostatky do talianskeho mesta Bari. V´daka tomuto transportu výrazne vzrástla povesť Mikuláša aj v Európe a Bari sa stalo pútnické miesto. Nicholas bol slávny jeho veľkorysosťou a dobrosrdečnosťou. Tri mladé chudobné dievčatá zachránil od prostitúcie, kvôli chudobe,tým že im v tajnosti daroval veno a zaplatil náklady manželstva a vychoval tri deti mäsiara, zabitého v slanej vode

Bishop Nicholas ( also known as Nikolas from Bari or Myra), in the region of Lycia Myra (now Demre) was in 4th century christian saint. He is the saint of children and sailors. December 6 is celebrated as St. Nicholas Day. In many countries, children are given gifts on this day. In 1087 italian sailors or merchants took the bones to Italy's Bari kent. This transfer has increased the reputation of Nicolas greatly in Europe and Bari became a pilgrimage center. Nicholas was famous for his generosity and kind-heartedness. Three young poor girls saved from prostitution, because of poverty that the dowry paid the expenses of marriage and raised three children of a butcher killed by saltwater

Piskopos Nikola (Barili Nikola ya da Myralı Nikola olarak da bilinir), Likya'nın Myra yöresinde (günümüzde Demre) yaşamış bir 4. yüzyıl Hristiyanazîzidir. Yunanistan'ın, Rusya'nın, çocukların ve denizcilerin azizidir. 6 Aralık, Aziz Nikola Günü olarak kutlanır. 6 Aralık tarihinde birçok ülkede çocuklara hediyeler verilir. 1087 yılında İtalyan denizciler ya da tüccarlar kemiklerini İtalya'nın Barikentine götürdüler. Bu nakil, Nikola'nın Avrupa'daki ününü büyük oranda artırdı ve Bari bir hac merkezi haline geldi. Nikola, iyi kalpliliği ve cömertliği ile meşhurdu. Yoksulluk nedeniyle fuhuşa sürüklenecek olan üç genç kızın çeyiz masraflarını ödeyip evlendirdiğine ve bir kasap tarafından öldürülüp tuzlu suya basılan üç çocuğu dirilttiğine inanılır

Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi

 In the 17th century managed Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi, inspired by the work of Leonardo da Vinci about  flying, done first intercontinental flight using artificial wings from the very top of the Galata Tower (in contemporary Karaköy) and landed in the Doğancılar Square in Üsküdar, with the help of the south-west wind. 

Flight over the Bosphorus was very pleased by the then ruler Sultan Murat IV., Who wanted the young aviator and duly rewarded, but the influence of religious leaders changed their decision and said : “ This is a scary man. He is capable of doing anything he wishes. It is not right to keep such people,"and Ahmet Celebi was deported to Algeria where soon as the 31 year old died.

 

Denizli

DENIZLI 

Denizli is a growing industrial city in the southwestern part of Turkey and the eastern end of the alluvial valley formed by the river Büyük Menderes, where the plain reaches an elevation of about three hundred and fifty metres (1,148 ft). Denizli is located in the country's Aegean Region.
The city has a population of about 577,000 (2013 census). This is a jump from 389,000 in 2007, due to the merger of 13 municipalities and 10 villages when the area under Denizli Municipality jurisdiction increased almost fivefold and the population around 50 percent. Denizli (Municipality) is the capital city of Denizli Province.

Denizli has achieved a remarkable economic development in the last decades based notably on textile production and exports.[4]Having become a vibrant center of manufacturing focused on exportation, Denizli is frequently cited, along with a number of other Turkish cities, as one of the foremost examples of "Anatolian Tigers" in reference to its rapid pace of development.





Denizli also attracts many visitors to the nearby mineral-coated hillside hot spring of Pamukkale, and with red color thermal water spa hotels Karahayıt, just 5 kilometres (3 miles) north of Pamukkale. Recently, Denizli becomes a major domestic tourism destination due to the various types of thermal waters in Sarayköy, Central/Denizli (where Karahayıt and Pamukkale towns are located), Akköy (Gölemezli), Buldan (Yenicekent), Çardak districts.
The ancient ruined city of Hierapolis, as well as ruins of the city of Laodicea on the Lycus, the ancient metropolis of Phrygia. Also in the depending of Honaz, about 10 mi (16 km) west of Denizli is, what was, in the 1st century AD, the city of Colossae.


The weather is hot in Denizli in summers, whereas in winters, it may occasionally be very cold with snow on the mountains that surround the city. Some years, snow can be observed in the urban areas. Springs and autumns are rainy, mild climate, warm.

Izmir

İzmir 
Izmir is a city in the western extremity of Anatolia and the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. İzmir's metropolitan area extends along the outlying waters of the Gulf of İzmir and inland to the north across Gediz River's of delta, to the east along an alluvial plain created by several small streams and to a slightly more rugged terrain in the south.

 The ancient city was known as Smyrna and the city was generally referred to as Smyrna in English, until the Turkish Postal Service Law of 28 March 1930 made "İzmir" the internationally recognized name.
The city of İzmir is composed of several metropolitan districts. Of these, Konak district corresponds to historical İzmir, this district's area having constituted the "İzmir Municipality" (Turkish: İzmir Belediyesi) area until 1984, Konak until then having been a name for a central neighborhood around Konak Square, still the core of the city.

 With the constitution of the "Greater İzmir Metropolitan Municipality" (Turkish: İzmir Büyükşehir Belediyesi), the city of İzmir became a compound bringing together initially nine, and more recently eleven metropolitan districts, namely Balçova, Bayraklı, Bornova, Buca, Çiğli, Gaziemir, Güzelbahçe, Karabağlar, Karşıyaka, Konak and Narlıdere. Almost all of these settlements are former district centers or neighborhoods which stood on their own, with their own distinct features and temperament. In an ongoing processus, the Mayor of İzmir was also vested with authority over the areas of additional districts reaching from Bergama in the north to Selçuk in the south, bringing the number of districts to be considered as being part of İzmir to twenty-one under the new arrangements, two of these having been administratively included in İzmir only partially.

Today Izmir (EEZ-meer, pop. 3 million) is a mostly modern city with good hotels and restaurants, an interesting bazaar, a few small archeological sites, a big, busy Otogar (bus terminal), and an important airport south of the city on the way to Ephesus.

Some travelers use Izmir as a base to visit such regional sights as Bergama/ Pergamum, Çeşme & Alaçatı, Sardis, Ephesus & Kuşadası, Aphrodisias & Pamukkale, because Izmir has a great variety of hotels.

Malatya

Malatya is located in middle part ofTurkey and between Cappadocia to Malatya is 422 km. Malatya is situated at the foot of the anti Taurus Mountains, and is an agricultural, industrial and stockbreeding center of Eastern Anatolia. The fertile plain is famous for its apricot growing and many delicious confections are made from it. This province was called “Maldiya” in ancient times, taking its name from the Hittite language. It is located 670 kms east of Ankara, and the two small towns outside the city constitute the most important sites for visiting. Aslantepe, at a distance of 7 kms, was once the capital of a Hittitestate and dates back to the first millenium BC. It is the city carrying the old Hittite traditions and styles, and inside the city walls a palace has been found, with statues and reliefs, which are examples of the artistic works of that age.

Malatya Kayisi Battalgazi, 9 kms from Malatya, is an ancient city of the Byzantine period, known as “Melitene” in those times. The city walls of this medieval center were constructed by the Byzantines. Inside the town, there is the Ulu Mosque of 1247 which was built by the Seljuks, reflecting their distinct architectural style.
The archaeological finds fromMalatya are housed in the city museum, including new artifacts found in the lower Euphrates region, dating to the Neolithic and Calcholithic Ages. Next to this museum, there is a nice and original bazaar. Copper objects are sold along an entire street here, and it is a nice shopping place which will add color to your holiday.

Turkish baths in Istanbul İstanbul'da hamamları

for everybody who who want to steam away the travel grime in Istanbul's famed hamams but confused by the rituals? Here's a simple guide to keeping your cool.
• First, talk to the receptionist (most of them speak English) and decide on the level of treatment you want. DIY wash? Wash with attendant? Oil massage with that? You'll pay the receptionist and they'll take you to a change area, usually your own lockable room, where you'll undress and leave your things.
• 'Undress' means pretty much what you want it to mean. Most hamams have separate steam rooms for men and women. In this situation, men are expected to maintain a certain loin-clothy level of coverage, but women can throw caution, as it were, to the winds. Most Turkish women subtly drape themselves with their cloth when they're not actually bathing, but if you prefer to bask nude no-one will bat much of an eyelid. If you're feeling shy, part or all of a swimsuit is acceptable; if you find yourself in the kind of hamam that has mixed-sex steam rooms and male attendants, it's usual to keep on at least the bottom half of a swimsuit.
• The attendants will give you a cloth (resembling, in most establishments, an over-sized red gingham tea towel). You'll keep this on to travel from the change rooms to the hamam.
• You'll be given some shoes by your attendant - either traditional wooden clogs or fluorescent flip-flops. Stick with 'em. As a surface for pratfalls, only banana skins beat out wet marble.
• Once you've been shepherded into the hamam you'll be left to lounge on the heated marble. In most cases, there'll be a göbektaşı (belly stone), a round central platform where you can loll around like a sunning python. If not, take a seat and lean against the walls. The idea is to sweat, loosening dirt and toxins in preparation for your wash.
• If you're going self-service, follow this up with a loofah-and-soap rub-down and douse yourself with water from the marble basins. If you've forked out for an attendant, they'll catch up with you after you've had a good, 15-minute sweat. You'll be laid down on the edge of the göbektaşı and sluiced with tepid water, then your attendant will take you in hand.
• First up is a dry massage with a kese (rough mitt). Depending on your attendant, this experience can be delicious (a little like being washed by a giant cat) or tumultuous (picture a tornado made of sandpaper). If you get to feeling like a flayed deer, use the international language of charade to bring it down a notch or two.
• Next will be the soap. The attendant will work up an almighty lather with an enormous sponge and squeeze it all over you: it's a bit like taking a bubble bath without the bath. The foam (attar of roses? Asses' milk? Sorry, it's most likely good ole Head 'n' Shoulders) will be worked into every inch of you. Next, more sluicing, followed by a shampoo, and voila, you're clean as a whistle. The shiny kind.
• If you've ordered an oil massage, you'll be ushered into another room for it. You can enjoy different massage ( clasic massage, aroma massage, reflex masage .. ) After the massage, either soap or oil, you're on your own. Many tourists splash-and-dash their way through the hamam experience, leaving immediately after their treatment. Don't be one of them. Hang around. Overheat, cool down with a dousing, and repeat to fade. Let your muscles turn to toffee and your mind go pleasantly elastic. This is what the hamam is really all about.

http://www.turkishhammams.com/index.html
 

Şakirin Mosque

Dear friends i would like to itroduce you wonderful Şakirin Mosque
whch was completed in 2009 The Şakirin Mosque was built in memory of Ibrahim and Semiha Şakir by their children. The mosque’s name is obviously a reflection of the family name but it also has the literal meaning in Arabic of “those who are thankful (to God).” What makes this mosque unlike any other in the country is that the interior design team was led by a woman - Zeynep Fadıllıoğlu -who also happens to be Şakir's grand-niece.
The first impression you have upon entering the mosque is one of light and open space and elegance. Even the women’s area, which is usually a small closed-off area in traditional mosques, is a spacious balcony separated from the rest of the space only by criss-crossing rails to allow the women at prayer a view of the stunning chandelier.
The large asymmetrical chandelier is covered in small suspended glass globes shaped like drops of water. The design references a prayer that Allah’s light should fall on worshippers like rain. The rings of the chandelier also have the 99 names of God written on them. The large windows on three sides of the prayer hall allow sunlight to filter in and are inscribed with gold designs that make them look like pages from the Qur’an. The gracefully curving minbar is made of cream-colored acrylic and is covered with an elegant design of leaves and carnations that represents the universe and looks like calligraphy from a distance. The prominent mihrab is a vibrant turquoise and gold, and was inspired, like the wrought iron grills on the windows, by historical Selçuk patterns.
The outside of the mosque is no less innovative. Its sleek, metallic form and dark grey stones complement and contrast with the light and space inside.
How to Get There:
This mosque is located directly across the street from the Zeynep Kamil Hastanesi bus stop on one of the main roads that run from Üsküdar to Kadıköy. Take the 12A bus from either direction and you will reach it easily. Alternatively, it's a fairly short taxi ride from either Üsküdar or Kadıköy.

My beautiful Istanbul