The city 'Istanbul' - Essay Example

OF ISTANBUL Introduction The of Istanbul is the ultimate paradise that a tourist can imagine. Located in Istanbul Province, northwest of Turkey, it is a safe heaven for everyone. The city lies on the Bosphrus strait, and it is famous for its rich history and numerous site seeing sites. It is a modern city with all the amenities and luxuries that a premium tourist looks for. It is the only metropolis in the world situated on two continents (Wikipedia, n.p.). It is the seventh fastest growing metropolis in the world making it a target destination for potential investors from various parts of the world.

History and Site SeeingTurkey has a distinguished history and culture that tourists may learn about in their visit to this precious country and especially Istanbul city. The history of Istanbul dates back to the prehistoric times where about 300,000 years ago, Istanbul gave her land for settlement in the Yarimburgaz cave near Kuck Cekmece lake (Istanbul guide, n.p.). Another interesting piece of history about Istanbul is the conquering of the city by Sultan Mehmet in 1453 (Istanbul guide, 1997).

Recently, Istanbul bears the prestige of developing and implementing the modern city plans that have remarkable sites and effective transportation and housing. Having no congestion and traffic jams, Istanbul is considered as the city of time. Istanbul boasts of the fact that the historical Istanbul and present have remarkably close similarities in both architecture of the buildings and preservation of the old but elegant structures. Turkey has many elegant landmarks to see like the Beyazit Tower, City walls Galata tower among others.

Istanbul also has beautiful parks such as Arboretum, Beykoz woods, Cekmece lakes and Emirgan woods among others. These parks will take a tourist to the state of peace and oneness with nature. In the past half, a century, Istanbul has experienced extensive swatches of urban hinterland build upon industry, housing and infrastructure projects (Bowden, 52).Arts and cultureIstanbul is particularly colorful in terms of its culture and art. It is home to the music and opera festivals held annually since the Turkish government policy of the 1930s to institutionalize and teach performance of polyphonic music and opera (Wikipedia, n.p). Apart from the annual festivals, orchestras, concerts and jazz legends continue to entertain and display culture in theaters all year round.

Istanbul is also famous for hosting international artists. The Pera museum has hosted exhibitions of the world’s famous artist and has a remarkable reputation. Apart from the Pera museum, Istanbul has other famous museums like the Sakip Sabanci Museum, Istanbul Archeology Museum, which have prestigious status in Turkey, and beyond. In November, Istanbul occasionally hosts the Istanbul Antiques Fair which assembles rare pieces of antiques from different parts of Turkey(Wikipedia, n.p). Art and culture in Turkey gives a finishing touch to the beauty and elegance of Turkey.

“Istanbul is a study in contrast rather than uniformity. A plurality of social groups and cultures coexist in Istanbul…” (Keyder, 95).Annotated bibliographyBowden R. Great cities: Istanbul. London : Evans, 2007.Bowden explores Istanbul is a very analytical wayStarting from the history to the people and economy.A whole chapter is dedicated to living in Istanbul and another on managing it.With a close look at transportation and the environment, the author adds on to give an insight of the future of Istanbul.

“Istanbul city guide” Istanbul City guide.16 April 2012. Retrieved from http://www.istanbulcityguide.com/istanbul.aspxGo to the best site seeing sites and parks in the cityA city with a strong taste of time. The history of Istanbul from the pre historic times to the recent times.This guide gives the perfect roadmap around Istanbul for any visitor.“Istanbul” Wikipedia encyclopedia, 16 April, 2012. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IstanbulWikipedia is an online dictionary and encyclopedia.

With great facts and views, it forms a good reference for research on anything.In covering Istanbul, Wikipedia details all aspects from history to economy and even maps and demographic data.It is an ultimate resource for this study.Keyder C. Istanbul: Between the Global and the Local. Lanham, Md. [u.a.] : Rowman & Littlefield, 1999.This book explores Istanbul on the local and global front.Istanbul is a world city and this book serves right to portray this aspect of the city.The book explores the history and politics of Istanbul in the first paragraph and continues to give various accounts of Istanbul in the proceeding chapters.

In a summary, the author ends with a detailed synopsis.