1. TURKEY
WONDERS OF OUR
COUNTRY

2. SELIMIYE MOSQUE,EDİRNE
The Selimiye Mosque is an
Ottoman mosque in the city of
Edirne, Turkey. The mosque was
commissioned by Sultan Selim II
and was built by architect Mimar
Sinan between 1569 and 1575.
It was considered by Sinan to
be his masterpiece and is one
of the highest achievements of
Islamic architecture

3. BIG ISLAND, ISTANBUL
Big island consists of two peaks. The one
nearest to the iskele (ferry landing), İsa
Tepesi (meaning Jesus Hill in Turkish) is
topped by the former Greek orphanage, a
huge wooden building now in decay. In the
valley between the two hills sit the church
and monastery of Agios Nikolaos.
Princess Fahrelnissa Zeid was born in
1901 on the island. For the first half of the
20th century, the island was popular
among prosperous Greeks, Jews,
Armenians and Turks.The population of the
island today is about 7,000 people. As on
the other eight islands, motorized vehicles
– except service vehicles – are forbidden,
so visitors explore the island by foot,
bicycle, in horse-drawn carriages, or by
riding donkeys.

4. EPHESUS, IZMIR
Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a
major Roman city , on the west coast Selcuk, a
province of Izmir,. It was one of the twelve cities
of the Ionian League during the Classical
Greek era. In the Roman period, it was for many
years the second largest city of the Roman
Empire; ranking behind Rome, the empire's
capital. Ephesus was one of the seven churches of
Asia that are cited in the Book of
Revelation. The Gospel of John may have been
written here. The city was the site of several 5th
century Christian Councils. It is also the site of a
large gladiators' graveyard. Archaeological remains at Ephesus elegantly
reconciles historic conservation with accessibility
for visitors. In 356 BC the Greeks built the
Artemesium (a colossal Ionic temple dedicated to
Artemis, the fertility goddess) which was one of the
Seven Wonders of the ancient world. During the
2nd century BC, Ephesus was the fourth largest city
in the eastern Roman Empire, famous for its
Artemesium, the Library of Celsus and its medical
school.It became the leading seaport of the region.
Its wealth was proverbial.

5. SEFERIHISAR ,IZMIR
Seferihisar is located within the borders of
İzmir in the Aegean region. The oldest
settlement on Seferihisar district grounds is
Teos, thought to be a Carian city, established
by Cretans that escaped from the Akas in 2000
B.C. Among Seferihisar’s strong points are its
famous mandarins, its sun, rich geothermal
and wind energy resources, and historical
riches.
CITTASLOW SEFERIHISAR
The term Cittaslow, derived from the Italian
word Citta (city) and the English word Slow,
means calm city. Seferihisar is the first town in
Turkey that has become the member of
Cittaslow association. The concept of Cittaslow
became a road map for local governments, and
protects the future of the towns.

6. MANYAS LAKE, BALIKESIR
• Lake Manyas which is also called Bird
Lake is a lake in western Turkey,
located in the Bandırma region. An
estimated 255 species of birds visit
Bird Paradise National park at the
edge of Kuş Gölü,the lake formerly
known as Manyas Gölü located on the
great migratory paths between Europe
and Asia, the park is a happy
combination of plant cover,reed beds
and a lake that supports at least 20
species of fish.
Manyas Lake is an important site for
breeding and wintering waterbirds.More
than 270 species of birds have been
recorded at the lake. Important bird
species include White-headed
Duck, Eurasian Spoonbill , Greater
Flamingo , plus breeding populations of
the vulnerable Dalmatian Pelican.
Migrating Great White Pelicans often
roost at the lake.

7. DOLMABAHÇE PALACE
• Dolmabahçe Palace located in Istanbul,
Turkey, on the European coastline of the
Bosphorus strait, served as the main
administrative center of the Ottoman Empire
from 1856 to 1922, apart from a 22-year
interval in which Yıldız Palace was used.
Dolmabahçe Palace was ordered by the
Empire's 31st Sultan, Abdülmecid I, and built
between the years 1843 and 1856.
Dolmabahçe Palace was home to six sultans from
1856, when it was first inhabited, up until the abolition of
the Caliphate in 1924. The last royal to live here was Caliph
Abdülmecid Efendi. A law that went into effect on March
3, 1924 transferred the ownership of the palace to the
national heritage of the new Turkish Republic. Mustafa
Kemal Atatürk, the founder and first President of the
Republic of Turkey, used the palace as a presidential
residence during the summers and enacted some of his
most important works here. Atatürk spent the last days of
his medical treatment in this palace, where he died on
November 10, 1938

8. KEKOVA-SIMENA, ANTALYA
Kekova is a small island near Kaş ,a district of
Antalya province.Simena is a popular Lycian site,
situated upon one of the most attractive spots of
the Turkish coast. Kekova means "plain of thyme"
and describes the region encompassing the island
of Kekova, the villages of Kaleköy and Üçağiz and
the three ancient towns of Simena, Teimussa and
shipyard, as its bay was the site of an ancient
shipyard, with mostly Byzantine ruins. Both
Simena and Teimussa have a large
necropolis. Teimussa is now the village of Üçağiz,
where boats set off for tours of the area.
The Kekova region was declared a Specially
Protected Area in 1990 to protect the natural,
cultural and geographic richness of Kekova
Island and surrounding coast. Kekova-Simena
is an enjoyable place to visit for its great
beauty and charm. It is a peaceful place of
history, gorgeous turquoise water, sun,
islands, unspoilt nature .

9. The city is a charming mix of ancient,
medieval and modern history making it
interesting. It had been used as the
commercial and military base of this area
since the 5th century BC. In ancient times
Simena was a small fishing village and was
later an outpost of the Knights of Rhodes .
On its northern side there are the partly
sunken ruins of an ancient town which was
destroyed by an earthquake during the 2nd
century.
The dockyard with the ruins of a Byzantine
church is at the northwest and half of the
houses are submerged and staircases
descended into the water. Basements of
buildings and the ancient harbor are also seen
below the sea.

10. ANI RUINS, KARS
St Mary's Cathedral began to be
constructed as the cathedral of Ani in the city
center in 1010 on the time of Sembat II. It
was completed during Gagik I. After the
conquest of Ani by Alpaslan in 1064 was used
as a mosque.It was damaged by the
earthquake in 1319 and was restored by
architect Tiridot. This building is among the
best preserved structures in this area.
Church of the Apostles on the south slope of
the Kars Castle church is in the Old City
neighborhood well-preserved to this day. It
was built between the years 932-937 by King
Abbas Bagrat who built the capital city of Kars.
After a long time been used as a church
building turned into a mosque by Seljuks in
1064. It was used as a church again until 1878.
In 1890 the church was built next to the bell
tower was demolished in 1918.

11. ISHAK PASHA PALACE, AGRI
• Ishak Pasha Palace is a semi-ruined palace
and administrative complex located in the
Doğubeyazıt district of Ağrı province of
eastern Turkey. The Ishak Pasha palace is
an Ottoman-period palace whose
construction was started in 1685 by Colak
Abdi Pasha, the bey of Beyazit province.
According to the inscription on its door, the
Harem Section of the palace was completed
by his grandson Ishak Pasha in 1784. The
Palace is more of a complex than a palace;
it is the second administrative campus after
the Topkapı Palace in Istanbul and the most The palace is built on a hill at the side of a
famous of the palaces built in recent mountain 5 km east of Doğubeyazıt. It was the
decades. last large monumental structure in the Ottoman
Empire from the "Lale Devri" period. It is one of
the most distinguished and magnificent
examples of the 18th century Ottoman
architecture and is very valuable in terms of art
history.As the ground building sits on is a valley
slope, it is rocky and hard.The İshak Pasha Palace
is a rare example of the historical Turkish palaces
with a central heating system.The characteristic
property of the palace is its combined Ottoman,
Persian, and Seljuk architectural style.

12. CILO MOUNTAIN,HAKKARI
The Cilo-Sat Mountains, within the southeastern
Hakkari province are the eastern extension of the
Toros (Taurus) mountain chain, which stretches
from west to east along Turkey`s southern
boundaries. At 4136 meters, the Uludoruk summit
is the highest in the Cilo Mountains and the
Catalkaya , which rises to 3794 meters, it is the
highest peak in the Sat Mountains
The climate, geographical location and
topography all synergizes to make the Cilo
Sat Mountains an alluring location for
mountaineers and outdoor adventure
enthusiasts. The snow-clad peaks, icy
glaciers and swiftly flowing rivers make a
picture perfect world. The months of
June, July and August are the best for
summer excursions, while February and
March are the most suitable months for
winter climbing.