The Dolmabahce Palace is located along the European shore of the Bosphorus Strait. Originally there was a shallow bay where the Ottoman fleet used to anchor their ships. After the 17th century the coast was filled in and converted into a nice garden with a couple of pavilions named as Besiktas Waterfront Palace complex.

It is divided into 2 sections: the official part where the sultan would receive distinguished guests from all over the world and the Harem where the Sultan's wife, mother and concubines lived. The palace has survived intact with its original decorations such as furniture, silk carpets, curtains and everything else.

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of Turkish Republic and first president of Turkey, spent his last years in the Dolmabahce Palace as his health deteriorated. He died at 9:05 a.m. on November 10, 1938, in a room that is now part of the museum and open to visit.

Hagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, 29 May 1453 until 1934; it was opened as a museum on 1 February 1935.

This is the most famous image of Istanbul since the year 537 CE and a masterpiece of byzantine architecture. The mosaics are astounding, as is the huge Ottoman ceiling dome. Its design represents Paradise and it conveys the sensation of being suspended in heaven.

Because Byzantium was strongly under the intluence of Rome at the time of the construction of the Hagia Sophia, this structure is an amalgam of the magnificence of Roman architecture with the standard church architecture of the Byzantines. The original mosaics of the church were severely damaged by the Iconoclasts, but new mosaics replaced the former in the 9th century after the period of Iconoclasm had disappeared.

This giant bazaar in the heart of the Old Town has 4,000 shops under one roof and a maze of 65 alleys connecting them all into a vast and disorienting conglomeration. There is no need to offer directions for walking through the Bazaar, as it is a giant puzzle of covered lanes lined with little shops in which you can get delightfully lost. It is a small city unto itself that got started 500 years ago as a smaller market shortly after the conquest of 1453 by Sultan Mehmet II and kept expanding into the adjacent neighborhoods. More and more streets were covered with roofs to form a single massive building that reached its present size in 1701. Once you get used to the layout, you realize there is some order to the madness, with the streets forming a grid and with small plazas at main intersections. 

Shops of similar type tend to be clustered together inside the bazaar, so there are streets for carpets, jewelry, furniture, clothing and so on. Bargaining is mandatory here for no one expects to sell at the price first mentioned. You can even bargain in restaurants and everywhere money changes hand. However, before you get your hopes up too much, be advised it has become surprisingly upscale and glitzy, with fancy glass windows and too much gold jewelry. On the other hand, half the shops sell nothing but junk you wouldn't care about. The merchants are very friendly -- because they want your money! These salesmen are eager to catch your attention, so you will hear constant greetings as you walk along. Americans are seen as rich and gullible, unfamiliar with bargaining and true prices, so easy targets to fleece. Don't dress up when you go to the bazaar, because the merchant can determine your annual income with a glance at your clothes and jewelry, and will price his goods accordingly. Better prices can be found away from the main lanes.

The complex is located in Süleymaniye, the neighbourhood of Eminönü named after it. It was built by Sultan Süleyman, the Magnificent in 1557 and designed by Architect Sinan. The Süleymaniye Complex represented the second and most important stage in an architectural tradition which began with the Fatih Complex, namely a symmetrical grouping and use of geometric shaping among the layout of the complex buildings.

To get the full effect of the architect's design, you should walk to the northwest side of the mosque onto ?ifahane Sokak and enter the courtyard by this main entrance, but at this writing (March 2011), the courtyard is closed for restoration.

The mosque is open every day, for free. If you are not Muslim, avoid visiting within 30 minutes after the call to prayer, and from noon to late afternoon on Friday (the Muslim holy day).

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is a historical mosque in Istanbul, originated as an Islamic response to Hagia Sophia. The Blue Mosque Sultan Ahmed ordered it to be built during his reign. Its interior is fabulous, with bluish light filtering down due to its tiles.

The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.
While still used as a mosque, the Sultan Ahmed Mosque has also become a popular tourist attraction.

Topkap? Palace (Topkap? Saray? in Turkish, literally the "Cannongate Palace" - named after a nearby gate), located in Istanbul (Constantinople), was the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1465 to 1853.

The construction of the Topkap? Palace was ordered by Sultan Mehmet II in 1459. It was completed in 1465. The palace is located on the Seraglio Point between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara in Istanbul, having a splendid view of the Bosphorus.