Bosphorus Strait

"This beautiful strait, sometimes spelled Bosporus and sometimes Bosphorus, was so called from the earliest ages by the ancients; from the mythology of 10, the mistress of Jupiter, having passed over it in the shape of a cow. It resembles the Dardanelles, in length, breadth, and current, and like it, is a narrow separation that divides Europe from Asia; but it has many features familiar to itself. Instead of being a solitary stream running between deserted shores, it is a body of water full of life and animation, winding its way through banks covered with palaces and villages, shaded with magnificent forest trees, presenting to the eye, at every mile, a new scene of crowded existence."

Dolmabahce Palace

Dolmabahçe Palace is a palace-museum located in İstanbul. The palace was built in the 19th century during the period of Sultan Abdulmecid. After the foundation of the Republic, it was used as a Presidential Residence until 1949. The palace was open to diplomatic meetings until 1984 when it became a museum.