by Dennis | June 1, 2016 | Bursa's Delightful People, Culture and History
Tucked away in his Karagöz Antiques souvenir shop in Bursa’s Eski Aynalı Çarşı, Mr. Şinasi Çelikkol labors away at his two loves: purveying Turkish antiques and promoting traditional Ottoman shadow puppetry. Şinasi Bey’s antique shop is an overstuffed little room in...
by Dennis | February 27, 2016 | Bursa's Neat Places, Culture and History, Osmangazi, Spring, Summer
“This must be it,” my friend Ahmet told me as we pulled up to the edge of the centuries-old stone-walled cemetery in Bursa’s little Armutköy village. “But it looks more like a çınar to me.” Bursa is famous for its collection of 600 and 700-year-old çınar (plane)...
by Dennis | January 22, 2016 | Bursa's Neat Places, Culture and History, Osmangazi
Bursa Grand Mosque (or Great Mosque) is a prominent landmark in Bursa’s downtown. With its two towering minarets and 20 domes, the building is one of the most impressive and important in Bursa. Ulu Cami’i is considered the fifth most important mosque in Islam, after...
by Dennis | January 14, 2016 | Bursa's Neat Places, Culture and History
A guest post by Kaela La Farge The narrow street seemed to twist and turn in the darkness around dimly lit apartment buildings. The steep incline wrapped up the hillside in Bursa’s old Ībrahimpaşa neighborhood. Glowing shop lights illuminated the heat we exhaled with...
by Dennis | December 11, 2015 | Bursa's Neat Places, Culture and History
In 2014, Bursa proudly took its place as inscription number 1452 on the UNESCO World Heritage Site List and was officially recognized for its cultural and historical value as the Birthplace of the Ottoman Empire. Though Bursa was not the first capital city of the...
by Dennis | September 21, 2015 | Culture and History
“I have 40 bulls here this year,” Sait told me as he motioned toward the yellow tent. Inside the tent, two rows of young bulls were lined up on either side while farmhands attended to their needs. “I’ve been coming here every year for 20 years, and I’ve sold out every...
by Dennis | August 24, 2015 | Culture and History
One of the joys of living among Turkish people is that their inviting and hospitable nature welcomes us in to many aspects of their culture. As they allow us to take part in their lives and traditions, we gain a greater understanding of their ways, their customs, and...
by Dennis | June 15, 2015 | Culture and History, Travel Tips and Visiting Info
Mosques (called cami in Turkish) are some of the most prominent and significant buildings in Bursa, and they are a central part of Bursa’s life, culture, and history. Most of them—especially the historical ones—are welcoming to tourists, and visiting a mosque or two...
by Dennis | May 6, 2015 | Culture and History, Featured Fotoğrafı
In this Featured Fotoğrafı, Bursa’s whirling dervishes perform in the city’s Karabaş-i Veli Culture Center. Tucked away on a quiet side street in Bursa’s old Ībrahimpaşa neighborhood stands the Karabaş-i Veli Culture Center, one of Bursa’s last...
by Dennis | April 28, 2015 | Bursa's Neat Places, Culture and History, Iznik, See, Do, and Play
Just about an hour’s drive east of Bursa’s city center, hugging the shore of a freshwater lake and surrounded by olive tree-blanketed hills, lies the little town of Īznik. At first glance, it seems hard to believe that this traditional Turkish farm town was at one...
