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Cosmedin, the Golden horn, the rite of Sunnat or the religious district of Istanbul

Cosmedin, the Golden horn, the rite of Sunnat or the religious district of Istanbul

May 2018 · 9 min read · Istanbul

Hi friends!
Today we will make a fascinating journey to the shores of the Golden Horn in Istanbul. The Turks of the Golden horn is called the Haliç. We will find out what area was behind the famous walls of the Byzantine Empire. We will spend a little time in a very cozy area Eyup and look at Istanbul and Golden horn from a bird's eye view.


Golden horn Bay connects to two European parts of Istanbul:

Beyoglu. It is also called old Istanbul (or Old city)
Eminonu - New mosque (or New town)

Eyup district is located in the new city. It is from Eminonu we went.


On the roads of Istanbul you can see a lot of amazing things. For example, a family that rides a motorcycle without helmets. On the tank sits child. This picture often. There are prohibiting traffic rules, but somehow loyal to the police refers to this fact.

Turks, if are loaded in the car, in two floors. Very often I see the city as one man is sitting on the lap of another. In General, no one wants to walk on foot. Due to the scandalous nature of the Turkish, even the police turn a blind eye to such violations.


On the way to Eyup there is a very beautiful Orthodox Church. St. Stephen's Church, belongs to the Bulgarian community of Istanbul. Now the temple is beautifully restored. Very interesting it looks in the Fatih district. The peculiarity of the temple is that it is completely constructed of cast iron. Initially, there was a wooden building, which was given by Prince Stefan Bogoridi for the Bulgarian community. Sultan Abdul Azis in 1870, was read the sacred speech. After which the Bulgarians were recognized as a separate ethnic group. In 1898 the new building of the temple was ready.

The Church front looks that for a second forget that you are in Istanbul, Turkey. Snake temple, St. Stephen's looks at the haliç. The building is a three-nave Basilica. There is a forty-meter bell tower. Of the six bells there were only two. The bells were made by Russian masters of Yaroslavl. Metal housing-in Austria. The iconostasis was made by Moscow firm N. Agapkina. Near the temple there is a beautiful restaurant "Halych". We sometimes come to the Golden horn to have Breakfast. The view is very beautiful. Unusual feelings arise when the bells ring. In Istanbul used by the chants of the mosques. And then the ringing of bells. A fairy tale simply, not sensations!

Lookout in the district of Eyup. Before us is the bridge "Ataturk" and both parts of the Old and New city. I remind you that we are, relatively speaking, in new Istanbul. These types of attract all. Therefore, there are always a lot of people. But so fond of beauty that no one noticed. The length of the Golden Horn is about 12 kilometers. Built a total length of 12 km, 4 bridges. Preserved and old Galata bridge, but it is not used for auto movement. There holidays and festivals are held.

In some sea buses hang interesting pictures of historical Istanbul. Look how unusual the bridge was across the Golden horn. If I'm not mistaken, it's the old Galata bridge. Paintings is not accidental. The first shipyard in Istanbul was built in the Bay of Halych. The Bay has a very convenient location. It is protected from all sides. The Peninsula ends of the Sheet.

Picture from the archaeological Museum of Istanbul. But an important attribute is the chain that blocked the entrance to the Bay. The remains of the chain are preserved.

Before you metromost "Golden horn". It runs a high-speed train. The bridge was opened in 2014. Connects the district of Fatih and Beyoglu.

In the picture you can see the old wall of Byzantium. To the right of the haliç, or Golden horn. In the period of Byzantine Empire outside the walls was a settlement, which was called Cosmodynes. This name came from a Church that was there. Then on the place of Church there was a monastery of a name Dinu and Kosma. Here in this interesting area is the district of Istanbul - Eyup.

On the way to Eyup you can see the walls of old Constantinople. Well built at the time!

Everything smells of history. Unusual look of the wall, which for so many years. Even the comfortable greenery stuck on them.

The Park is Tiny on the other side of the Golden Horn. From here we can see part of Eyup. Quite a lot of new homes. The hill is completely built.

When you arrive in Eyup, immediately visible cable car to the observation deck and cafe Pierre Loti. I've written about this before. In order to feel the flavor of the area, it is better to walk.

In the archaeological Museum of Istanbul a whole niche is allocated to the exhibits of granite, which were found in the Bay of Halych. I accustomed to have the Golden horn is called the Haliç. The Strait was formed in this area more than 6000 years ago. But the settlement was much earlier.

The exhibits belong to the Hellenistic period. These are all granite tombstones.


This gravestone Lollia Salvia (2-1 century BC). The tombstone is decorated with caryatids, at the bottom of the baby. Red done.

Beautiful old painting. Photographed in a cafe Pierre Loti. So the population of the district spent time over a Cup of coffee and looking at the Golden horn.

The café preserves traditions. The house has many such tables for coffee on the sand. However, they are like Museum exhibits. Done all under gold.

The lower part of the Property. It should be noted that the Hürrem Sultan (aka roxelana) gave the order to deepen the Golden Horn. This allowed large ships to pass in the Bay.
Throughout the area the old walls are sayings of wisdom. You see them in the picture. Their relatively recently be. All go, read and wise...

The old sacred cemetery of Eyup. The most popular place. Many high officials and statesmen want to be buried here.


The higher the position or rank a man held, the higher was the tombstone of Stella. The forms are different and quirky. Many inscriptions, images of fruits and vegetables.

We came with you to the Central square Eyup with a fountain. In this area a completely different feel. There is peace and grace. No fuss, despite the large number of people.

The main mosque of the district and historically important mosque for Muslims - Eyup Sultan.

Turks many times tried to break through walls of Constantinople. One day Sultan Mehmed II, the AK-Semsettin announced that he had found the grave of companion of Muhammad. His name is Abu Ayoub al-Ansari. Was killed during the capture of the city by the Arabs. In honor of him and named the district of Eyup. The name is a bit modified. Since then, this is one of the sacred places. During the holidays pilgrims from different countries come here. The entire square near the fountain is filled with prayers. On this place by order of Mehmed II was built one of the first in Istanbul. Therefore, this area is special in religious terms for Muslims.


During Muslim holidays, all entertainment facilities are closed. There's only room for prayer. Don't expect to get into the cafe. It's closed. It is in Eyup that the most sacred literature and attributes of Muslims are sold.

On the streets you can often find the boys in the costumes of the Prince. This means that there will soon be sunnet, or circumcision. This is the most important dogma of Islam. In Turkey, Sunny make boys 8-14 years. There is no mention of circumcision in the Qur'an, but the Turks act according to hadith. Saw several times shocked children after the procedure. It's not for the faint of heart. But in Turkey, a Muslim woman will not marry a man who has no circumcision. In the villages to this day to produce a circumcision at home. Most often, when the boy is 3-4 years old.

I am of the opinion that everything that is given by nature should be in place. Another ancient Greek philosopher Philo (1st century) said that circumcision is "cutting out passion." My husband says he would never do that (remembers this horror so far). This is the view of many Turkish men who are not fanatics of the Muslim religion. But nobody asked them.

Here's another Prince that's about to be circumcised. Rite sunnata with its own rules and customs. After the whole procedure is going to relatives and feasting. It is worth noting that a piece of skin then stored at home in a box. Prince stuff too. Horror, poor children. But the procedure of circumcision has existed for more than 15 thousand years, surprisingly. Of course, they say that there are many advantages in this. I don't know... To interfere in what is created by nature is only an extreme case. But that's just my thoughts. Everybody has a different opinion.

Only in the Eyup district you can see the largest concentration of pigeons. More than this amount I'm nowhere in Istanbul is not seen in mosques. Muslims the dove is a sacred bird. When the inspiration came to Muhammad, the dove sat on his shoulder. Mohammed said to keep the pigeons at home-they distract the Jinn from your children. And we on the contrary, the name of the Jinn to fulfill our desires. But everyone has different traditions and cultures...

Birds are always good. Under the trees in the center of Eyup be careful on top can fall wealth. Be sure to include Eyup in your tourist trip to Istanbul. We need to see all the contrasts of Istanbul.

Photo taken on the iPhone 6S+

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