by Natasha Nemyre

Created on: April 04, 2009

Istanbul is easily a front runner for the title of the most vibrant and diverse city in the world. No other city on earth melds so many cultures, religions, and traditions together. It is only fitting then, that the city where Europe and Asia meet, where East and West collide, should be filled with so many contradictions. For, just as exhaustion begins to set in from the chaotic streets overflowing with vendors shouting the attributes of their wares, you need only round a corner and find, rising serenely and gracefully before you, the elegant spires of one of the nearly 3000 mosques scattered throughout the city. The senses are truly overwhelmed in this massive, magnificent triumph of a city.

Istanbul's grand history began over 2500 years ago when it was founded as Byzantium by the Greeks. The city became a symbol of opulence and beauty enjoying great prosperity. In 330AD the city was shown significant favor by the first Christian emperor of Rome, Constantine the Great, when he selected it as the "New Rome". The city subsequently became known as Constantinople in his honor and was instated as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, a title it held for over 1000 years. In 1453 the city was conquered by the Ottoman Turks and given its modern moniker: Istanbul. It is a city which pays homage to its past while looking forward to a bright future.

Istanbul's crowning glory is without doubt the Byzantine masterpiece, Hagia Sophia. Commissioned by the Holy Roman Emperor Justinian and built over five years in the early sixth century AD, it stood as the largest cathedral in the world for almost 1000 years. After Constantinople was conquered by the Turks, the cathedral was converted into a mosque. Hagia Sophia is now a museum and monument attesting to the spectacular legacy of Istanbul. Not to be outdone, opposing Hagia Sophia's ancient grandeur across a lush green expanse rises the commanding spires of the national mosque of Turkey, the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, popularly referred to as the Blue Mosque. Both Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque are nestled in Istanbul's most tourist-friendly district: Sultanahmet. The district also hosts the Topkapi Palace, the perfect destination to immerse yourself for a few hours in the splendor and opulence of the Sultan lifestyle. Set on 173 acres, one can wander the labyrinthine harem, ogle the royal treasury, and marvel at the weapons cache, however, it is the intricacy of the interior dcor, the hand painted tiles that cover virtually every

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