"Istanbul comfortably holds Asia and Europe in its underbelly
14 Jul 2005
Combining the best of East and West, it is one city where the order of the Ottomans will last forever
LEKHA J SHANKAR AND C. JAYASANKAR
We are in Europe, and on the other side, is Asia says veteran travel consultant Kewal Suman, pointing to the tall buildings just across the blue waters in front of us. The waters are of the Bosphorus Sea, and we are in Istanbul.
It's difficult to believe that in one city, we can straddle both Europe and Asia.
But here lies the magic of Turkey's best-known city, which incorporates the Eastern and Western hemispheres in its under-belly.
So, we encounter gold-domed mosques and white-steepled churches, Usak carpets and Bohemian crystal, Iznic tiles and Italian rococco."
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