Have you ever been to a Turkish hairdresser?
Colorful streets
Noisy streets
Steep streets
Tasty streets
Welcome to Istanbul
One of the most visited cities in the world
4000 shops, 30,000 traders and more than half a million customers every day.
The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul was built in 1461.
More than 3000 mosques, the unique Galata Tower, thousands of seagulls above the roofs
and bridges connecting the two continents
If there were only one country in the world
, its capital would be Istanbul,” once said Napoleon
Turkey has 85 million inhabitants
15 million live in Istanbul. Officially
Unofficially 20 million
Estimated 4 million are refugees
This is the population of Berlin, the largest city in Germany
Did you know that Turkey has the most refugees in the world?
Right in the center I met these 3 guys.
Sitting by a campfire
Can you imagine that?
Here you will meet hundreds of locals fishing fresh fish every day
Istanbul is a very exciting city
Immerse yourself in the extraordinary culture of food
My favorite - Fish Dürum at the Galata Bridge
Enjoy Turkish-style pizza - Lahmacun
A great tea culture
Countless cafes and colorful streets in Karaköy and Balat, where artists let off steam
When I arrived here, I first noticed the countless free-roaming dogs and cats.
Very unusual in such a large metropolis
. Luckily they are doing very well
. People take care of themselves with food provided and huts built
throughout the city
The New York Times estimates that there are more than 130,000 dogs and more than 125,000 cats in the city
.
Most are medically checked and marked
Istanbul is a mega metropolis that is the only city that connects two continents.
Europe and Asia.
Separated by the Bosphorus, connected by 3 bridges and a tunnel that
provides a little relief when the streets are always full
. Built in 1973, the Bosphorus Bridge serves as one of the most important connections.
1560 meters long and 65 meters high.
In the first three years, pedestrians were still able to cross the bridge.
Today, only cars are allowed.
Around 200,000 cars cross the bridge every day.
This is also the bridge that
was closed on July 15th.
When there was the attempted coup to overthrow President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The coup attempt failed.
249 people lost their lives.
More than 2000 were injured.
In order to better understand the situation of the local people
I would like to give you a brief insight
into the economic and political situation
But also into religion and history
Because you can literally feel all this everywhere in the streets of the city
Today Istanbul is responsible for 27% of the Gross domestic product
When you arrive here, you get almost 10 Turkish lira for one euro
Three years ago it was only half - 5 lira for one euro
The currency is depreciating dramatically.
Good for tourists - a disaster for the locals
The average salary in Istanbul is around 400 euros a month
The minimum salary is 275 euros
Grandmothers, fathers, young people are forced to sell water bottles in traffic
Standing all day, breathing in exhaust fumes
Think about it for a
moment Turkey is ranked 116th out of 138 most expensive cities
in terms of spending on housing, groceries and restaurant dining
Bermuda, Switzerland and Norway are the most expensive cities
75% of energy, such as oil and gas, Turkey is forced to import
The oil The price has to be paid in US dollars all over the world in
connection with your own currency, which is losing more and more value
, these expenses will be correspondingly more and more
The political situation in the country is becoming more and more tense and it is deeply rooted in
people's minds
You're sure already heard of the tensions in the Mediterranean
between Turkey and Greece
where there are huge Gas deposits are
gone Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been the President of Turkey since 2014. He is
now a powerful ruler
who is trying to permanently change Turkey.
In the first years of his reign, the economy was booming
. Unemployment has halved.
Gross domestic product has quadrupled
. Almost everyone had health insurance.
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was considered the president who helped the poor
In the meantime, he is losing more and more approval in his own country
. Many locals I spoke to told me
The country is now divided
into 50 percent Supporters of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's vision
the man who Turkey
and 50 percent supporters of the vision of the current President Erdogan
Turkey is currently ranked 154 out of 180 countries when it comes to press freedom
In 2007 YouTube was even blocked
before it was reopened three years later
Allegations of corruption
No equal marriage of husband and wife
Continuous exchange of prosecutors
Conversion of the Hagia Sophia from a museum into a mosque
Erdogan's critics call him an ignorant, autocratic leader
who eliminates anyone who contradicts him
Does Erdogan want to set up his own theocracy?
What do you think?
Did you know that Turkey hasn't even existed for 100 years?
Before that the gigantic Ottoman Empire ruled
From Europe to North Africa into the Middle East
Istanbul was called Constantinople
It was the capital of the Ottoman Empire from 1453 to 1922
But but in this place we have to dig deeper historically
because the people here were not always Muslims
The time of the Hermit dates back to 660 BC
Founded as Byzantium
A Greek city that existed for more than 1000 years
Constantine the Roman Emperor chose Byzantium as the new capital of Rome
And named it Constantinople
Initially the city was also called New Rome
In 395 became the Roman Empire divided into West and East
The West spoke Latin and was Roman Catholic
The East spoke Greek and was Greek Orthodox
After the Western Roman Empire collapsed in 476,
the Eastern Roman Empire existed until it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in
1453
Today there is still plenty of eyewitnesses
One of the most important ten is Hagia Sophia
Built as a church this architectural masterpiece is almost 1500 years old
it was considered the largest church in the world for 1000 years
Throughout history this building has been the scene of religious and political
power struggles
Transformed from church to mosque, from mosque to museum and back to the mosque only
a year ago by the incumbent President Erdogan.
What is your opinion?
Should it be a church?
Also what was it originally?
A place to pray for Christians?
Should it be a museum?
A historical place for tourists?
Or should it be one of more than 3000 mosques in the city?
After the Ottoman Empire collapsed in World War I
, Mustafa Kemal, born in Salonika, today's Thessaloniki and the second largest
city in Greece,
founded the Republic of Turkey in 1923.
Atatürk's vision was to build a secular western modern state
Ankara became the capital of Turkey
The division between Religion and state were decided
Adhan, the call to prayer that is held worldwide in Arabic
was translated into Turkish
even the word Allah was translated
The government banned the wearing of the headscarf in public institutions
The Arabic alphabet was replaced by the Latin-based Turkish alphabet
Compulsory schooling for children was introduced
In 1935 women were allowed to vote in elections for the first time
Istanbul awaits you with grandiose sights such as the Topkapi Palace
which was the seat of the sultans in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries
The Galata Tower - a perfect place for a 360° view of I stanbul
Formerly used to locate fires in the city
Nowhere does ancient heritage, Christianity and oriental culture merge like in the city
on the Bosphorus
I heartily recommend a visit to Istanbul
You will love the hospitality of the Turks
Thank you for watching
I hope so you liked it and you could get an insight into Istanbul and the
life of the people
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until the next video