Bridges of Istanbul are an integral part of the urban landscape and the pride of the townspeople. There are a lot of structures of this type in it, 2 of which we will describe now.
The Bosphorus Bridge is an ancient building that connects the European part of the city with the Asian one. Thanks to him, you can visit two different parts of the world in a matter of minutes . The construction of such a bridge was conceived by the Persian emperor Darius I. After all, the construction through the Bosphorus could help the ruler of Persia to transfer his army to the other side, in order to crush the army of the worst enemy - Alexander the Great. His dream was realized in 480 BC, when a pontoon bridge was built across the Bosphorus. Hundreds of years passed before one of the railway companies received an offer to Sultan Abdul Hamid II, to replace the then construction with a new one, with railway communication. However, the Bosphorus Bridge began to be built only half a century later, in 1970. After 3 years, the grand opening of the structure, hanging 64 m above the waters of the Bosphorus, took place. The construction cost $ 200 million, the length of the structure is 1,510 m, and the width is 39 m. The Bosphorus Bridge has 6 lanes (3 in each direction) and 2 more for emergency services. More than 200 thousand cars cross it every day, although it is paid. Due to mass cases of suicide, the authorities closed pedestrian roads. In order to prevent the bridge from being overloaded with traffic, truck running was prohibited.
In addition to the Bosphorus Bridge, Istanbul boasts another attraction that connects the shores of the Golden Horn. This is the Galata bridge. It has a rather long and eventful history. For all the time, many bridges were built over the bay, but constantly they remained non-functional for various reasons. One of them was built by Sultan Mehmet II Fatih between the Kasympasha and Aivansaray districts. The design of this bridge was even drawn by Leonardo Da Vinci, on account of which there are 2 legends. According to the first, it was not approved by Sultan Beyazid II, according to the second, Leonardo was discouraged by the Venetians from going to Turkey. And in 1912, a new bridge was built for 50 thousand gold. However, like many others, a tragic fate awaited him when he caught fire in 1992 under unclear circumstances. For the fifth and so far the last time, the Galata bridge was constructed a year and a half after the fire - in 1994. Its length is 490 meters, and its width is 42 meters. So that ships could run under it, it was built sliding. An interesting fact is that Galata is one of the longest bridges in the world along which rails are laid. Today, a tram rides on them. Ten years ago cafes, shops and restaurants were opened under the bridge. And today in the evenings you can see hundreds of people who decided to spend the evening quietly in company with friends.
Istanbul, reviews of tourists about which it can tell about its popularity, has a huge number of attractions that have been built over many centuries: Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Galata Tower, Bosphorus Bridge, Maiden Tower, Blue Mosque and many, many others.