This week, im in turkey, where theyre gearing up for the countrys 100th Anniversary. Rising from the remains of the Ottoman Empire a century ago, turkey inherited a disparate group of cultures and began a process of rapid modernisation under its founder, ataturk. Im travelling the country to understand how all of these diverse cultures were brought together. From the Burial Grounds of the god kings of ancient anatolia. To the turquoise coast, where Queen Cleopatra is claimed to have once bathed. To an original ottoman coffee house in gaziantep, and the hotel frequented by the founder of the republic here in istanbul. Welcome to turkey. Ship horn blares. Now this has to be the best possible way to arrive in istanbul down the mighty bosphorus. Its this body of water that separates the city but also separates continents. And look at that, that silhouette with the domes, the minaretsjust popping up above the horizon. That is dolmabahce palace. Thats where the founder of the republic, Musta
Now this has to be the best possible way to arrive in istanbul down the mighty bosphorus. Its this body of water that separates the city but also separates continents. And look at that, that silhouette with the domes, the minarets just popping up above the horizon. That is dolmabahce palace. Thats where the founder of the republic, Mustafa Kemal ataturk, set about the business of transforming turkey. And from the past to the present, this is taksim district, the heart of modern istanbul. Getting an ice cream in turkey seems like a bit of an extreme sport. I mean, its very. Its for you. She laughs one vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, i pistachio. Tram bell dings these european style heritage trams have their roots back in 1871, when they were horse powered and later became electric. I love a tram. Thats notjust because im from melbourne. Something quite nice about the pace of it and also, going right through the middle of the city. Everyones scarpering out of the way. Its a really nice w
Turkey inherited a disparate group of cultures and began a process of rapid modernisation under its founder, ataturk. Im travelling the country to understand how all of these diverse cultures were brought together. From the Burial Grounds of the god kings of ancient anatolia. To the turquoise coast, where Queen Cleopatra is claimed to have once bathed. To an original ottoman coffee house in gaziantep. And the hotel frequented by the founder of the republic here in istanbul. Welcome to turkey. Now, this has to be the best possible way to arrive in istanbul down the mighty bosphorus. Its this body of water that separates the city, but also separates continents. And look at that, that silhouette with the domes, the minaretsjust popping up above the horizon. That is dolmabahce palace. Thats where the founder of the republic, Mustafa Kemal ataturk, set about the business of transforming turkey. And from the past to the present, this is taksim district, the heart of modern istanbul. Getting
little amo aged 8 is inside, possibly alive. by the time they get her to the ambulance, though, it s clear they were too late. her mother, outside, only able to watch her everything vanish. my little one, she says. don t take her. don t let her get lost. antakya s streets a chilling patchwork of what s left standing and what s not left. in its ruins anxious crowds of rescuers and locals thinking they heard someone alive. demanding silence so they can listen again. down here is ahmed, the he rescuers say, alert, responsive, a syrian refugee. the building next to him barely hanging on at an angle. their work desperately wishing it were quicker. across the city hell has landed. this man guarding his neighbor s books with his father-in-law next to the body of his mother-in-law. he gestures behind him to where he once lived. it s kind of hard to get your head around just how inhabitable a city of this size has become so fast. literally every street you walk down has a scene li