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BURSA |
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Draped along the leafy lower slopes of Uludaq, which towers more
than 2000m above, BURSA - first capital of the Ottoman Empire and the
burial place of several sultans - does more justice to its setting than
any other Turkish city besides Istanbul. Gathered here are some of the
finest early Ottoman monuments in Turkey, in a tidy and appealing city
centre.
Flanked by the busy Atatürk Cad, the compact Koza Parki , with its
fountains, benches, crowds and cafés, is the real heart of Bursa. On the
far side looms the Ulu Camii , built between 1396 and 1399 by Yaldaram
Beyazit I from the proceeds of booty won from the Crusaders at Nicopolis
on the Danube. Before the battle Yaldaram had vowed to construct twenty
mosques if victorious; the present building of twenty domes was his
rather free interpretation of this promise. The interior is dominated by
a huge Sadirvan pool for ritual ablutions in the centre, whose skylight
was once open to the elements, and an intricate walnut mimber (pulpit)
pieced together, it's claimed, without nails or glue. Close by is
Bursa's covered market, the Bedesten , given over to the sale of
jewellery and precious metals, and the Koza Hani , flanking the park,
still entirely occupied by silk and brocade merchants. Across the river
to the east, the Yesil Camii (Green Mosque; daily 8am-8.30pm) is easily
the most spectacular of Bursa's imperial mosques - though never
completed, as you can see from the entrance. The hundreds of tiles
inside give the mosque its name. Tucked above the foyer, and usually
closed to visitors, the imperial loge is the most extravagantly
decorated chamber of all, the work attributed to a certain Al-Majnun ("The
Mad One"). The nearby hexagonal Yesil Türbe (daily 8am-noon & 1-7pm;
free) contains the sarcophagus of Çelebi Mehmet I and assorted offspring.
The immediate environs of the mosque are a busy tangle of cafés and
souvenir shops. The medrese, the largest surviving dependency of the
mosque, now houses Bursa's Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art (Tues-Sun
8.30am-noon & 1-5pm; $1.50), with Iznik ware, Çanakkale ceramics, glass
items and a mock-up of an Ottoman circumcision chamber.
West from the centre of town, the Hisar ("citadel") district was Bursa's
original nucleus. A warren of narrow lanes wind up through dilapidated
Ottoman houses to the remaining ramparts, while a skeleton of new
walkways clinging to the rock face offer fabulous views. The best-preserved
dwellings are a little way west in medieval Muradiye , where the
Muradiye Külliyesi mosque and medrese complex was begun in 1424 by Murat
II. This is the last imperial foundation in Bursa, although it's most
famous for its tombs , set in lovingly tended gardens. Best of these
commemorate Sehzade Ahmet and his brother Zehinzah, both murdered in
1513 by their cousin Selim the Grim to preclude any succession disputes,
covered with Iznik tiles, which contrast sharply with the adjacent
austerity of Murat II's tomb, where Roman columns inside and a wooden
awning are the only superfluities: in accordance with his wishes, both
the coffin and the dome were originally open to the sky "so that the
rain of heaven might wash my face like any pauper's". From Muradiye it's
a short walk down to Çekirge Caddesi and the southeast gate of the
Kültür Parki (daily 9.30am-12.30pm & 1.30-6.30pm; $0.10) where there's a
popular tea garden, a small boating lake and three pricey restaurants.
At the far end there's also an Archeological Museum (Tues-Sun 8am-noon &
1-5pm; $1), whose exhibits include metal jewellery from all over
Anatolia, a collection of Roman glass items, and Byzantine and Roman
bronzes. Just beyond the Kültür Parka, the Yeni Kaplica (daily 9am-11pm;
$2), accessible via a steep driveway, are the nearest of Bursa's baths,
a faded reminder of the days when the town was patronized as a spa.
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