"We should ideally approach Istanbul from the sea. The imperial city is dramatically taking form between the pale blues of sea and sky, its domes and minarets rising from the hills on either side of the entrance to the Bosphorus, the incomparably beautiful strait that separates Europe and Asia between the Marmara and the Black Sea."  (John Freely, 1998)

"Mevlut had never seen Istanbul from so far up. It was dreadful and dazzling at once. The neighborhoods looked all alike: they were thick with tall, ugly apartment buildings. But what really struck him was the sea of skyscrapers. They shone as brightly as the Süleymaniye Mosque, and at night, their radiance formed a halo over the city, honey gold and mustard yellow. It was difficult to distinguish the Bosphorus."   (Orhan Pamuk, 2015)