The Marmara Region - Turkey with Your Family: From Bustling Bazaars to Historic Sites - page 106

long history then visiting some
or all of these mosques would
prove interesting for them,
although they may not be partic-
ularly appropriate for very young
children who may prefer to play
games in the gardens.

area too, as do the Tombs of
Osman and Orhan Gazi , the
father and son who founded the
Ottoman expansion.
Open 10am-5pm depending on the
time of year. Admission free.

Ulu Cami, Muradiye Mosque
and Ye@il Camii, Bursa
Located in the marketplace,
Murat II Caddesi and Yesil Caddesi
respectively.

INSIDER TIP

Be prepared to remove your
shoes and cover your shoulders
before you enter a mosque.
Remember that if you're wearing
a skirt or shorts you may be
asked to wear a cloak - most
mosques provide one for your
visit. Respect those at private
prayer and talk in soft tones dur-
ing your visit.

Bursa has a number of historic
mosques for you and your family
to visit and, while they may not
be the obvious attraction for
children, they are an integral
part of the Turkish way of life.
Children will probably find
them of interest because they
may never have entered a
mosque at home. The Ulu Cami ,
sometimes known as the Great
Mosque or the magnificent
Mosque, is located in the very
heart of Bursa's historic market
place area. It dates from the 14th
century and is one of the finest
examples of its style of architec-
ture in this area. The 15th-cen-
tury Muradiye Mosque is noted
for the fact that it stands in land-
scaped gardens in one of the leafi-
est areas of the city, the upmarket
residential area of Muradiye,
while the Ye@il Camii, or the
Green Mosque, is considered a
landmark building. Among the
other mosques to see are the
Emir Sultan Mosque , the
Yildirim Beyazit Mosque and
the Alaeddin Mosque , the old-
est in the city. If your older chil-
dren and teenagers are keen to
learn more about Bursa and its

★★
It is worth taking the 50-minute
trip out to Yeni @ ehir if you are
staying in the area around Bursa.
Here you can see some of the
traditional-style houses that date
back centuries. While children
may not always appreciate archi-
tectural styles, they should love
these because they are highly
patterned and colourful, rather
like dolls' houses but full size.
There are a handful of places to
eat and refresh, and a little
museum, the Semaki Mansion ,
housed in a former residential
house dating from the 1700s,
gives an insight into the local
lifestyle years ago. Yeni @ ehir is
well signposted from Bursa.

Yeni@ehir, near Bursa

The Top Museums
Archaeological Museum,
Bursa

★
Archaeological Museum, Kültür Park,
Bursa. b [phone].

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