Istanbul – one of the capitals of the Orient. This city of diversity is as primitive as it is magnificent and attractive with all the charm and weaknesses, which brings the Muslim world. In historical terms gathered in Istanbul is itself cultural consequences of the Byzantine, Roman and Ottoman empires. Also known as Constantinople, Constantinople, Istanbul is a metropolis and the largest city in the territory of Turkey. Nearly 11 million people live only in the urban area of ​​Istanbul and the whole agglomeration collects about 19 million citizens. Istanbul is situated on two continents, as in eastern Asia and western – in Europe. To the south stretches Marmara (Marmara Sea), and to the north – the Black Sea. Waterway from the Black to the Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea through the Bosphorus and Istanbul. Between the two continents were built two impressive bridges over the Bosphorus itself. Istanbul initially exists under the name of Byzantium as a Thracian settlement. In 330 Emperor Constantine I the Great then chooses Istanbul for a new capital of the Roman Empire. From the late Roman period Istanbul named Constantinople, and later he was a Turkish name Istanbul. In historical annals appears the name Constantinople, which is the Slavic name of the Turkish capital.
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Tel Aviv is the administrative capital of Israel. This function is assigned to the historic Jerusalem, but in practice it is concentrated only government and religion. Everything else in Israel, culture, business and entertainment are located in Tel Aviv, which is the modern face of Israel. Tel Aviv is a relatively new city – was founded in 1909 as the original idea was this settlement to be something like a Jewish suburb of the Arab port of Yafo, which is one of the oldest cities in the Middle East. It is located on a hill, which is found invaluable view of the coast of Tel Aviv. With the massive emigration of Jews from all over the world, however, Tel Aviv gradually acquired considerable dimensions, as Yafo is now included within the second largest city in Israel. After so. six-day war in 1967, in protest against the occupied territories, most countries do their embassies in Jerusalem and in Tel Aviv. Exceptions are only Costa Rica and El Salvador), whose embassies in Jerusalem. At present, almost the entire world community considers Tel Aviv as the capital of Israel. That is why most embassies are located in this city instead of Jerusalem. Tel Aviv is a remarkable characteristic of southern architecture. Because of her in 2003 the city was included in the list of World Heritage by UNESCO.
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