COLOURFULWORLD

Monday, 6 July 2026

Monday Murals - Istanbul I

I love murals and street art. If you like murals or have a mural you'd like to post, this meme is for you.  Just follow the Linky steps below.  Once you start looking you will find murals everywhere.  The "Monday Mural" meme goes live on Monday at 12,01AM, Perth,Western Australian time. Be sure to link back to this blog and visit your fellow posters. Looking forward to your mural finds this week.  Thanks Sami 

Hi everybody! I've arrived back home a week ago and still slightly jet-lagged, but happy to be home after 7 weeks away.                                                                              I'm sorting out my photos and writing about our trip to Istanbul, and will hopefully post a May Wrap-up this Wednesday 8th July....if not it will be next Wednesday.

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The first murals I saw in Istanbul, Turkey during our visit in May 2026, were spotted on a wall behind Gülhane Park, depicting various landmarks of Istanbul.

The park is located just behind Topkapi Palace and was once part of its outer gardens. The name Gülhane means "House of Roses", as in Spring and Summer more than 80 thousand roses bloom in this park as well as thousands of tulips. In Winter the park is covered with forget-me-nots.

Entrance gate to Topkapi Palace

Ortakoy Mosque (on the European side) with the 15 July Martyrs Bridge

Basilica Cistern

Blue Mosque on the left and Hagia Sophia on the right

An Istanbul tram and a Whirling dervish performer

Maiden's Tower on the Bosphorus Strait

A flying man - associated with Ottoman aviator Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi, and the Galata Tower


The next ones are the mosaics surrounding the Hurrem Sultan Fountain  between Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, in Sultanahmet Park, in Istanbul's historic district.



At the Istanbul Airport underground bus depot, all the columns had Istanbul paintings on them, but we were in a hurry to get the bus, so only managed these.

36 comments:

  1. Dear Sami, welcome back - you surely had a wonderful travel and the trip to Istanbul was also great I assume. The kind of street art seems to be a bit different to other countries but also very interesting.
    Have a good time and all the best
    Violetta

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    1. Thank you Violetta, it was a wonderful trip, and Istanbul was probably my favourite city.

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  2. Beautiful post, thank you!

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  3. ...lots of bold colors aren't necessary here, they are lovely. Thanks for Hosting Sami, I wish you a wonderful week.

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  4. Istanbul is really a wonderful place, and I enjoyed your photos. I think the Blue Mosque was the most impressive among the monuments I visited. I also loved the market and the views from the ferry boats.
    best…. mae at maefoodd.blogspot.com

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    1. Thanks Mae, yes the Blue Mosque is beautiful, but I found many other mosques that were smaller but just as impressive.

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  5. These are interesting scenes of the city! Thank you, Sami

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  6. The flying man reminds me a bit of Dracula Vlad the Impaler, but all the murals are superb, have a nice week.

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  7. They are certainly different to many murals, with a lot of subtlety and muted colours. I did a double take at the airport pillars, thinking there were kangaroos, but no, they are cats.

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    1. Yes, the city of cats :) thanks Andrew

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  8. Uma cidade há muito a pedir nova visita.
    Boa semana

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    1. Apesar das multidoes gostei imenso Pedro. Boa semana

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  9. Mural's looks amazing, Loved it. Excited for upcoming mural series from Istanbul trip. Have a great week ahead. Thanks a lot for hosting.

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    1. Thanks Rupam. Enough for another post, it was only a 3 day trip :)

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  10. The first one reminds me of my home town, Seesen where every first weekend of September the Sesusafest, the biggest historian festival of Norther Germany takes place.
    Looks like Castle Sehusa. A bit... 7 weeks, yipeee to retirement!!!
    Love the cat, too!
    And look forward to Wednesday(s)!

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  11. These are just gorgeous. I have never been to Istanbul, but now I feel I have an idea of it, just from these beautiful mural pictures. And the mosaic on the fountain is beautiful also. The bus station is cute too. My favourite is the first one, the entrance to the Topkapi palace, looking just like a Fairytale :)

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    1. Thanks Patricia. I will be posting about my Istanbul visit if you want to have an "armchair visit" to Istanbul.

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  12. Gorgeous murals. I loved Istanbul and would like to go back.

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    1. It was our first time in Istanbul, I had been to other towns in Turkey, and loved Istanbul and hopefully will visit again one day. Thanks Jackie

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  13. Sami, you found some terrific murals. I love the paintings of those famous buildings and stories.

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  14. Dear Sami, the first murals look like they were copied from a sketchbook. An unusual style, but interesting. I also find the mosaic art very beautiful! I often have the same problem as you – I don't have enough time to photograph a mural or study it more closely, especially when we're traveling by car. But if I manage to get even a close-up of it, I do, and then I study the image of the photo later.
    Thank you for your nice comment and happy you take us on a trip to Istanbul!
    All the best from Austria 🤗.
    Traude
    https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2026/06/reisebericht-2025-von-ahornblattern-und.html

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    1. Thanks Traude. I was glad to have found a few more murals in Istanbul, which I didn't expect o find. Have a great week.

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  15. I really like those first ones that look like wonderful drawings, Sami.

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  16. I love Istanbul! Visited in the 90s and did not see any murals on our tour. They are lovely.

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    1. Thanks Eileen, I didn't find many murals now, so presumably in the 90's they weren't popular yet.

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  17. Interesting murals! I’m glad you made it home safely.

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    1. Thank you Linda, just jet-lagged which is awful!

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