Bursa, Turkey, the first capital of the Ottoman empire, contains a rich historical legacy including the mausoleum of the founder of the Ottoman empire Osman Bey.
Bursa, aclaimed as Turkey's Emerald City, contains a rich and underrated historical legacy.
Currently the fourth largest city in Turkey, after Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, Bursa was the first capital of the Ottoman empire in the 14th Century, before the Ottomans took Constantinople.
As such, there is a significant amount of history in the city which attracts a small amount of tourists each year, although these tourists tend to head to the ski-slopes of Uludag, the mountain in whose shadow Bursa was built.
The city is resplendent with monuments to the early Ottoman period and a number of Ottoman Sultans remain buried in Bursa.
The Ottomans, a dynasty of over 36 rulers formed by Osman Bey at the beginning of the 14th Century, created an empire stretching from Morocco to Hungary.
The Empire lasted for over 500-years, only ending officially after the Axis-aligned Turks lost the first World War and Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded the modern Republic of Turkey.
Although the city's historians trumpet the fact that Bursa was the first capital of the Ottoman's, its history extends further back. Founded by Prusias, King of Bithynia, the city fell to the Romans who held sway in the region for a number of centuries. It was only, in fact, in 1326 that Osman Bey took the city as his first capital.
Historical sites of interest include the Yesil Turbe or Green Mausoleum which holds the cenotaph of Sultan Mehmet I, father of the great Ottoman conqueror Mehmet II, and the nearby Ethnographical Museum.
Mosques of interest include the Emir Sultan Mosque and the Orhan Gazi Mosques, both built during the Ottoman period while the Ulu Mosque demonstrates the earlier Seljuk style of architecture.
In the Hisar part of the city, one can find Osman Bey's mausoleum alongside that of his son, Orhan Gazi. It was Orhan who captured Bursa. In the Ottoman House Museum in the Muradiye quarter once can witness a recreation of the lives of the Ottoman's. Finally, no visit to Bursa would be complete without indulging in its famous thermal springs.
These can be found in Cekirge, where Ottoman style bathhouses were built over Roman and Byzantine baths, testament to the high regard which both these civilisations had for the springs of Bursa.
Nesting above the city is the 2400-metre high Mount Uludag, the legendary Mount Olympus of Mysia. While there are no historical sights atop the mountain, numerous skiing resorts are testament to the slopes that cater to skiers from Europe and Asia.
These resorts, while being economical when compared with other European skiing destinations, tend not to enjoy the support of many Bursa residents who consider the prices extortionate in the context of costs in the city itself.
In any event there are numerous nature trails up the mountain with varied flora and fauna in evidence.
Bursa cuisine boasts a number of dishes first offered in Turkish people in this city. One such offering is the Iskender Kebab, a pita-based speciality containing strips of beef that have been soaked overnight in a yoghurt and tomato marinate.
The city also offers a number of fish restaurants, providing seafood captured in the nearby village of Mudanya.
Mudanya and Bursa were two of the regions most affected by the devastating earthquake that hit the country in early 1999, measuring 6,7 on the richter scale.
Initial reports indicated over 153 dead and hundreds injured and experts indicated that due to Bursa's geographical position, had the city been as built up as Istanbul, the damage would have far exceeded that.
