Photos: Tulip Festival in Istanbul
Today I leave Istanbul. Saying goodbye to this beautiful city after 2 weeks of photographing, exploring and running a wonderful workshop.
One of the most exciting things for me to see in Istanbul in the spring is the tulip festival, where an incredible 30 million tulips are planted all over the city in different displays.
As the city awakens from its deep dark winter the celebration of spring, colour and life here is just gorgeous.
Here are some of the photos I took of these beautiful blooms.
The history of the tulip is pretty fascinating. Although you might think of tulips being of Dutch origin, they are actually native to a band of land running between Southern Europe and Central Asia. Tulips were found growing in mountainous areas with temperate climates.
Wikipedia states that – “While tulips had probably been cultivated in Asia from the tenth century, they did not come to the attention of the West until the sixteenth century, when Western diplomats to the Ottoman court observed and reported on them.”
When tulips were cultivated by the Ottoman empire they created such an impact the era is called Lale Devri –the Tulip Era.
They went on to become a highly sought after commodity when imported to Holland, and this created a tulip mania.
Wikipedia also states: “The name “tulip” is thought to be derived from a Persian word for turban, which it may have been thought to resemble.”
Here is a great little video showing some of the magnificent blooms around Istanbul.
Video: Istanbul Tulip Festival
Happy photographing,
Anthony and Diana