Sirkeci

Sirkeci railway station in Istanbul was the eastern terminus of the famous Orient Express that operated between Paris and Istanbul in the period between 1883 and 2009. Designed by German architect August Jasmund, the current terminal building was constructed between 1888 and 1890.

Sirkeci (pronounced [ˈsiɾkedʒi]) is a neighborhood in the Eminönü quarter of the Fatih district in Istanbul, Turkey. In the Byzantine period, the area was known as Prosphorion (Ancient Greek: Προσφόριον).[1]

The neighborhood borders to the north the mouth of the Golden Horn, to the west the neighborhood of Bahçekapı, to the east the Topkapı Palace area, and to the south the Cağaloğlu neighborhood. It hosts the Sirkeci railway station, the easternmost terminus of the Orient Express, a historic long-distance passenger train service in Europe that operated between Paris and Istanbul in the period between 1883 and 2009.[2]

The neighborhood consists mostly of commercial and tourist-oriented buildings. A combination of small shops, hans (larger workshops) and offices intermingle with boutique hotels, traditional Turkish restaurants, Turkish and foreign-language bookstores, and tourist offices.

  1. ^ Müller-Wiener (1977), p. 57
  2. ^ "Orient Express". britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica.