Eminönü

Heavy rain and flooding wreaked havoc in Istanbul, Türkiye's largest city, hitting the north of the province particularly hard on Aug. 27.

The country wrapped up the Eid al-Adha on June 19, with Istanbul witnessing a surge in visitors during the final day.

Although the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice, traditionally spans four days, its extension to nine days has prompted many in the country to make travel plans to the southern coasts.

Crews have managed to extinguish a fire that broke out in a 123-year-old restaurant in Istanbul's famous Spice Bazaar, with no casualties or injuries reported.
The conflagration ignited at approximately 10 a.m. on May 15 in the chimney of the historic Pandeli Restaurant in the bazaar in Eminönü, for reasons yet to be ascertained.

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan began on March 11, as the faithful prepared for a month of dawn-to-dusk fasting in which Muslims will refrain from eating or drinking anything.

Many will strictly observe prayers, read the Quran and donate to charity as they seek to draw closer to God. Family and friends will gather for joyful nightly feasts for the next 30 days.

As the threat of an impending earthquake of magnitude 7 or above looms over Istanbul and with authorities expediting works to make the city earthquake resistant, the iconic Galata Bridge in Istanbul has been closed to traffic for about 40 days to conduct structural strengthening works.

Locals, as well as foreign tourists, are thronging Istanbul's historical sites to make the most out of the long Eid al-Adha holiday, with particularly Eminönü, Hagia Sophia and Eyüpsultan witnessing a huge influx of visitors enjoying their time exploring the places and trying out traditional delicacies.

With only a few days left until Eid al-Fitr, people have started thronging the shops in Istanbul's Eminönü district, famous for traditional Turkish delight and Ottomon-inspired sweets, to do holiday shopping.

As preparations for Ramadan are ongoing, in Eminönü, flamboyant candies, chocolates and Turkish delights have taken their place on the counters.

Torrential rains have lashed several parts of Türkiye, with the metropolitan city of Istanbul bearing the brunt the most as its world-famous Grand Bazaar has filled with flood water.

Following the torrential rain warnings issued for 17 provinces, including Istanbul, the expected rain hit the metropolitan city on Aug. 15.

As severe storms pummel different parts of Turkey, the southern province of Antalya has been the worst-hit province over the last two days out of the 35 cities for which the Turkish State Meteorological Service had issued "yellow" and "orange" warnings.

The heavy car traffic in Turkey's largest city Istanbul prompted Health Minister Fahrettin Koca on late May 8 to issue yet another call for people to strictly adhere to rules to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.