ISTANBUL - Tsubakihara Kana, a Japanese tourist who visited Istanbul`s Basilica Cistern on Tuesday, was surprised when applauded by ticket office clerks and other municipality officers as he was the 1,111,111th tourist visiting this historical place in 2007.
This year, Istanbul Municipality decided to give a present to the 1,111,111th tourist who would visit the Basilica Cistern, a gigantic underground water storage chamber which is located at Sultanahmet district of the city.
"Celebration for the 1,000,000th visitor is a very common tradition in the world. But 1,111,111th is different and we thought that it would be the best fit to the spirit and history of Istanbul, a city with seven hills. Each digit of 1,111,111 symbolizes these seven hills," said Nevzat Bayhan, an executive of the municipality.
Bayhan gave a book about Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamit as a present to Japanese tourist Kana, who seemed a little bit shocked.
"I am very happy to be here in Istanbul. This is the most beautiful city I have ever seen," Kana said. Kana will be able to visit historical places in Istanbul for free for one year.
-BASILICA CISTERN-
Basilica Cistern, one of the magnificent historical constructions of Istanbul, is located near southwest of Ayasofya (Hagia Sophia). This huge cistern, which was built in 542 by Justinianus I, a Byzantine Empire, began to be called by the public `the Sinking Palace`.
The underground cistern, which provided water to the grand palace during the Byzantine Empire where the emperors lived, was used for a further while after the conquest of Istanbul by the Ottomans in 1453. The gardens of Topkapy Palace were irrigated with the water from this cistern.
The Basilica Cistern was turned into a museum and opened to visitors by the Istanbul Municipality after restorations it has undergone in recent years.