Ottoman Empire by Train

Episode 1: The Whirling Dervishes
Alice Roberts begins her Ottoman adventure by catching the train in Adana, near Syria.

Professor Alice Roberts begins her Ottoman adventure in Adana, near Syria. She explores the architecture of a historic mosque, uncovers the amazing tombs of the Ottoman elite and finds out about the origins of the delicious, sweet treat Turkish delight. She then takes a train across the Taurus Mountains to Konya, where she learns about the culture and religious importance of whirling dervishes.

Episode 2: A Tale of Two Cities
Alice takes a train to Ankara to witness the beginning and end of the Ottoman Empire.

Alice Roberts is on a train to Ankara during the next leg of her Ottoman adventure. She visits the tomb of Ataturk, the founding father of the Republic of Turkey, who saw out the end of the empire. Next, she hops on a train to visit the tomb of Osman, the empire’s founder, in Bursa. Alice witnesses two cities and two historic leaders at either end of the Ottoman Empire, 600 years apart.

Episode 3: Ships in the Night
After spending a week in deepest Turkey, Alice Roberts finally arrives in Istanbul.

After a week in deepest Turkey, Alice Roberts finally arrives in Istanbul to learn about how clever Ottoman tactics were required to wrestle the supposedly impregnable city from the Romans. She learns about the Ottoman’s genius architect and civil engineer Mimar Sinan and haggles with a rug seller in a local bazaar. She then boards a sleeper train to head towards the city of Sofia.

Episode 4: Controlling Europe
Entering The Balkans by sleeper train, Alice Roberts visits Bulgaria’s capital Sofia.

Entering the Eastern European region of The Balkans by sleeper train, Alice Roberts heads towards Bulgaria’s capital city Sofia. She learns how the empire was controlled from Istanbul and how today the city’s landscape and architecture is almost entirely Soviet. In Serbia, she takes the train to Nis to see the shocking Skull Tower, used by the Ottomans to deter rebellion.

Episode 5: Choosing the Wrong Side
Alice Roberts takes a train to the western point of the Ottoman Empire, Budapest.

In the final leg of her epic journey, Alice Roberts takes the train to the western point of the Ottoman Empire, Budapest. She learns how the mighty empire came close to conquering most of Europe before finally coming to an end. In the Romanian city of Timisoara, she undertakes a forensic mission for any Ottoman remnants, believing most things, but not everything, was destroyed.