New Bridge over the Meric River (or Maritza River) in Edirne (Turkey)

A strong king who ruled over the Meriç River made a great celebration for her daughter birthday.  But in the middle of the party the princess was attacked by a big serpent that was gliding through the air. To save the princess, the monarch requested aid from the river god. The river god emerged from the water's surface in an effort to fend off the serpent. The river god was hurt by the serpent but was able to push the snake into the waters of the river with his last strength. The princess was still grasped by the snake. The river god, in response to the king's begging offered himself as his last chance to put down the serpent in the depths and change the river's direction. But as a result of this offering, the river god vanished, and the river was given the name Meriç in his honor.

Legend of the Meric River

Galata Bridge over the Golden Horn in Istanbul (Turkey)

"A person who goes from Fatih to Harbiye via the Galata Bridge set foot in a different civilization and a different culture."

In the novel Fatih-Harbiye

by Peyami Safa

New Bridge crossing the Tigris River in Hasankeyf (Turkey)

The town of Hasankeyf in eastern Turkey faces flooding now that parliament has decided that a controversial dam will go ahead, despite local objections. Turkey launched the Ilisu dam project on the river Tigris in the 1950s, but legal battles tied up work on it until 2006. It foresees the flooding of more than 300 sq km (120 sq m) of land, including nearly 90% of Hasankeyf.
The government says the dam will provide the country with much-needed power generation and improve local irrigation, but critics complain that thousands of years of cultural heritage will be lost....

About Hasankeyf
BBC News, 2nd february 2016

Galata Bridge over the Golden Horn in Istanbul (Turkey)

Hanging around on the Bridge,

Gleefully I watch all of you...

Out there, some of you row backward

Or pick mussels off the buoys;

Some clutch the rudders of barges

Or catch the ropes on the dock,

And the birds in flight, like poems,

And the glittering fish;

Then the ferryboats and floats,

Clouds drifting in the air,

Tugboats with funnels lowered

Glide quickly under the Bridge;

The Galata Bridge

Orhan Veli

Painting of a bridge over the Kagithane River near Istanbul (Turkey)

"If I had only one look to put on the world, it would be on Istanbul."

Alphonse de Lamartine,

French poet

Bosphorus Bridge spanning the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul (Turkey)

...y va el capitán pirata,
cantando alegre en la popa,
Asia a un lado, al otro Europa,
y allá a su frente Estambul;

José de Espronceda

Galata Bridge over the Golden Horn in Istanbul (Turkey)

La corriente del Cuerno de Oro empujaba el caique dulcemente, y el remero sólo tenía que dar débiles paletadas para seguir el viaje. Había desaparecido el sol, los minaretes de Constantinopla cortaban con su blanca línea un cielo suave, teñido de rosa y violeta. Una estrella centelleaba en ese inmenso telón de seda, como un brillante perdido.

Vicente Blasco Ibáñez

Bosphorus Bridge over the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul (Turkey)

"One day they built a bridge over the Bosphorus and when I stepped onto the expanse I saw how much more beautiful it was to see both banks at the same time. I understood that the best is to be a bridge between two shores."

Orhan Pamuk

Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge across the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul (Turkey)

"Either I conquer Istanbul or Istanbul conquers me."

Fatih Sultan Mehmet

Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge across the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul (Turkey)

I am listening to Istanbul, intent, my eyes closed; 
Then suddenly birds fly by,
Flocks of birds, high up, in a hue and cry
While nets are drawn in the fishing grounds
And a woman's feet begin to dabble in the water.
I am listening to Istanbul, intent, my eyes closed.

Orhan Veli