Aya Sofia old East Roman empire church now converted to a mosque
Istanbul is an amazing city. It is no longer the capital of Turkey but it is still by far the biggest city. It also got all the contras and paradox the rest of Turkey got as well.
Turkey is a country that is mainly based in Asia but wants to be a part of Europe and the west. They got a secular constitution with strict separation of religion and state yet almost everybody is muslin. The country wants to be modern but there are old bazaars and carpets sellers everywhere. Nowhere in Turkey will you find these paradox more to there extreme than in Istanbul the only city in the world which is placed in two continents.
Blue Mosque
Hence I looked forwarded to see a bit of Istanbul just a quick day tour to find out whether or not I would like to come back. One thing I had not thought about at home were the temperature outside. Leaving my nice air coned hotel room I got out in the Turkish summer. Nice sonny and warm. The temperature outside in the late morning was already way above anything we had seen back in Copenhagen for 2 or 3 years - nice.
Strolling around the old town in Istanbul was impressive with a mix of local markets and mosque spread all over. The main thing of course is the two big mosques the Blue Mosque which is one of the most impressive mosques in the world I suppose even without having seen that many mosques and the old Hagia Sophia which used to be a church during the old East Roman empire times.
Casstle in Istanbul
After having visited the mosques it was time to get to the old castle of the Ottoman Empire where the temperature made me decide against any cultural activities indoor instead I just went for the quick look around seeing the garden with a nice view over the Bosporus Straight.
Walking away from the castle back to the other parts of town I started thinking about my nice air conned hotel room with a pleasant temperature. It appeared to be a more appealing option than continued sightseeing. Little did I realize that this stinking hot day would actually be one (perhaps the coolest) of the coldest days for the next five weeks - and this hotel room would be the last time I would see air-condition until I got to Cairo.
Still I made the choice to leave the rest of Istanbul for next time I get there - and there will be a next time just doesn't know when it will be. Then inside a nice air conned room ready to relax and catch up on some sleep from last night.
Hagia Sofia
In the centre of Istanbul you will find a mosque which looks a bit different - it is the Aya Sofia Mosque. The reason it looks a bit different is it was not really constructed to be a mosque. It predates the time of the Ottoman conquerors by several centuries - and it used to serve as the main church of the Byzantine Empire.
The first church built at the spot of the current Aya Sofia were built in 360 shortly after Constantin the Great had transformed the Roman empire into a Christian empire. Then you needed a church in the capital city of the eastern Roman Empire and you built the first church. Later this church was replaced by another church and in 532 a third church which is the present day Aya Sofia.
This church served as the main church of Constantinople until the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453. After the fall of the last Christian bastion in this part of the world the old church were converted into a mosque. And the Aya Sofia has served as one of the main mosque of Constantinople and Istanbul ever since this.
Today you can go a visit the mosque and see a small museum with exhibitions.
The Blue Mosque
Around the world you will find several mosque with the name Blue Mosque - but possibly the most impressive of all the worlds blue mosque's you will find in Istanbul. The giant Blue Mosque got its name from the blue tiles on the walls of the interior of the mosque. The mosque is built in the central part of Istanbul which at the time of the construction was the capital of the giant Ottoman Empire. The mosque is actually very close to the other great mosque in Istanbul the Hagia Sofia.
When you are approaching the mosque from the outside you know you are heading in the right direction when you see all the giant minarets surrounding the main room of the mosque. There are four close to the mosque and another four a bit further away from the central room.
To get inside you need to dress conservatively - which means long pants for men and preferably headscarf for women. If you should get to the mosque without this you can borrow them at the site and get a nice blue piece of cloth to use for the visit. Especially the men in shorts look very interesting with the blue cloth around their waist and legs.
The main room is a giant open room where the roof is held by four enormous pillars in the centre of the room. Except of this you will see the usual interior of a mosque with a big open area for prayers and a special woman's section in the back of the mosque with the imam leading the prayer up in front.
The Blue Mosque is a part of the UNESCO world heritage area of historic Istanbul.
