Today’s tour took up where yesterday’s left off. It was an amazing all day tour. There are some key places to visit in this city, and this tour covered them.
Our first stop was the famous Hagia Sofia or St. Sophia Church built during Emperor Justinian’s reign in 537 AD. 
It is easily identified by its large dome and four minarets. Justinian was determined to build the world’s most magnificent church. It took thousands of workers and more than five years to complete the massive structure. The unsupported domes have withstood centuries of earthquake and war, and while they have been repaired, they have never fallen. At that time, St. Sophia’s dome was the the largest in the world and it remained the greatest church in Christendom for centuries. After several conquests, it was converted into a mosque and later fell into disrepair. In the 1900s its magnificent mosaics were uncovered and it was dedicated a Byzantine-Ottoman museum.
Our next stop was the Topkapi Palace, the official residence of Ottoman Sultans, and begun by Sultan Mahmud II in 1459. The palace consists of courts, pavilions, mosques, fountains, a rich Treasury section, and the Harem which was the home of the Sultan and his wives and mistresses (who were foreigners.) 
It is a huge complex, and pictures do not do it justice. I can only include one here - one of the Sultan’s privy chambers inside the Harem, but the luxury everywhere was evident in the smallest details. There are beautiful tiles adorning so many of the walls, and we were told that just one small square tile is worth $200,000 because it cannot be replicated today.
Before leaving the Palace, we were able to walk through the Treasury area where there is an amazing display of beautiful artifacts, jewels, etc. One of the highlights is the 86 carat “Spoonmaker’s diamond.” It has this name because long ago a peasant exchanged the diamond for a spoon.
With all the walking, we were more than ready for lunch at the nearby hotel and restaurant called the Yesil Ev (Green House) for a Turkish cuisine cooked in Ottoman and Turkish styles. These meals always instart with a fresh plate of vegetables followed by a salad. Our entree was a puree of roasted eggplant with cream and cheese (resembled mashed potatoes) with sauteed cubes of lamb in a tomato sauce on top. It was very good. Dessert was a fruit filled pastry.
Near the Blue Mosque, which was our next stop, was the Hippodrome, and was the most important place in the city in ancient times. In the center of the oblong plaza is the Egyptian obelisk and the Serpent Column which are twins to their Roman counterparts. Chariot races used to take place in this area long ago.
Our next stop was the famous Blue Mosque with its 6 minarets. There are 16 balconies on these minarets to honor the 16 sultans of the empire. Both the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque stand out on Istanbul’s horizon with their spires.
Before entering the Mosque, we had to remove our shoes, but did not have to wash and cleanse ourselves as the Muslims who come to pray have to do. Above is an interior view of this beautiful Mosque. It gets its name from 21,403 azure colored tiles on the walls. It was built between 1609 and 1616 for Ahmet I who was only 14 years old when he ordered an Islamic counterpart to Hagia Sofia. Our guide gave us lots of background information about being a Muslim.
Our final stop of the day was to the Grand Bazaar, the largest covered market in Istanbul, for some shopping and an optional carpet demonstration. There are over 3,000 shops in this market!
It was a long day, but we stayed up to watch our ship leave at 11 p.m. to see the lights along the Bosporus. We had seen the banks yesterday during the day, but the bridge was lit up at night, as were many other buildings. We were headed into the Black Sea for our next ports of call.
No comments:
Post a Comment