Full on Tourist in Istanbul

 Today was full on tourist mode.   We booked a Get Your Guide walking tour of three of the major Istanbul landmarks - The Blue Mosque; the Basillica Cistern and Hagia Sophia.    While the tour was only 3.5 hours, it was really a full day as it was fast paced and full of information and wonderful.

We started with the Blue Mosque.  Correctly named Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Camii in Turkish), is an Ottoman-era mosque located in the old city of Istanbul.  It was constructed in the 17th century during the rule of Ahmed as a mosque, and is still very much used as a mosque today.  Today was a celebration day…which we could not specifically identify what for…some said ‘Salvation of Istanbul’ others seemed t say celebration of conquering of Istanbul.  It did not seem to be a holiday as schools were still in attendance and all the surrounding shops were open.  However, there were lots of people and our guide indicated that there were longer queues than normal.  It is a Sunni mosque. 

Us in the forecourt of the Blue Mosque

It seems with all things I’ve visited in the last few years, the Blue Mosque was undergoing some renovation work - scaffolding on the outside and portions blocked from view.  The pic above is actually one from Wikipedia, as it was fairly difficult to get a good long distant view.    

We quad for over 40 mins to get through security and into the mosque.  Wearing head scarves and removing shoes at appropriate times, we were allowed inside to view the domes and the most gorgeous display of blue ceramic tiles that line the walls - and hence the name Blue Mosque.  It was a magical experience.

Next stop was the Basilica Cistern.   A subterranean water harvest and storage spaced that dates back to 6th century.  It was built by slaves and is extraordinary…the sheer size of the excavations that was required, the lining with pavement bricks, building walls, the columns and the domes and not to mention the aqueducts that were to fill it and to direct water from it in later years (after slaves carried water ).  It holds little water probably about 50 cms - enough to create a water ripple and reflection of the lights that are located under the walkway and illuminate the columns.   There are a couple of upside down medusa heads at the base of a couple of columns…our guide said it was slaves appeasing the pagan worshipers (who were in the minority, if not hidden).  Other pieces I’ve read were that the Medussa heads came from other buildings and were reused.  They are thought to have been placed upside down to avoid the gorgon gaze of Medussa’s eyes!   It has lied in a state of poor repair for centuries, but was recently renovated and is quite spectacular.  The lighting shows it romantically and there are occasional art pieces placed in the water.  I could easily imagine a sculputues by the sea type exhibition which would be stunning…lighting and water reflection could be used to great effect….that said, I am not a PR/Event person anymore!

Basillica Cistern

Medusa…but so you can’t make eye contact

Some of the art strategically placed

The third stop on our tour was the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque.  I had heard of it as the AyaSofia…which apparently is not its correct name in current times.   Built in AD 537 in the Eastern Roman Empire times, it has representation of three religions - Pagan, Christian, Islam.   Credit where credit is due, the fact they as the next inhabitants took on the building they allowed the keeping of elements and didn’t just destroy as many others would.  we saw the marble pagan pillars, the Christian frescoes and the Islamic elements so beautifully co-existing in this 1500 year old building.  Security was extremely tight so it was best to keep moving, however after our guided tour we took time to take in the magnificence of the building and managed to just people watch from the balcony.  It was really interesting to see worshippers simply relaxing in the space - groups of women sitting in a circle chatting; a father laying with his wife and child sitting near; groups of men standing and chatting - it was really interesting to see the space transform from the prayer time to non-prayer time and see the community use.  

Mary, Jesus and Joseph…Jesus has 3d eyes that follow you

Mary is covered so she is unseen from the prayer area as there are no icons allowed in Islam.

At the end of the day, we were exhausted to so back to our room for a cup of tea and rest before heading out to a local sidewalk restaurant for dinner - A yoghurt and tomato salsa style mezzo plate with hot fresh bread; Haloumi Salad and and Ali Nazik (Smoked eggplant with lamb) and of course finishing with Turkish tea and baklava!