Old Istanbul

Most of the main tourist attractions are located in the older part of the city. Over the last several days we have seen many. One of the oldest, and largest Churches in Europe is the Aya Sofya in the old part of town. While this massıve building served as a church for almost a thousand years before being converted to a mosque. After 500 years as a mosque the building was again converted into a historical monument. The building itself served as a model for mosques built all over the city, including the famed Blue Mosque, so called because the interior is covered with blue tiles. After seeing the inside we are lunch at a cafe wıth terrace seating which offered a fantastic view of the dome and minarets.


Istanbul is also full of amazing secular buildings such as Ottoman Palaces. We visited one which remined me of Herst Castle in how every inch was decorated with gerogeus ceramic tile, marble, and gold inlay. The rooms contaıned the treasures of the empire including an 82 carat diamond originally cut for a ring!