Istanbul, first footsteps in Asia
Istanbul, first footsteps in Asia
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| View of the Blue Mosque from the Hagia Sophia |
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| The Domed Roof of the Hagia Sophia |
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| The View from the Boat |
We finally arrived at the port of Eminonu and were thrust into busy and crowded streets. We were met with the divisive aroma of grilling fish and the smell of smoky roasting sweetcorn and chestnuts filled the air. All around us people were milling around and the weather was uncomfortably hot. We pushed through the crowds and ended up going down a very crammed and noisy underpass before surfacing on the far side of the street, trying to make sure that we avoided the crowds campaigning for the upcoming election, it was very noisy. Soon enough we had found the road we needed and pushed on heavy laden with backpacks towards our accommodation, the meaty aroma of kebabs filling the air. Finally we were at our accommodation and reveled in the coolness of the air-con, it truly is a wonderful invention.
The Hagia Sophia
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| The Hagia Sophia |
We only had two days to enjoy Istanbul so we decided that our first day would consist of the Old Town portion and our second day would consist of going to see the Asian side. The Hagia Sophia was our first stop on this journey.
Originaly built as a church by the Emperor Constantine there was quite a lot of trouble including several times that the building was burned down. Once was even during a Nike riot, it would appear that the company has a long and troubled history, who knew that the shoe manufacturers used to raise buildings to the ground.
The building on the site now is the third incarnation of the Hagia Sophia, the building itself has gone through several resurrections where at one time or another it has been a church, a mosque and most recently a museum. This is somewhat evident from the outside as there is a bit of a mishmash or architecture and structure. We queued in the baking sun to get in and were finally greeted with the cool air of the interior.
The building itself is absolutely stunning and well worth the fame that it has received, it is an eclectic mix of tourism, Christianity and Islam. The high domed roof houses Arabic writing denoting it's most recent life as a mosque but there are also many mosaics from it's era as a church. It was a little uncertain from merely looking around but it does look as if a majority of the church would have been covered in mosaic, one can only imagine the time it must have taken to decorate.
The Basilica Cistern
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| Medusa Head in Basilica Cistern |
Made famous by Dan Browns most recent novel, the Basilica Cistern a huge water vault located underneath the city itself, constructed by Justinian the first it was said to be able to store 80,000 cubic meters of water (this is the same as 80,000 liters). The place is quite intriguing as it contains many rows of columns and was a very welcome break of a hot day. One man we passed by remarked that this place was his favourite in the whole of Istanbul as it 'smelt like culture and architecture.' To be honest with you, I found the place very interesting, however I did find that it smelt more like bathrooms and damp than culture and architecture.
One thing I found particularly interesting was how much Justinian the first had contributed to our trip, his name had come up in many places, perhaps the most obvious was the fortifications in Kotor which was made by him, unfortunately Wikipedia is banned in Turkey (no idea why) but I would love to read all about him when we next can.
A particular intersting part of the Basilica Cistern, so called because it used to have a basilica on top of it. Was that there are two random medusa heads used in some columns at the rear of the Cistern. It was a bit vague as to why, some say a good luck charm, others that it was just some stone that was used. I would imagine the later is true as they are at a strange angle to be used on purpose.
All in all the cistern was interesting and a very welcome break to the outside heat.
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| Basilica Cistern |
Blue Mosque
The Blue Mosque is located at the far end of the Square which contains the Hagia Sophia, the building is impressive to say the least, with a large dome rising in the centre of four smaller domes and six minarets reaching towards the sky it is certainly a dominant feature of the Sultanahmet skyline.
We went through a large courtyard which had many posters explaining the basic regulations and beliefs of Islam, after reading these there was some brief history about the Blue Mosque. Originally built on the site of the Byzantine Emperor's Palace and facing the Hagia Sophia (a prevalent Mosque at the time) It was ordered by Sultan Ahmed I who even came and broke the first sod to start building the Mosque. This was the first Mosque of the empire and was a very impressive statement.
The inside of the Mosque however was a little disappointing to us. It was undergoing some heavy restorations so the impressive central dome was unable to be seen. However from the decoration on the surrounding wall it is obvious that it is an impressive and truly beautiful building.
Despite being faintly blue in colour from the outside, the Blue Mosque receives this name due to the interior's primarily visible colour being blue. Despite disappointment at not being able to see the mosque in all it's glory I do reckon that it is a great place to visit.
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| The Visible Part of the Roof |
The Asian Side
There is not much to do on the Asian side of Istanbul, but it was definitely worth the visit. We headed there today and enjoyed a lovely coffee in a coffee roasters above a warehouse, it was very strong but very nice at the same time. I am however convinced that there was sufficient caffeine in there to let me see sounds.
We then enjoyed a lovely amble around the streets of the districts of Moda and Kadikoy. It is much more laid back than Sultanahmet and there is much less people vying for your attention to buy their wares. We rounded off our trip here by walking back towards the ferry alongside the Bosphorus Strait where we had the pleasure of seeing about 5 dolphins swimming around which was a really lovely moment.
Where next?
Well, tomorrow we have the unenviable joy of taking a 16 hour flight. First we will head to Abu Dhabi where we connect on a flight towards Tokyo. We should arrive there by midday on Monday.
In the meantime you can have a look at some more of our Istanbul photos from Instagram found here
We should then update you again on here in about a week's time.
Until later
Andrew & Olivia
Links to other parts of the world
Links to other parts of the world
- Overview
- European Ecstasy
- Adventures in Asia
- Pacific Paradise
- Instagram - Up to date pictures of where we are
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