Turkiye Day 1 - Istanbul - Blue Mosque

If you have not done so, read the previous related entry here.

The Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia were all within walking distance. Unfortunately, we would only be visiting the Blue Mosque today and Hagia Sophia when we get back to Istanbul again at the end of the trip. The Blue Mosque was built in the 17th Century and when completed was (I am not sure if it still is) the only mosque in the world to feature 6 minarets. A minaret is basically a tower whereby someone used to stand to summon people for prayer. Nowadays they are wired with loud speakers. The Blue Mosque is still fully operational, and it is closed to tourists five times a day for prayers. As I walked towards the Blue Mosque I felt I was in the middle of something -- the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia were facing off each other.

The Blue Mosque shot from the ground in front. You can't see but there are lots of people below the picture line. Only 4 minarets shown, actual structure is a rectangle with 2 more minarets to the right.


The Hagia Sophia with 4 minarets. Some say that the Blue Mosque was built as a challenge to it. My local tour guide thought it might be a possibility too. But I say they are 1000 years too late.

We had to enter the Blue Mosque from the back and come out the front. Before reaching the back we passed the courtyard. Upon arrival we took off our shoes and put them into readily provided plastic bags and went in.

Courtyard of the Blue Mosque


The main dome of the Mosque. Picture is a little blur, night shot without a stable stand for mini-tripod due to the crowd.


Dome structures. The main dome is supported by 4 half-domes that are in turn supported by 3 quater-domes.


Domes to the pillar supports.


The front where the prayer leader will be.


Taps outside for ablution.

After visiting the Blue Mosque it was time for lunch. We took a short walk along the cobbled streets of the old part of the city. Most of the houses there were protected, they cannot be demolished. On the way we passed by an Obelisk that I suspect might have something to do with the silver model seen earlier in the silverware section of Topkapi palace. If that is true then this Obelisk might be older than any structure here since it is from Egypt. But looking at the condition it is probably a replica.

Old houses


Obelisk


Side of Blue Mosque


Lunch Place!


Lunch! Some butter rice (all rice here seems to be buttered), baked chicken (something like tandoori style), and a piece from an originally super big bread that is like a huge naan. There was soup before this but it was tasteless.

After lunch, we were going to depart Istanbul for Bursa -- the first area conquered by the Ottomans in these lands. To get there our bus was going to drive to a vehicle ferry and we will be ferried across the Bosphorus into Asia. So much for being in Europe for half a day.

Cobbled Street


Tram station, trams are the mass transit in this part of the city.


Some old walls


Bus parked on the ferry, we headed upstairs to the cafe


Our first turkish tea. It is basically like Lipton tea. In fact Lipton grows tea in Turkey, so it is Lipton tea. On a side note, they do not drink apple tea. My guide says they make it because the tourists seem to love it.


Onwards to Asia!

After reaching Asia and almost two hours by coach we reached our first hotel at Bursa. It is supposed to be our only 5-star hotel. Rather nice, we had a good rest and were ready to see the sights of Bursa the following day.

Found a nice animated GIF showing the extent of the Ottoman Empire expansion from wikipedia. The first green area at the start is Bursa.

View the next related post here

Return to the trip index here.

Turkiye Day 1 - Istanbul - Topkapi Palace

Turkey Trip Index

Day 1: Istanbul - Topkapi Palace
Day 1: Istanbul - Blue Mosque
Day 2: Bursa
Day 3: Ephesus
Day 3 & 4: Pamukkale
Day 5: Cappadocia Part 1
Day 5: Cappadocia Part 2
Day 6: Cappadocia, Ankara, Bolu
Day 7: Istanbul - Hagia Sophia & Belly Dancing
Day 8: Istanbul - Bosphorus Cruise

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I embarked for a trip to Turkey about a fortnight ago with my partner. As promised, this is the first in a series of the trip details. Most of the information provided is as heard from our local tour guide who is a very capable and friendly person.

Touched down at the airport in Istanbul after a long overnight flight (approximately 10.5 hours). The flight was on Turkish Airlines and it was rather uncomfortable. The flight staff seemed exceptionally fierce in-flight. They almost never smiled. However what was worse were the seats. Total lack of room and cushion. I am normally not very picky with seats and I have flown with many carriers. This has got to be my worst experience so far with my legs and buttocks going numb quite often. Grouses aside, we were introduced to our local guide and apparently we had to wait 45mins for some members of the tour group that were on a different flight. After the wait, stepping out of the airport, we were greeted by the cool air. Nice. Finally, I am in Europe for the first time! Subsequently, we headed to our first destination -- Topkapi Palace.

Topkapi Palace was home to the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, up to right before the lands became the Republic of Turkey in 1923. During the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul was the Capital of the Empire. Before the Ottomans, it was the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire called Constantinople. That is the short form of Constatinopolis which means Constantine's City. Before that the city was known as Byzantium. Further before that, I currently have no idea. In any case we are in the old part of the city where many old things are. On the way to Topkapi Palace, we passed some sights.

The back of the Blue Mosque, restoration going on.


The front of the Blue Mosque with its 6 minarets.

After getting off the bus we walked up to the first gate of Topkapi Palace, right beside Hagia Sophia Museum. More about it will come later, for now it suffice to note that it was built 1000 years before the Blue Mosque and was the largest Church in the world.

Side of Hagia Sophia with shops.


A Minaret of Hagia Sophia. It was converted to a Mosque when the Ottomans came.


The first gate of Topkapi Palace

Having arrived at Topkapi Palace we walked in. The nice gardens of the palace greeted us.Ottomans were the the first people to plant tulips. In fact, up to a million tulips were planted all over Istanbul this year. Being in late spring, they are in full bloom.

Orange tulips


Red tulips


Yellow tulips


Second Gate


Ceiling of the Second Gate


More tulips in the gardens beyond the second gate

Beyond the second gate there was the Harem, the armory, kitchen and the justice tower. Commoners would not pass the third (final) gate except for high ranking officials and foreign diplomats. We started by exploring the palace kitchen area that now houses artifacts.

Chimneys of the palace kitchens


Chimney from the inside


Write-up about the Silk Road, the Ottoman Empire was the western end of the Silk Road.


Chinese porceline, not very interesting


More indigenious stuff, more interesting


Elaborate silver vase


Silver box containing writing materials


Silver tea set


Silver model of an ancient Egyptian obelisk, gift by the Armenian patriach.

Coming out of the kitchen, the Justice tower was right opposite where the Sultan used to stand to see someone executed. Next, we entered the armory followed by the final gate of the palace.

Tree that symbolized the Ottoman Empire. I forgot the name


Justice Tower


Swords


Pistols, in the early part of the Ottoman Empire, they were very advanced with gunpowder compared to the Europeans.


Rifles


Samurai Armor, a gift from the Japanese


The final gate. The throne room lies within. The Ottoman Army will march here to obtain the Standard from the Sultan before heading to war. We entered.


More beautiful flowers


The throne room. The Sultan sat on the throne that looks like a bed.


The Summer Pavilion has some other uses...


In the Summer Pavilion...


The view of Asia from the palace.

Unfortunately, almost all of the exhibits beyond the final gate do not allow photography. These exhibits were mainly very expensive items, such as: the jewels of the palace, gifts, and expensive garments. That is the end of the Topkapi Palace visit. Next up, we headed to the Blue Mosque.

Read about the next part here.