Mosques of Istanbul

As you may know Turkey does have a prominent Islamic population so you do not see churches but mosques around. Now, let me just say mosques are some of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. On our day leaving Istanbul I looked back out to the city with the rising sun bursting through it causing all the mosques and their minarets to just become black outlines with yellow and orange light flooding the area around them. It was incredible something that you would see on a post card and say they had edited it to look that way, but it was real life instead.

From the balcony of our hotel you could see the Blue Mosques also known as the Sultan Ahmed to the local populations. It was incredible and to hear the call of pray was so interesting because it was something which was so foreign to me, I had never heard it before. I thought it sounded lovely and it never woke me up at 5AM so I did not have a problem with being so close to the mosque:) The Blue Mosque is called the Blue Mosque because when you go inside it is covered in this blue design on tiles and what is so interesting is they have never been able to replicate the blue which is on the tiles and it is beautiful something which you cannot even describe. Also when you go into the Blue Mosque you must remove your shoes but the carpet which covers the entire floor is one of the softest carpets I have stepped on!

We also visited the Hagia Sophia Mosque which is just across this little park area from the Blue Mosque. What is so interesting about the Hagia Sophia is that it is both an orthodox basilica and a mosque. Before it was turned into a mosque it was an orthodox basilica so it has an interesting combination of design and art work which has been covered then reviled since the Hagia Sophia is now a museum. The Hagia Sophia was really, really cold though I could never imagine going to church or going to pray for hours with it being so cold in there. I know that is was so cold because it is made of pure stone but I would have enjoyed old school going the church.

Anyway I suggest you go to Istanbul it is so beautiful and amazingly fantastic!