Sultan Ahmet Camii (Blue Mosque)

The Blue Mosque is one of the most prominent landmarks of Istanbul, especially when viewed from the First Hill or from the Asian shore of the Sea of Marmara. It is very impressive with its beautiful domes and semidomes, nice courtyards and six slender minarets.
The Blue Mosque was founded by Sultan Ahmet I. He ordered Architect Mehmed Aga to begin constuction in 1609 and the whole complex was completed in 1616. The location of the mosque is just opposite of the splendid Church of Hagia Sophia as it is trying to compete with it. That is actually true because Architect Mehmed wanted to construct a bigger dome then Hagia Sophia's but he could not succeed. Instead, he made the mosque splendid by the perfect proportion of domes and semidomes as well as the splendid minarets. There is an interesting story of the mosque; according to it, Sultan Ahmet I wanted to have a minaret made of gold which is "altin" in Turkish. The architect misunderstood him as "alti" which means "six" in English. However, when the architect was shivering as "am I going to be beheaded?", the Sultan Ahmed I liked the minarets so much. Prior to that time, no sultan had a mosque with 6 minarets.
The mosque covers a large area, there's a big courtyard where some ablution fountains are located. These ablution fountains are for people who are getting prepared to pray in the mosque. Before praying, one should wash his/her face, arms, neck and feet as well as mouth and nose. This is a basic cleaning. There are beautiful marble steps right in the middle of the courtyard, leading to the main courtyard. The marble courtyard is lovely, its marble comes from the Island of Marmara (the Turkish word for marble ,"Mermer" comes from Marmara). There is a fountain in the middle which is used as decorative purposes. There is a portal on the left hand side which is entrance for the local people. Upon turning to the left, one comes to the main entrance of the mosque. The shoes must be taken off and put into plastic bags.
Upon the entrance to the mosque, one should pay attention to the gate. The gate is a typical Seljuk- Turkish wooden work with a geometrical design in its center. The star symbolizes the Turkish Generation and very typical of early 11-12th C Turkish Art. After the gate, one meets the breathtaking interior of the mosque with its chandelliers and blue tiles. The mosque is all surrounded by beautiful 17C Iznik tiles which give its name to the Blue Mosque. It is all carpeted with prayer rugs because people must put their forehead on the floor and therefore the floor should be soft and clean.
The building is nearly a square and covered with a dome of 23.5 m.(77 feet) in diameter and 43m(140 feet) high. There are four colossal standing colums of 5m. in diameter(16.3 feet) which give the basic support to the building. The mosque has 260 windows which let the sunlight diffuse into the building quite nicely. They were filled with stained-glass in early 17C but they were restored later. The pulpit and nave is worth seeing, made of marble and original. The Imam(priest) goes on the pulpit every Friday on the sacred day of the Muslims but he never climbs to the very top as a respect to Prophet Muhammed. Everybody should turn their face to the south when praying, because Mecca( Saudi Arabia) is located in South.

Ayasofya (Hagia Sofia)

The Aya Sofia is the one image that flashes before our eyes when someone mentions the city of Istanbul. It is quite simply and with considerable justification, one of the most recognized buildings in the world. It was built over the ruins of two older churches in 537 by Justinian the Great who then ruled the Byzantine Empire. It was the largest place of worship in Christiandom until the completion of St. Peter's in Rome one thousand years later. The Aya Sofia was a cathedral until the Turkish conquest of Constaninople in 1453 when it was turned into a mosque. The Moslems built four minerats at the corners of building at this time. Ataturk turned the mosque into a museum in 1935. The Aya Sofia is entered through the east entrance where you actually pass some of the remains of the earlier churches. As you pass into the exonarthex which is vaulted outer vestibule before entering the inner vestibule. Here overhead you can see some of the original mosaics from Justinians time. They are quite stunning, designed in various geometric shapes in wonderful colours. From here you pass through the Imperial Gandt and underneath the stupendous dome. The dome is remarkable for its size and the height that it soars over those that behold it. It is 56m high and 31m across. With various mosaics and calligraphic discs(the largest in the Islamic world) spread across the walls and the ceiling, the building becomes quite awe inspiring. I cannot begin to list all of the marvels of this wonderful structure without exhausting myself. However the must-sees include a visit to the first floor where you will find some of the most remarkable mosaics in Christiandom. Most of these are on the southend of the floor in the Empress Zoe Gallery. They date from the 9th and 10th century. It should be noted that the Aya Sofia is justifiably very popular, hence it is very crowded. Wisely I visited first think in the morning. Thankfully I was staying just 300m from the building. Still it became incredibly crowded in no time so be patient when you visit.