September 25, 2016
Today is the first full day in Istanbul with Uniworld. Our “included” tour is of the Blue Mosque and the Ayasofya. Both are mosques, one is still used as a mosque for worship (Blue Mosque) and one is a museum.
Istanbul’s imperial Mosque of Sultan Ahmet I (Sultan Ahmet Camii), facing the Hippodrome in the center of Old Istanbul is one of the top sights in this historic city and is a fine example of Istanbul's wonderful imperial Ottoman mosques. The mosque (built 1603-17) is the masterwork of Ottoman architect Sedefkâr Mehmet Aga. It's built on the site of the Great Palace of Byzantium, on the southeastern side of the Hippodrome. It has six spiral towers called minarets. The minarets are what the clerics climbed to do the call for prayer. Today the call to prayer is still live, but it is done over loud speakers.
Our guide told us that when the Blue Mosque was first built it was the only mosque with 4 minarets, but the Sultan wanted it to be the greatest mosque so he had two more added so it would be “superior” to Ayasofya. Most mosques have one minaret but apparently the number increases with the importance of who had it built.
The Mosque is quite fascinating. Women cannot have bare shoulders, no skirts above the knee, no leggings and we have to cover our heads. Since I had read the requirements before I left the states, I had everything I needed, but for those who came unprepared, they provided (I think free of charge) scarves for the head and what they called a “skirt” which really was more like a big house dress that covered pretty much everything from neck to ankles.
Since I had never been to a mosque before I didn’t know what to expect. As you approach, there is a long line of water spickets with cement stools in front of them. This is where people come to wash before prayer. Men on one side, women on the other but never together. It was interesting to watch, some sat and washed slowly and diligently. Others did a quick wash and continued on to prayer.
Once inside, it is a big open area in the center where men can kneel to pray. Interesting that the carpet had parallel panels so when men kneel to pray, they are in a straight line. The reason I say men is because again there are separate areas for women to pray. We (women) were also told not to make eye contact with men because to them we were not equal therefore not “worthy” of a return look. That evoked quite a commentary from the Aussie women. I just kept quiet but inside I was thinking “you go girls!” I find it so fascinating that this attitude can continue in today’s society and I also find it fascinating that they think they could ever over take the US – they would have to get past American women and that alone should be incredibly intimidating.
There is a long stair way to the “pulpit” where prayers are lead. If there is to be a “sermon”, the cleric stops on the top stair and does not enter what looks very similar to a Bishop’s chair. On that step, they turn and face those there to pray and speaks. From the “bishop’s chair” they only lead prayer.
From the mosque we went to the Ayasofya (sounds like Eye of Sophia). Called Hagia Sophia in Greek, Sancta Sophia in Latin, Ayasofya in Turkish, it was built in 537 AD on the site of Byzantium's acropolis by Emperor Justinian (527-65 AD). The Blue Mosque, which we visited first, was built about 1,000 years after the Ayasofya. He built the Ayasofya to outdo Julia Anitzia, scion of the line of Theodosian emperors, who commissioned the Church of St Polyeuchtos (also in Istanbul but destroyed by an earthquake). She commissioned her church to symbolize her wealth, power and legitimate claim to the throne of Byzantium. So apparently Justinian had to out-build her to establish his own legitimacy. Seems to be a common theme – one Sultan or King or Emperor building something bigger than someone else to prove he/she is wealthier and more powerful than anyone else.
Ayasofya remained the largest church ever built until St Peter’s Basilica was constructed in Rome a 1000 years later. Since it was one of the world's most impressive buildings, Mehmet the Conqueror proclaimed it a mosque soon after his conquest of the city from the Byzantines in 1453. It served as Istanbul's most revered mosque until 1935 when Atatürk, recognizing its world-historical significance, had it proclaimed a museum, as it is now. Because it was a museum we did not have to cover our heads, shoulders or legs.
Even with it being under construction (restoration) it was impressive inside. Again lots of marble on the floor and ornate chandeliers paintings.
When we were done at the two mosques, we continued on to the Spice Market. The traffic was so crazy we gave up on our bus, hiked across a parking area (only almost got run over by buses twice) and through an underpass to get to the spice market. It was in a big building and reminded me of an indoor flea market. There was every kind of spice you could imagine but also all kinds of little shops. Just like in the Mercado in Mexico, all the shop keeps were stopping you “Madam, Madam” and they tried to sell you something. I ran across this very nice young man who didn’t harass me. I told him I’d be back and he was surprised when I really did return. Because he was so nice, I bought a bunch and the more I bought, the more the price went down. I suppose I could have haggled to get the price down more, but to be honest, it seemed like such a steal at the prices he had marked I just went with his discounts and was very pleased. I told him the reason I came back and spent so much was because he was so nice and didn’t harass me. Over all it was great fun. Tomorrow is the grand bazar - curious to see how that is.
We returned to the hotel for lunch. I went to lunch with two ladies from Australia, Carrie and Suzanne, and we found an open air coffee shop where for a mere 13 Turkish lira (about 4 dollars) I had a meatball sandwich, fries and a soda.
The afternoon was free time or we could take the Bosphorus cruise, which went up one side of the strait and back. That is what I chose to do.
Istanbul is split by the Bosphorus Strait. One side is the European Continent, the other is the Asian Continent. We cruised up the European side. One of the interesting sites was a castle that mimicked Versailles. Apparently the sultan had gone to Europe and saw the beautiful castle and wanted his own. So he had one built. There was a hall for meetings, a hall for living and a hall for wives, of which he had 18. Just beautiful and expansive it is right on the water. The European side of the strait shows an obvious European influence. As we turned and came back along the Asian side, it was not so overtly Asian, but it appeared to more prosperous than the European side. We were about an hour and a half on the water and one of the things I found most fascinating were all the cargo ships. It is a “one way” at a time strait, so when designated ships can only sail to the Black Sea, then the designation changes and they can only sail to the Sea of Marmara. We had four or five pass us sailing from the Black Sea side to the Sea of Marmara. They were just huge and they were moving at a pretty good clip. Some of the folks with us said they were sailing empty because they were so high in the water and moving so fast.
Tomorrow the palace and the grand bazar
Today is the first full day in Istanbul with Uniworld. Our “included” tour is of the Blue Mosque and the Ayasofya. Both are mosques, one is still used as a mosque for worship (Blue Mosque) and one is a museum.
Istanbul’s imperial Mosque of Sultan Ahmet I (Sultan Ahmet Camii), facing the Hippodrome in the center of Old Istanbul is one of the top sights in this historic city and is a fine example of Istanbul's wonderful imperial Ottoman mosques. The mosque (built 1603-17) is the masterwork of Ottoman architect Sedefkâr Mehmet Aga. It's built on the site of the Great Palace of Byzantium, on the southeastern side of the Hippodrome. It has six spiral towers called minarets. The minarets are what the clerics climbed to do the call for prayer. Today the call to prayer is still live, but it is done over loud speakers.
Our guide told us that when the Blue Mosque was first built it was the only mosque with 4 minarets, but the Sultan wanted it to be the greatest mosque so he had two more added so it would be “superior” to Ayasofya. Most mosques have one minaret but apparently the number increases with the importance of who had it built.
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| Blue Mosque. |
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| Our Group. The two ladies in front are Suzanne and Carrie from Australia |
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| Blue Mosque |
The Mosque is quite fascinating. Women cannot have bare shoulders, no skirts above the knee, no leggings and we have to cover our heads. Since I had read the requirements before I left the states, I had everything I needed, but for those who came unprepared, they provided (I think free of charge) scarves for the head and what they called a “skirt” which really was more like a big house dress that covered pretty much everything from neck to ankles.
Since I had never been to a mosque before I didn’t know what to expect. As you approach, there is a long line of water spickets with cement stools in front of them. This is where people come to wash before prayer. Men on one side, women on the other but never together. It was interesting to watch, some sat and washed slowly and diligently. Others did a quick wash and continued on to prayer.
Once inside, it is a big open area in the center where men can kneel to pray. Interesting that the carpet had parallel panels so when men kneel to pray, they are in a straight line. The reason I say men is because again there are separate areas for women to pray. We (women) were also told not to make eye contact with men because to them we were not equal therefore not “worthy” of a return look. That evoked quite a commentary from the Aussie women. I just kept quiet but inside I was thinking “you go girls!” I find it so fascinating that this attitude can continue in today’s society and I also find it fascinating that they think they could ever over take the US – they would have to get past American women and that alone should be incredibly intimidating.
There is a long stair way to the “pulpit” where prayers are lead. If there is to be a “sermon”, the cleric stops on the top stair and does not enter what looks very similar to a Bishop’s chair. On that step, they turn and face those there to pray and speaks. From the “bishop’s chair” they only lead prayer.
From the mosque we went to the Ayasofya (sounds like Eye of Sophia). Called Hagia Sophia in Greek, Sancta Sophia in Latin, Ayasofya in Turkish, it was built in 537 AD on the site of Byzantium's acropolis by Emperor Justinian (527-65 AD). The Blue Mosque, which we visited first, was built about 1,000 years after the Ayasofya. He built the Ayasofya to outdo Julia Anitzia, scion of the line of Theodosian emperors, who commissioned the Church of St Polyeuchtos (also in Istanbul but destroyed by an earthquake). She commissioned her church to symbolize her wealth, power and legitimate claim to the throne of Byzantium. So apparently Justinian had to out-build her to establish his own legitimacy. Seems to be a common theme – one Sultan or King or Emperor building something bigger than someone else to prove he/she is wealthier and more powerful than anyone else.
Ayasofya remained the largest church ever built until St Peter’s Basilica was constructed in Rome a 1000 years later. Since it was one of the world's most impressive buildings, Mehmet the Conqueror proclaimed it a mosque soon after his conquest of the city from the Byzantines in 1453. It served as Istanbul's most revered mosque until 1935 when Atatürk, recognizing its world-historical significance, had it proclaimed a museum, as it is now. Because it was a museum we did not have to cover our heads, shoulders or legs.
Even with it being under construction (restoration) it was impressive inside. Again lots of marble on the floor and ornate chandeliers paintings.
When we were done at the two mosques, we continued on to the Spice Market. The traffic was so crazy we gave up on our bus, hiked across a parking area (only almost got run over by buses twice) and through an underpass to get to the spice market. It was in a big building and reminded me of an indoor flea market. There was every kind of spice you could imagine but also all kinds of little shops. Just like in the Mercado in Mexico, all the shop keeps were stopping you “Madam, Madam” and they tried to sell you something. I ran across this very nice young man who didn’t harass me. I told him I’d be back and he was surprised when I really did return. Because he was so nice, I bought a bunch and the more I bought, the more the price went down. I suppose I could have haggled to get the price down more, but to be honest, it seemed like such a steal at the prices he had marked I just went with his discounts and was very pleased. I told him the reason I came back and spent so much was because he was so nice and didn’t harass me. Over all it was great fun. Tomorrow is the grand bazar - curious to see how that is.
We returned to the hotel for lunch. I went to lunch with two ladies from Australia, Carrie and Suzanne, and we found an open air coffee shop where for a mere 13 Turkish lira (about 4 dollars) I had a meatball sandwich, fries and a soda.
The afternoon was free time or we could take the Bosphorus cruise, which went up one side of the strait and back. That is what I chose to do.
Istanbul is split by the Bosphorus Strait. One side is the European Continent, the other is the Asian Continent. We cruised up the European side. One of the interesting sites was a castle that mimicked Versailles. Apparently the sultan had gone to Europe and saw the beautiful castle and wanted his own. So he had one built. There was a hall for meetings, a hall for living and a hall for wives, of which he had 18. Just beautiful and expansive it is right on the water. The European side of the strait shows an obvious European influence. As we turned and came back along the Asian side, it was not so overtly Asian, but it appeared to more prosperous than the European side. We were about an hour and a half on the water and one of the things I found most fascinating were all the cargo ships. It is a “one way” at a time strait, so when designated ships can only sail to the Black Sea, then the designation changes and they can only sail to the Sea of Marmara. We had four or five pass us sailing from the Black Sea side to the Sea of Marmara. They were just huge and they were moving at a pretty good clip. Some of the folks with us said they were sailing empty because they were so high in the water and moving so fast.
Tomorrow the palace and the grand bazar
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