Mosque Mosque Bazaar! Tuesday 3rd October

 A morning of mosques 

One of Istanbul’s main attractions is the Hagia Sophia. An enormous mosque built in 537AD. It was originally a church but converted in approximately 1400 to what it is now. It has been a museum for many years but recently opened back up as a place of worship. 

Queues are very long, and it opens at 9am - advise it to get there by 8:45 at the latest. The queue wraps around a courtyard and looks like it will take ages, but they let people in in large batches, if you’re in the first 2/3rds or the s shaped queue, you’ll get in first time. 

Once you’re in, you take off your shoes and pop them in little lockers, and if you’re a girl, cover your head. Take your own scarf if you don’t want to buy one! Inside is beautifully lit and lovely architecture. If you love learning about the history there are plenty of guides around for you to hire- but they are quite pricey. 

If you go to the Hagia Sophia first, be prepared for a long queue at the Blue Mosque! The Blue Mosque is much newer and was built to show off to the rest of the world - it’s six minarets the only place to have six apart from at Mecca. (A lot of the world has now joined this) we went into the min courtyard which was beautiful, but didn’t join the visitor queue for a look inside! 

You could also do the Topkapi palace in the same day as it’s right nearby - but not on a Tuesday. It’s closed on Tuesdays! 

Cistern Basilica 

The Cistern Basilica is a large, underground cistern where Istanbul used to store its water many years ago. It was forgotten about, but some families made wells in their houses and managed to fish from their front rooms - this soon led them to try and discover what was underneath. 

They drained the cistern apart from about a foot of water, and out metal walkways all around it. They have popped in a few statues and some are features already there, but then they have used clever lighting to give it a great atmosphere. It’s around £15 for 30 minutes, but well worth it.

Walking tour and bazaar 

We followed the lonely planet recommended walking tour around the rest of that part of the city, through or past a couple of smaller mosques, and found a small place for lunch where I ate Pide (Turkish pizza) and Ben had a kebab. 

We then ended up walking through the Arasta Bazaar. We had our first taste of proper Turkish delight (none of the weird rose flavoured jelly we are used to in the UK) and some baklava. 

On return to the hotel for a rest we tried our 30 minutes free in the spa - sauna, steam room and ice bath! It was lovely. We then sat by the pool for a bit - Ben braved the cold water for a swim! The sister hotel was rumoured to have great views from their rooftop terrace and so we planned to go there for an appetiser before dinner. 

We mentioned to the hotel staff we were going and they chauffeured us in their electric vehicle - blaring music and all! It was hilarious. Five stories up, we had beautiful views of the blue mosque, Hagia Sophia and the Galata bridge - all lit up in lights! It was very beautiful. 

We walked back through the Arasta Bazaar where Ben had (another) kebab and I found a sweet dessert that was like chopped up fried filo, soaked in honey, with a layer of melted cheese between it. Bizarre but good!