Istanbul: Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern
homer| September 16, 2025 3:59 amToday’s adventures consist of the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and Basilica Cistern. Lots of rich history, culture and art at each site.
Blue Mosque
Our guide gave us a deep dive into the history of the Blue Mosque. You can read about some of it here.
The chain in the entrance below is designed to get people to bow and show reverence as you enter the mosque.
There are attire requirements in order to enter. Women must wear head scarves and no sleeveless shirts or shorts/skirts allowed.
The interior is amazing with multiple layers of domes, stained glass panes, and giant columns supporting the structure.
The columns are referred to as the ‘elephant’s legs’ and are made of marble.
Blue Mosque courtyard (image below).
Hagia Sophia
Walking distance from the Blue Mosque is Hagia Sophia. The Hagia Sophia mosque also has a rich history dating back to Greek times when it was originally built as a temple to honor the Greek gods. It subsequently became a church then a mosque.
According to our guide, the Statue of Liberty would fit inside this structure which is remarkable considering it was built centuries ago!
The intricate mosaics are made up of thousands of pieces.
Basilica Cistern
The last stop was the Basilica Cistern. From Wikipedia: This cathedral-size cistern is an underground chamber approximately 138 metres (453 ft) by 65 metres (213 ft) – about 9,800 square metres (105,000 sq ft) in area – capable of holding 80,000 cubic metres (2,800,000 cu ft) of water.
Medusa was discovered after restoring the cistern in 1985/87.
It was an amazing day! Best time to go is in the morning as the afternoon sun was a bit too much.
P.S. – There are cats everywhere. They are revered by the people in Turkey and cats are found on mosque grounds, trains, motorcycles, sidewalks, and any other place a cat can lounge around.
