2geonomads

Sunday 3rd June 2012

Too jaded from travel the previous evening to realize what a great location this hotel has but we open the blinds to a magnificent view of the Haghia Sofia ( church, mosque of museum? ).
Breakfast passable but hotel overall of the highest order.
Head off towards Hagia Sofia but in view of lengthy queues decide to visit first the Basilica Understand Cistern, built in 532 during the time of Justinian to mainly satisfy the needs of the Royal Palace. All in all a beautiful piece of Byzantine engineering.
On to the Haghia Sofiats, built 537 under Emperor Justinian, and considered one the greatest places of worship in the world.
There really aren’t enough superlatives to describe this building and the first sight of the nave is just awe-inspiring. Probably that’s what inspired the term ” sitting,contemplating your nave “!

Really take some time to fully appreciate this masterpiece which stands out even in this city of so many memorable sights.
Move on to the world-famous Blue Mosque, Sultan Ahmet’s 17th century ” up yours” response to the Haghia Sofia. Were it not for the HS it would be Istanbul’ s most spectacular building.

Next stop is the Hippodrome, originally a Roman chariot race- track stadium capable of holding 100,000 spectators. Now an open rectangular area connecting the HG with the Blue Mosque.
There are 3 obelisks in the square, the largest being that of Constantine, the slightly smaller Egyptian and finally the very small Serpent Column , the top of which was knocked off by a drunken Polish nobleman in the 18th century ( maybe the sight of the Phalllic symbols had brought on him a moment of frustration and inadequacy! )
Our final port of call for the day is the Istanbul Archaelogical Museum, which exceeds all expectations, the only disappointment is our being shunted out of the building just after 6.30 although the official closing time is 7.00. Highlight of the visit is seeing parts of the 13th century BC Kadesh Treaty, the first written peace treaty in world history.

Retire to Hotel Celal Sultan for a lovely dinner on the fifth floor with an unforgettable view of the floodlit Haghia and Blue Mosque.
Cheers

The Obese Ferret