It was our last day of touring, covering more of the historic district of Istanbul. A short drive led us to the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. It is most commonly known as the Blue Mosque because of the blue-colored tiles inside. It is still an active mosque today. We walked to Topkapi Palace, which was the main residence of the Ottoman sultans for about 400 years. It is now a museum, allowing us to explore. From the treasury to the harem to other buildings, it’s an interesting place to see. I was looking forward to revisiting our next stop: the Istanbul […]

Our day began with a short flight from Antalya to Istanbul, where we’re spending our last two days. Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey with 15 million people. It was the capital of both the Byzantine and Ottoman empires, a time span lasting about 1500 years. It is a city with a rich, deep history overlayed with modern bustle. Our first stop from the airport was the Hagia Sophia, a large church rebuilt by the emperor Justinian in the sixth century. 900 years later the Turks conquered the city and turned the church into a mosque. In 1934 it […]