Istanbul not Constantinople- A city where east meets west

Istanbul is truly an amazing place where cultures colloid together and perfect city for layovers. We had 15 hour layover in Istanbul on our way to Cairo, Egypt and decided to use this time to see some major historical sites of Istanbul. More information on Istanbul Layover can be found in post here and it outlines all your options. We went with option 3 and this is our experience of visiting following places:

• Hippodrome/SultanAahmet Square
• Hagia Sophia: Church, Mosque & Museum 
• Basilica cistern
• Arasat Bazar
• Bosphorus Cruise

Hippodrome/Sultan Ahmet Square

The main attraction in Sultanahmet square is the Obelisk of Theodosius. It has a long history and originates in Aswan of Egypt (Pharoh Thutmose III) before being re-erected in Istanbul by Theodosius. Hippodrome used to be the place where people would gather to watch chariot race and is associated with Constantinople’s days of glory as an imperial capital. The other attraction is the German Fountian at the opposite end of the hippodrome. It was constructed to commemorate the second anniversary of German Emperor Wilhelm II’s visit to Istanbul in 1898 and was built in Germany, then transported piece by piece and assembled in its current site in 1900.

Area around hippodrome is hopping with shops, vendors selling roasted corn on the cob, Turkish simit (Turkish bagel) and a great place to spend people watching.

Hagia Sophia: Church, Mosque & Museum 

There is no other monument more iconic than Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, where 1500 years of Christian and Islamic history can be seen side-by-side. Once the great cathedral of Constantinople and later an imperial mosque of the Ottoman Empire, this center of worship for Christians and Muslims was a museum for few years and now is back to being a active Mosque. Since it is an active mosque right now, you need to have long pants or skirts, and women must cover their heads with a scarf or a hat. Also, as it is mosque covered in carpet, you’ll take your shoes off before entering the mosque (Plan accordingly).

Key sights at Hagia Sophia:

• Church/ Mosque- Imperial gate golden mosaic. It represents the emperor Leo VI bowing down before Christ Pantocrator, giving His blessing and holding in His left hand an open book. The text on the book reads as follows: “Let peace and safety be with you. I am the peace and glorious light of universe” (Photo 4)
• This church was built to face Jerusalem; mosques faced Mecca. When Hagia Sophia became a mosque, they couldn’t move the church, but they could move the focal point of the praying. The prayer niche is just a bit off-center and faces Mecca (Photo 9)
• The Virgin and Child mosaic, 9th century CE, The mosaic is located in the apse semi-dome of Hagia Sophia. In the mosaic Mary is enthroned and she puts her right hand on the shoulder of the Child Christ who is seated in her lap (Photo 10)
• Sultan lodge: This lodge was used by Sultan to join the rituals without being seen by public and it was also to protect the Sultan from possible assassins. The grills of the lodge are carved marble in Turkish rococo style, and the columns carrying the lodge are Byzantine.

There are few other artifacts in Hagia Sophia referring to its church days including this architrave of 12 sheep that represents the twelve apostles of Christ and this can be seen in the garden.

Blue mosque : Blue mosque was closed for renovation when we visited in April 2023 which means we will have to go back to see it again soon. We were able to see it from outside.

Basilica cistern : There are hundreds of cisterns under the Historical Peninsula of Istanbul which were used as water storage facilities to ensure drinking water supply during war. The most famous cistern is Basilica Cistern and has a very unique architecture as it is built using reused columns from the ancient Greek era and hence you will see columns with head of Medusa. For more info on these cisterns, see this blog. It was highlight of our trip to tour basilica cistern and it is fascinating to see new age art installations among really old Greek era columns. If you are visiting Hagai Sophia, I highly recommend seeing this as it is walking distance from Hagia Sophia

Arasat Bazar

Grand bazar is the most famous shopping place in Istanbul, and you can walk to Grand Bazar from Hagia Sohia. There are couple of ways to get to Grand bazar- either walk through Nuruosmaniye Street or take the tram (More info here). It is huge and very easy to get lost. We decided to visit Asrsat Bazar -a charming little bazar close to Hagia Sophia and bought one of the best Turkish delights I have ever eaten in a little shop. Arasat bazar gives you all the experience of grand Bazar without overwhelming the senses. Spice bazar is another good place if you want to buy spices and other food items.

Bosphorus Cruise:

Bosphorus strait divides Turkey into Asian Turkey and European Turkey making it into an Intercontinental country. You can be in 2 continents within few minutes within the same country. We didn’t have enough time to take the cruise but our guide took us on a passenger ferry so that we can see the Asian side of Turkey. It was beautiful night to be on the cruise and we walked around a bit before stopping by Sekerci Cafe . This place is amazing if you have a sweet tooth and has every imaginable candy and store get decorated for various festivals. We got to see it in its glory decorated for Ramadan.

Final thoughts: Layover tour is Istanbul is totally worth it and we are hoping to go back to Istanbul on our next trip to Africa or India. We found Turkish people to very friendly, and welcoming. The food especially Turkish delight is amazing and history and culture inspiring and spending even few hours is worth it see this amazing city. There is lot more to see in Istanbul than we could cover in 7 hours and we are hoping to go back on our next adventure to visit more places.