Hagia Sophia (known as Sancta Sophia in Latin and Ayasofya in Turkish) is one of the oldest historical structures in the world standing for nearly 1500 years. In its long history it has been damaged and rebuilt for several times up to now. Howover, it is still standing as a great sample of architecture today.

It was built as a church when the time of Constantinopole. In 1453 Sultan Mehmet conquered Constantinopole and decided to convert the church into mosque. The Hagia Sophia served as a mosque for about 500 years. And In 1934 it was converted to the Ayasofya Museum. Today many people come to visit there.

You can take an online tour here and see the whole Hagia Sophia structure (your browser may need plugins).

If you are interested in shopping, you will find very interestings things in Istanbul. Turkey is famous for jewellery, leather and especially carpets. The Grand Bazaar and The Egyptian Spice Bazaar are good places to buy Turkish carpets, souvenirs, leather bags, spices and more. You must see that places and feel the authentic atmosphere even if you don’t think to buy anything.

istanbul shopping tips

There’re a few things you should know before shopping. The first thing is that you should know how to bargain in bazaars and markets. Read More »

Istanbul’s a crowded and complex city. Because of that, traffic is one of the biggest problems. For a longer stay you should purchase Akbil, a debit card that can be used for most kinds of public transportation within the city. There’re different kinds of public transportation in Istanbul.

Bus

Private and public buses are very common. According to the traffic time tables can change. So you may wait 10,15 or 20 minutes for a bus. There’re three kinds of buses: Read More »

The Grand Bazaar is the oldest and largest covered bazaar in the world including sixty lanes and more than three thousand shops. In the 15th century it looked like a large city with its thick walls and domes. Then the streets around the buildings developed and covered. The city turned into a trading center. There were different professions and handicrafts produced here were controlled.
Today a lot of shops changed their characters. Their names just remain as street names now. Read More »

Eyup Sultan Mosque is an important and sacred site for Muslims. The name of the mosque comes from Eyup-el-Ensari who was one of the bearers of Mohammed. He died here during a siege.

Eyup Sultan Mosque was built in 1458 (Ottoman Empire times) and then was destroyed in an earthquake. The present-day mosque was rebuilt in 1800. Read More »