Travel guides

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is the National mosque of Turkey in Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey and the capital of the Ottoman Empire (from 1453 to 1923). The mosque is one of several mosques known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior. It was built between 1609 and 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I. Like many other mosques, it also comprises a tomb of the founder, a madrasah and a hospice. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque has become one of the greatest tourist attractions of Istanbul.

GPS lcation: 41°00′19″N, 28°58′36″E

The Topkapı Palace (”Cannongate Palace” - named after a nearby gate), is located at the tip of a spit of land in the European part of Istanbul. It was built on the site of the old acropolis of ancient Greek Byzantion. After the fall of Constantinople, it became not just the primary residence of the Ottoman sultans and their households, but also the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1465 to 1853. In the hey-day of the Ottoman Empire there resided about 4,000 people in the palace. It was originally called the “New Palace” to distinguish it from the Eski Sarayi, the former residence of the sultan in Istanbul. It became known as the Topkapı Palace in the 19th century, named after a (now destroyed) Topkapı shore pavillion. Check this location if you are in Istanbul.

A few years after his conquest of Constantinople, the construction of a new palace was ordered by Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in 1459, who also established the layout of the palace. This layout would dictate the pattern of future renovations. He summoned experienced craftsmen from everywhere, especially inhabitants from Constantinople who had fled to Edirne and Bursa after the fall of the city. He used the most expensive and rare materials, trying to give back to the city its former glory. The palace was completed in 1465. The palace is favourably located on the Seraglio Point (Sarayburnu), a promontory overlooking the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara in Istanbul, having a splendid view of the Bosphorus. It consists of a conglomeration of many smaller buildings and four courts.

Coordinates: 41.013° N 28.984° E

Hagia Sophia, (the Church of) Holy Wisdom, now known as the Ayasofya Museum, was an early Christian Church and later an Eastern Orthodox church which was transformed into a mosque in 1453 by the Turks, and converted into a museum in 1935. It is located in Istanbul, Turkey. It is regularly considered one of the greatest, and most beautiful buildings in history. Its conquest by the Ottomans at the fall of Constantinople is considered one of the great tragedies of Christianity by the Greek Orthodox faithful.

The name comes from the Greek name meaning “Church of the Holy Wisdom of God”. It is also known as Sancta Sophia in Latin and Ayasofya in Turkish. Although it is sometimes called “Saint Sophia” in English, it is not named after a saint named Sophia — the Greek word sofia means “wisdom.”
It was constructed in five years, from 532 to 537, and designed by Isidore of Miletus.

Coordinates: 41.0085° N 28.9800° E