Istanbul - Full of History

Today I took a tour of a few of the many historical sites in Istanbul. It is a fascinating, captivating city. The many minarets and constant calls to prayer that blare throughout the city are visual and audible reminders that I’m not in Kansas (or Indiana) anymore.

Today I visited the Hippodrome, the ancient Roman sports stadium. My guide said it seated 60,000 spectators; others say it would hold 100,000. Either way it’s a lot!

Across the street from the Hippodrome was the most impressive Blue Mosque. Wow! It is an active mosque, so we had to take our shoes off. We avoided prayer times also. Sadly I could not capture much of its stunning beauty with my camera. It’s one of those “you have to be there” things. The Blue Mosque was built in a competitive response to the the Hagia Sophia

The Hagia Sophia was built in the 6th century. It stood as the largest cathedral in the world for 1000 years. When the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453, Sultan Mehmed II ordered the building converted into a mosque. All icons were removed and beautiful frescoes were plastered over; symbols of Islam were added. Very interesting! Today the building serves as a museum and does not function as a mosque or a church.

One thing about the Hagia Sophia that struck me is that many of the columns that hold up the structure were brought in from other ancient temples. Of particular interest to me is that there are several columns from the Temple of Artemis. The Temple of Artemis or Diana plays a huge role in the Acts narrative regarding Ephesus. I will visit there next week.

The next stop today was Topkapi Palace. There were lots of interesting things there, including precious jewels. There are some very important Islamic Relics, including, supposedly, the arm and skull of John the Baptist. Disturbing.

My guide and I had lunch over looking the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus, which is a vital international waterway. It’s beautiful.

My guide and I had some interesting conversations about culture, politics, and religion. He is a non-practicing Muslim. He said that about 40% of Turks do not practice their faith. His parents practice, and he does not care if his kids practice. However he wants them to explore all faiths and make a decision. A post-modern Turk.

One funny thing that caught my attention today involved a group of tourists from Asia. They saw one of the many cats that roam the streets of Istanbul and started saying loudly and in unison, “Meow, meow...” Maybe they were hungry? Ha ha.

I guess that’s enough for now.

I am enjoying myself, but I really miss my family. The trip is about half over, however. Thanks for all your prayers. I think I am 100% again.

[I have free interet here, so if you want to email me I would love to hear from you.]

Here are some pictures from today.