Aya Sofia

Day 1 in Istanbul

---

February 16th 2010
Well we were up and at 'em early, and with a good breakfast were prepared for a full day. Our first stop of the day was the Aya Sofia, originally constructed as a Christian church 1500 years ago - the largest until St Peter's Basilica was built in Rome. In 1453 the Ottoman's conquered Constantinople and the church became a mosque, with the mosaics being covered. It is now a museum with some ... read more

Middle East » Turkey » Marmara » Istanbul

---

Modern Turkey was founded in 1923 from the Anatolian remnants of the defeated Ottoman Empire by national hero Mustafa KEMAL, who was later honored with the title Ataturk, or "Father of the Turks." Under his authoritarian leadership, the country adopt... ... read more