Night Walking Tour in Istanbul Old City

Blue Mosque

This wondrous building is perhaps the most photographed site in Istanbul and one of Istanbul’s most iconic buildings, the Sultan Ahmet Mosque was built in the early 17th century as an audacious reassertion of Ottoman power. The mosque is famed for its magnificent blue interior. It is lined with over 20,000 handmade Iznik ceramic tiles in over 50 different designs, increasing in flamboyance from the lower levels up to the galleries. Working closely with architect Sedefhar Mehmet Aga, the sultan ordered six minarets to be constructed on the mosque, a controversial decision as the only other mosque in the world with this number of minarets was in Mecca. Both within and outside the mosque, its multiple domes create a magnificent effect: a cascade from the outside, while from inside the domes reinforce the eyes' gaze upwards toward the center of the mosque, which soars toward heaven.

Hippodrome

Hippodrome of Constantinople, was a public arena mainly for chariot races and was also home to gladiatorial games, official ceremonies, celebrations, protests, torture to the convicts, and so on. Hippodrome functioned all in Roman (203-330 CE), Byzantine (330-1453 CE), and Ottoman (1453-1922) periods.

Little Hagia Sophia, a former Greek Orthodox church during the Byzantine period, currently functions as a mosque. The original name of Little Hagia Sophia was “The Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus” which was dedicated to two young saints: St. Sergius and St. Bacchus. The Church of Sts. Sergius and Bacchus was built in 536 CE by Justinian I. Architecture of Little Hagia Sophia church is unique and not similar with Hagia Sophia. The structure has an octagonal nave inscribed within an irregular rectangle and is covered by 17 meters diameter umbrella dome. The church was converted into a mosque in 1513, sixty years after the conquest of Constantinople. Today, the temple functions as a mosque and welcomes visitors every day except prayer times