Haigia Sophia

The first sight we explored in Istanbul is The Hagia Sophia. This is an ancient church - turned mosque - turned museum. It was initially built in the 530s in Constantinople. In the 1400s, it was converted to a Mosque with the Turkish conquest of Constantinople.

Exploring Hagia Sophia costs 40 tl per person, and it an exercise in very hard floors and crowds. We enjoyed the intricate mosaics, and Hubby found the areas where mosaics appeared to be partially covered by colored plaster to be particularly intriguing.  If the mosaics were covered, why were they now partly uncovered? 

See here plaster next to original mosiac decoration

Another part of the Hagia Sophia we particularly enjoyed was the lighting system.  The building is lit by a relatively large number of simple chandeliers.  As best we can tell, these could be raised or lowered to allow for lighting of the original candles. 

During the time Hagia Sophia was used as a Mosque, Arabic script was added as decor.  These large circular discs adorn the upper portions of the walls.  Wifey particularly found it interesting while walking around the upper levels, seeing the back of the discs.  They're made of wood (which, considering their age, makes sense).  

All in all, we'd recommend visiting the Hagia Sophia to anyone coming to Istanbul.  We choose to tour on our own using a book we brought along from the Library for reference.  You might consider hiring one of the local tour guides to walk you through the space in order to learn a bit more about its history and usage.