All the truth about The Blue Mosque in Istanbul
This is one of the most visited monuments in Istanbul, and Hagia Sophia is on the opposite side, where entrance fee is 35-40 lira … Since we aren’t supporters of such attractions (even more with long queues), we surely opted for free Blue Mosque, where we went on Monday morning).
This is a courtyard. The height of the highest dome is 43 meters. And inside area covers 53х51 meters.
Here’s an entrance, but not for tourists. Only for Turks or locals, it seems. Others should get out of the yard and go through another entrance on the side.
There a queue has already formed so that everyone took a shawl and covered her head and feet… All shawls are blue, but it’s better to come with your own, because they don’t wash them after each guest… but there was no other way out.
After shawls, we pass on to the plate: take off your shoes and put in plastic bags they give you. There are shelves inside, we used them – nobody stole our shoes)
A Red Carpet immediately catches the eye)) And not only the eye … but the nose too. Just imagine, millions of sweaty feet … And the carpet absorbs all this. We didn’t have socks, we were barefoot) So our thoughts were not about paintings on the walls, but how to wash our feet and take on our shoes asap 🙂
There’s not much blue here, but still nice since ambitious. There are 260 windows and huge chandeliers.
On Monday morning the newweddies visited the mosque for photos)
A column, perhaps, of about twenty people in diameter.
This spacious area is for prayers and tourists are allowed only next to it.
The Blue Mosque has another name: the Sultan Ahmet Mosque, because he ordered to build it. And now it’s an Istanbul’s visiting card and a masterpiece of Islamic culture and architecture.
A similar situation to the Louvre with Mona Lisa)
Everybody have to exit another way, so you need to remember to take your shoes from the shelf. A guard exclaims tourists near the exit that they need to put on their shoes in the street behind the line. And another exclaims: donation! So that people donated to the mosque.
It’s written on the treads in different languages: Do not sit, do not wait here. But people still put on their shoes there. And only a few go down under the stairs to wash their feet …
Leaving the gates of the Blue Mosque … You can see Hagia Sophia at once and the crowd that heads there. In general, the biggest number of people are on the area between the two mosques.
A little bit more facade of the Blue Mosque.
We had a little bite of corn and ran away from there. Very crowded, noisy, hot and a movie was shot, a helicopter was flying, adding even more noise.
АThe Hagia Sofia. Now there’s only a museum and entrance fee as has been already mentioned is 35 or 40 lira per person. You have to wait in a queue for a ticket. There is an option to enter by a museum card (purchased in advance), they say, and that you may get in without the queue (but there may appear a queue of those who have the museum card)
The Blue Mosque. Acting, they pray here, so there are breaks to visits during the day. Admission is free, shawls are also given for free. We almost didn’t stand in line, it goes very fast, because all you need to do is take a shawl and take off your shoes.
With love, RH.
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