Istanbul - City Sightseeing
After breakfast, drive to old town and visit Hippodrome Square, the scene of Chariot races and the center of Byzantine civic life which was originally built by Roman Emperor Septimus in 203 AD. Then visit Blue Mosque, built in early 17th century and know as Blue Mosque because of its magnificent interior decoration with blue Iznik tiles. It is also unique in the world to have 6 minarets. Continue to St. Sophia Museum, built by Emperor Constantius is 360 AD. St. Sophia was for many centuries the world's largest church and today is the fourth largest one after St. Paul's in London, St. Peter's in Rome and Duomo in Milan. Throughout its Byzantine history, St. Sophia served as the cathedral of the city where emperors were crowned and victories celebrated. After his conquest of the city in 1453, Sultan Mehmet II ordered for the building to be converted into a mosque by the addition of Islamic elements such as a mihrab, a mimber, minarets etc. After having served this time as a mosque for 481 years, the building become a museum in 1934 by the order of Ataturk, the founder of the Repuplic of Turkiye. Last stop will be at famous historical Grand Bazaar, the largest "souk" covered oriental shopping mall in the world, where you will find 4,400 shops under one roof where each trade has its own street. There is a wide selection of leather, jewelry, antiques, copperware, souvenirs, and famous hand-made Turkish carpets displayed in this historical shopping center. After lunch visit Topkapi Palace, built by Sultan Mehmet II after the conquest of Istanbul in 15th century. The palace housed the sultans and their exotic entourage until mid 19th century. The complex is a group of structures which incorporates works from successive periods of Ottoman reign. Today the museum displays priceless collections of the imperial treasury, numerous pieces of Chinese porcelain, traditional costumes of the sultans and their families and special section for the preservation of the relics of Prophet Mohammed. After Topkapi, we shall visit, Hagia Eirene, the Church of the Holy Peace, which is one of the few churches in Istanbul that was never converted into a mosque, as it was used as an arsenal until the 19th century. Hagia Eirene reputedly stands on the site of a pre-Christian temple and has the distinction of being the first church built in Byzantium as it was converted into the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. From there, we visit Gulhane Park, once a part of the outer gardens of Topkapi Palace, where the Edict of Gulhane, a declaration of rights and liberties that played an essential role in the modernization of the Ottoman Empire. After the proclamation of the Republic, Gulhane Park was for many years home to the Istanbul Zoo.
Meal
Breakfast, Lunch
Your Accommodation
Radisson Hotel President Old Town Istanbul
Panoramic Sea of Marmara views can be admired from the rooftop terrace of Radisson Hotel President Beyazit Istanbul. It is in the heart of Istanbul, 100 yards from the Grand Bazaar. The Hotel's modern rooms are soundproof, have a contemporary decor and offer views of the historic city.
