There’s three of them, Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and Süleymaniye Mosque. I’ve only been to the first two, and, honestly, one might be enough, as long as it is the Blue Mosque. It is the most beautiful of the two. From the looks of it, online, it could be, of the three. The Blue Mosque is stunning both inside and on the outside, and is a must-do. The blue hue is reflected everywhere, and oddly enough, it’s not too much. What’s too much are the crowds. They are insane, in the whole area – the two mosques, Sultanahmet Park, which is more like a square, that kind of separates the them, and other nearby sights. This was my second visit to the Blue Mosque, and I was shocked to see the change. Last time I had the mosques more or less to myself. I decided not to revisit Hagia Sophia. You need a ticket to get in (the Blue Mosque is free), and with the crowds, and the fact that I wasn’t super impressed last time, I opted out. What’s different with Hagia Sophia, is that you can enter the second floor / gallery as well, at least you could when the mosque was not an active mosque, but a museum. You can go inside the mosques outside of prayer times, but as a woman you need to cover your hair, and everyone has to remove their shoes.
More on Istanbul.
The Blue Mosque / Sultanahmet Camii
The Blue Mosque from many years ago
Sultanahmet Park
Hagia Sophia
