Aya Sofya

"Önce kiliseden camiye çevirdiğimiz, şimdi muze olan Ayasofya. İki dinin çocuklarına tapınaklık yapmış bir mabet."

Given its prominence in the view from my breakfast table at the hotel (and its physical proximity) I decided Aya Sofya would be a great place to start the day. The quote above from a Turkish novel I have (slowly) been reading references the long history that transformed the structure from a Byzantine church, to a congregational mosque hosting Ottoman Sultans, to a museum showcasing its importance to Christian and Muslim visitors. The interior is beautiful and features a mix of more traditional mosque elements with some older byzantine mosaics. Since it is now a museum and not a functioning mosque visitors are no longer required to remove their shoes before entering, but given that the interior still featured the mihrab, minbar and other mosque elements I never quite got over the feeling that my shoes didn't belong. The space seems like it would be a very peaceful one with about two hundred fewer tourists wandering through, but it was still large enough that you could find some space to just appreciate the atmosphere.