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JennifHsieh is a space for my rambling thoughts and snaps of my everyday style. I'm based in Astoria, Queens and I share a home with my two derpy cats and my equally derpy fiancé.

The Turkey Diaries: Blue Mosque


Right across from the Aya Sofya stands the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, more affectionately known as the Blue Mosque due to the blue tiles that adorn the interior walls. Unlike the Aya Sofya, which was turned into a museum, the Blue Mosque is a fully functioning mosque where you can find people praying at all times of the day. It's still a hot spot for tourists though so Jeremy and I made our way over for a few minutes.

I love the story behind the Blue Mosque's six minarets (even though my pictures only show a few at a time). The local's belief is that when the mosque was being built in 1609 during the rule of Sultan Ahmed I, he originally wanted gold (altin) minarets. However, his architect misunderstood him and built six (alti) minarets instead of the typical four. The only other mosque with six minarets was the Haram Mosque in Mecca, which is known to be the holiest mosque in the world. In fear of offending anyone, Ahmed sent his architect to Mecca in order to add a seventh minaret to the Haram Mosque. I just like to believe that Ahmed was feeling like a boss so just plopped down two extra minarets because YOLO. Because they definitely used the term YOLO back then, right?


When you first enter the blue mosque, you end up in the outdoor court area which is pretty much as big as the actual mosque itself. I made sure to bring along my larger scarf in order to use it as a head covering. Jeremy had given me a head's up about bringing a scarf before I arrived in Turkey and I was surprised to see that so many female tourists still ignored the guidelines to cover their heads. The mosque seemed to be pretty lenient though and ignored any violations (except for the rule to remove your shoes before entering the carpeted area).

Once we were shoeless and inside the mosque, I was stunning by how beautiful it was. It was much easier to appreciate the beauty of the stained glass and interior tiling since everyone was talking in whispers due to the ongoing prayers. I wish I had captured a photograph of the entire mosque but I only snapped a few detail shots that really intrigued me.


10 comments

  1. So beautiful! I love the perfect hazy church behind your and Jeremy's smiling faces. Awesome information in the writeup too! I'm such a proud parent

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  2. Ahh beautiful. I love that last photo.

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  3. Wow, the ceiling looks so grand. It must look so much beautiful in person!

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  4. how incredible and majestic is that mosque.. wow!!! so much great architecture over there!! now i want to go visit istanbul!! hahaha!

    Click me for my NEW BLOG

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  5. The architecture is STUNNING! Isn't it funny how it is respectful there to take off your shoes to enter, but that would be such a no-no here in the U.S.??! So interesting.

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  6. uuGHH that picture of the dome is sueprcalafragalisticespecaladocious (sp?? yeah sp). It's so so pretty. My goodness. You need a flickr so I can favorite all these pictures of yours, hahaha. I'd be your biggest fan girl!

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  7. OMG such beautiful photo, I especially love how you captured the inside of the dome, it's amazing.

    xoxo,
    Genie


    www.uniqueandchicstyle.blogspot.com

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  8. Fascinating and a fantastic old place .. And quality photos from Sultanahmet..

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